The West Virginia University women’s track and field team wrapped up an extremely successful weekend at the Big 12 Championships, with outstanding performances by Joy Naukot and Sarah Tait. Read more Naukot and Tait Lead Mountaineers with Gold Medal Performances.
Day One
The Big 12 Outdoor Championships were held in Lawrence, Kansas at Rock Chalk Park from May 15th-17th.
Day one was highlighted by the performance of freshman Joy Naukot in the women’s 10,000-meter. Naukot claimed the conference title in this event with a time of 33:30.85. Not only did Naukot bring home a win – she also made WVU history. Joining alongside alumnae Kaitlyn Gillespie, Naukot is only the second Mountaineer in program history to win the 10,000-meters at the Big 12 Outdoor Championships. Gillespie’s title was earned in 2015 with a time of 33:45.56.
Following Naukot’s impressive start, Olivia Cress finished in the heptathlon with 3,107 total points. She competed in the 100-meter hurdles, high jump, shot put, and the 200-meters. In the 200-meters Cress finished with a time of 24.88, placing ninth.
Tecla Lokrale finished in the 17th position in the women’s 1,500-meters with a time of 4:35.79.
In the 400-meter hurdles, Lily Haught placed 25th with a personal best time of 1:00.67.
Read more: WVU Shut Out Again and Swept by Kansas
Day Two
Following the success of day one was no easy task, but graduate student Sarah Tait made it look effortless. Tait secured a meet record and a 3,000-meter steeplechase title at the Big 12 Outdoor Championships on Friday night.
With a time of 9:44.72, she not only secured a title but knocked down the previous record that had stood since 2010. The previous record had been set by Colorado’s Emma Coburn.
Zara Zervos also had a standout performance in the steeplechase, finishing 15th with a time of 11:48.52.
Kishay Rowe led the Mountaineers in the 800-meters in 12th place with a time of 2:07.76. Shortly behind came Eva Rinker, with a 36th place finish.
Sabria Jones made her outdoor conference championship debut, and finished 26th in the long jump.
Day 3
With the bar set high after two standout days, redshirt sophomore Annishka McDonald rose to the occasion, clearing 1.78 meters in the high jump to tie her personal best. Her performance earned a fifth-place finish and 3.5 valuable points for the Mountaineers in the process.
Next up for the Mountaineers was the 5,000-meters. Naomi Kemboi and Emily Bryce were the standouts here, finishing 6th and 7th place with respective times of 15:52.10 and 15:53.11. This duo collectively gained WVU five points.
Alexis Lamb and Tatiana Mourna also participated in the 5,000-meters, placing 11th and 32nd.
Weekend Roundup
Overall, the Big 12 Outdoor Championships brought major successes to the women’s track and field team. Naukot earned the 10,000-meter conference title and rewrote WVU history, while Tait impressively knocked a meet record, taking the Big 12 title.
The Mountaineers will head to the NCAA East Preliminary Round on Ma 28th-31st next, which will be hosted by North Florida. The event will be held at the Visit Jax Track at Hodges Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida.
Naukot and Tait Lead Mountaineers with Gold Medal Performances.
