Flames 8th, Lady Flames 12th At NCCAA National Track Meet

  • Monday, May 4, 2015

ROME, Ga. – The Flames finished eighth and the Lady Flames were 12th as the Lee University Track & Field teams competed in the 2015 National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) National Championships this weekend. Lee followed two national championships on Friday with 14 athletes placing in scoring position (top eight) of their events, including five NCCAA All-American (top three) performances.

Fellow Gulf South Conference members Shorter University and Mississippi College also participated in the two-day event at Historic Barron Stadium and Maddox Track. Shorter won both team championships, while the Choctaws and the Lady Choctaws were 13th.

The Flames had most of their success in the 800 meter run with three runners placed in the event’s top eight. Harold Smith was second (1:53.15) to earn his second NCCAA All-American honor of the weekend. Emmanuel Kipchumba placed fifth (1:54.47) and Terris Elliott crossed the finish line in eighth (1:55.70). Adam Gullette was 36th in the race with a time of 2:00.48.

"Harold ran a great race. That was by far the most competitive NCCAA 800m ever. Finishing 2nd in a race of that caliber as a freshman is a great feat."

Kipchumba, Elliott and Gullette joined Smith as NCCAA All-Americans as part of the national champion 4x800 meter relay team. Seth Eagleson also claimed All-American status in connection to his national championship in the 10000 meter run.

Elliott joined Camden Perez in the 3000 meter steeplechase. Perez placed eighth with a time of 9:28.94 and Elliott was 13th (9:46.76).

Smith just missed his second top-eight performance of the day with a ninth-place finish in the 5000 meter run with a mark of 15:51.04. Eagleson was sixth in the event at 15:24.34.

Alex Carter, Nick Eckert and Joseph Crook took on the 1500 meter run with Carter crossing the finish line at 4:06.66 (12th). Eckert was 15th (4:10.16) and Crook finished 19th (4:28.95).

Rick Barry and Hunter Goforth took to the pit for the long jump. Barry recorded a distance of 6.57 meters for eighth and Goforth was right behind in ninth place (6.49 meters).

Adrian Martin was the top performer for the Lady Flames with two second-place finishes and two NCCAA All-American honors. Martin finished the 100 meter dash in 12.20, just 0.06 seconds behind Shorter’s Kemor Anderson. In the 200 meter dash, Ayana Walker (Shorter) set the meet record at 23.53, while Martin (24.12) was 0.6 seconds faster than Anderson.

"Adrian ran two great races,” said Lee head coach Caleb Morgan. She recorded a personal record in the 200 meter, but it wasn't quite enough. The athlete Adrian finished just off of in the 200 meter is an NCAA Division II champion. That gives us a really good idea of where Adrian will stack up next year when we can compete in the postseason."

Audrey Smith finished just outside of All-American status with a fourth-place finish in the 3000 meter steeplechase. She recorded a time of 11:41.13.

Smith joined Jessica Childers in the 1500 meter run. Childers placed seventh (4:41.35) and Smith was 23rd (4:59.88).

"You can tell a lot about an athlete’s mental drive when doubling back in an event at a championship,” added Morgan. “I am very proud of Jessica and Elizabeth (Sillcocks). They wanted to pick up All-American honors in the 10000 meter and 1500 meter. Neither athlete was quite good enough to do so, but hey both came back highly motivated and determined in their secondary events and ran with a focus and determination to pick up All-American honors in the 800 meter and 5000 meter.”

Childers followed her seventh-place finish in the 1500 meter run with third place in the 800 meter run (2:14.96). Brianna Prugh was 25th in the event with a mark of 2:27.76.

Less than 24 hours after not finishing the 10000 meter run, Sillcocks earned a spot on the 5000 meter podium with a third-placed finish (18:19.20).

Emily Bryan earned a point for the team with an eighth-place finish in the 400 meter hurdles. She recorded a time of 1:09.63.

Lee University Results (*NCCAA All-American):
Friday, May 1
        110 M Hurdles Men Prelim - Rick Barry (13th, 16.27)
        400 Meters Men Prelim - Jovan Jones (14th, 50.47)
        400 Meters Women Prelim - Moneque Beckford (DNS)
        100 Meters Women Prelim - Adrian Martin (3rd, 12.40)
        400 M Hurdles Men Prelim - Rick Barry (9th, 55.93)
        400 M Hurdles Women Prelim - Emily Bryan (8th, 1:08.29)
        200 Meters Women Prelim - Adrian Martin (1st, 23.99)
        10,000 Meters Men Final - Seth Eagleson* (1st, 32:03.89), Joseph Crook (6th, 33:06.70)
        10,000 Meters Women Final - Elizabeth Sillcocks (DNF)
        4 x 800 Meter Relay Men Final – Emmanuel Kipchumba*, Adam Gullette*, Terris Elliott*, Harold Smith* (1st, 7:35.61, NCCAA Championships Record—Lee Record)
        4 x 800 Meter Relay Women Final - Emily Bryan., Brianna Prugh, Madison Riddle, Jessica Childers (7th, 9:40.92)

Saturday, May 2
        3,000 M Steeplechase Men Final - Camden Perez (8th, 9:28.94), Terris Elliott (13th, 9:46.76)
        3,000 M Steeplechase Women Final - Audrey Smith (4th, 11:41.13)
        1,500 M Run Men Final - Alex Carter (12th, 4:06.66), Nick Eckert (15th, 4:10.16), Joseph Crook (19th, 4:28.95)
        1,500 M Run Women Final - Jessica Childers (7th, 4:41.35), Audrey Smith (23rd, 4:59.88)
        Men Long Jump - Rick Barry (8th, 6.57 meters), Hunter Goforth (9th, 6.49 meters)
        100 Meters Women Final - Adrian Martin* (2nd, 12.20)
        800 Meters Men Final – Harold Smith* (2nd, 1:53.15), Emmanuel Kipchumba (5th, 1:54.47), Terris Elliott (8th, 1:55.70), Adam Gullette (36th, 2:00.48)
        800 Meters Women Final – Jessica Childers* (3rd, 2:14.96), Brianna Prugh (25th, 2:27.76)
        400 M Hurdles Women Final - Emily Bryan (8th, 1:09.63)
        200 Meters Women Final - Adrian Martin* (2nd, 24.12)
        5,000 Meters Men Final - Seth Eagleson (6th, 15:24.34), Harold Smith (9th, 15:51.04)
        5,000 Meters Women Final – Elizabeth Sillcocks* (3rd, 18:19.20)

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