LAFAYETTE, La. – The UT Arlington track and field team wrapped up the 2022 Sun Belt Conference Outdoor Championships on Saturday afternoon at the Ragin' Cajun Track Facility.
Jade Bontke was named the Sun Belt Conference's Top Scorer of the Meet with five medals including two on Saturday. She was also the Top Scorer of the Meet in the indoor season.
The women earned a third place finish with 120 points, while the men took home a fourth place finish with 94 points. Arkansas State took home the championship on the women's side, while South Alabama took home the crown on the men's side.
UTA saw three gold medalist on the afternoon as well as numerous athletes earning a spot on the podium.
The Maverick swept the 400 meter hurdles with three impressive performances.
Shelby West set a new school record, meet record, and facility record as she won the event with a time of 57.68, good for 20th in the country. Bontke, fresh off three medals just one day ago including a gold in the pentathlon, placed second with a new PR of 59.15.
On the men's side,
Lucas Van Klaveren, fresh off a gold of his own in the decathlon, took home another gold medal as he won the 400 meter hurdles with a new PR of 50.48, good for 26th in the nation.
Madeleine Rowe won the 1500 meter for the second straight season with a time of 4:35.23, coming from behind with a huge kick in the final 200 meters to take the event.
Mathilde Ruud added a sixth place finish in the event. Ruud and Rowe went on to place seventh and eighth in the 800 meter.
Jackson Cichon followed with an excellent showing in the 800 meter as he broke away later for a silver medal with a time of 1:50.71, a new PR.
Alfredo Corona earned a fourth place finish in the 1500 final at 3:53.94.
Iyana Gray had an outstanding day as she set a pair of new school record in her sprinting events. Gray began the day with a new PR in the 100 meter dash at 11.22 to finish second and set a new school record in the process. She followed that up with a bronze in the 200 meter dash with a new school mark of 23.13.
Adeyemi Talabi finished fourth in the 100 meter at 11.44, a new PR, and finished seventh in the 200 at 23.82.
Tatyana Terrell earned a fourth place finish in the 400 meter dash at 54.26 and a sixth place finish in the 200 at 23.81.
Joel Bengtsson slipped out the gates in the 110 meter hurdles, but was able to regather himself and still finish with a bronze with a time of 13.80.
DaVontay Kennedy placed seventh in the 200 meter dash at 21.09.
The 4x400 teams closed the night on the track side as West, Terrell, Bontke, and
Vanessa Ugorji set a new school record with a time of 3:37.14 to place second. The men's team of Van Klaveren, Cichon,
Khalid Mendez, and
Jarvis Miles placed second as well with a time of 3:09.76.
On the field side,
Marvin Walford led the way with an excellent showing in the triple jump, earning silver after a massive jump of 15.37 (50-5 1/4), good for a new PR. On the women's side,
Amelia Peterson set a new PR on her final jump to place fourth at 12.29 (40-4).
Randon Gray placed fifth in the pole vault at 4.83 (15-10), while
Bryson DeBerry finish fifth in the high jump at 2.03 (6-8).
UTA will return to action in a few weeks as they head to the NCAA Championships Preliminary Round at John McDonnell Field in Fayetteville, Ark. The event begins May 25 and runs through May 28.
Gallery: (5-14-2022) Track & Field at SBC Outdoor Championships (Day 3)
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