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PROVIDENCE, R.I. – For a fourth-consecutive year, the Birmingham CrossPlex in Birmingham, Alabama, will serve as the home of the 2019 American Athletic Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships. All 12 teams will compete in the conference’s sixth title meet from Friday-Saturday, Feb. 22-23. The No. 4 Houston men look to win their fifth-straight American indoor title behind a core of four All-Americans and 28 returners, while the Cincinnati women return six podium finishers from last year’s championship team.
The Bearcat women won their first conference title in 2018 after finishing in second place in 2016 and 2017. Cincinnati recorded the most points in conference history with 147 after winning seven events. The Houston men won six events on the second day of the championships en route to capturing their fourth-consecutive American title in 2018. SMU earned its best indoor finish since 2014, placing second in the women’s meet. The Houston women won the 2018 outdoor championship and own five of the top indoor marks in The American heading into the championship. The UConn men have finished in the top five in each of The American’s five indoor championships. In total, 12 meet records were set at the 2018 championships.
Key Returners
Twenty-five conference individual indoor champions return to this year’s meet to reclaim a title, including eight from Houston’s men’s and women’s rosters. Houston’s Amere Lattin (60mH, 4x400m), Kahmari Montgomery (400m, 4x400m), Mario Burke (60m, 4x400m), UConn’s Susan Aneno (DMR, 800m, 4x400m), SMU’s Hannah Miller (3,000m, 5,000m) and Tulsa’s Benjamin Preisner (3,000m, 5,000m, DMR) each return this year after winning multiple events at the 2018 indoor championships.
The American Among the Nation
American indoor track and field athletes own 22 top-20 marks on the NCAA’s performance list this season, with the Houston men accounting for five top-10 marks in the nation’s sprinting events (60m, 60mH, 200m, 400m and 4x400m relay). Athletes from around the conference have combined to set 10 men’s and women’s records on the league’s all-time performance list this season.
The Cougar men have been a top-five team in the nation all season, most recently coming in at No. 4 in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association’s (USTFCCCA) poll. Senior transfer Obi Igbokwe has made an immediate impact, running the fastest 400m time in the country and world this season after clocking 45.35 seconds at the Clemson Tiger Paw Invitational. Houston, which has won the national 4x100m relay title outdoors for the past two years, is the NCAA’s favorite in the 4x400m indoor relay this year. On Feb. 9, Lattin, Igbokwe, Jermaine Holt and Montgomery ran the fastest 4x400m time in the country (3:01.51), which also ranks fourth all-time in world history. A nine-time All-America sprinter, Igbokwe also ran the fifth-fastest 200m in the NCAA this season (20.66) at the Charlie Thomas Invitational.
Montgomery, a three-time conference champion, joins Igbokwe in owning three top-six NCAA times this season. In addition to running as part of the nation’s No. 1 4x400m team, Montgomery ran the fourth-fastest 200m this year (20.63) and sixth-fastest 400m (45.74). The Houston men have accounted for five of seven American Indoor Track Athlete of the Week nods.
Cincinnati senior Loretta Blaut, a four-time conference high jump champion and two-time national runner-up, enters this year’s conference indoor meet ranked No. 1 in the nation after tying her career-best indoor clearance of 1.87 meters (6-1.5) at the Charlie Thomas Invitational. Houston’s Taylor Scaife ranks No. 3 in the NCAA in the women’s weight throw with her school-record distance of 22.65 meters recorded in January. The Bearcat and Cougar women each own at least two other top-20 marks in the nation this year.
The UConn women have a top-five NCAA time with senior Susan Aneno clocking 2:03.94 in the 800m at the Vanderbilt Invitational on Jan. 18. The Memphis men possess a pair of top-10 NCAA marks this season with high jumper Jordan Wesner ranking No. 8 in the nation (2.25 meters) in his event and Davon DeMoss ranking No. 10 in the 60m dash with his top time of 6.61 seconds. Senior pole vaulter Rebekah Markel of Tulane shot atop The American’s all-time performance list after clearing 4.33 meters on Feb. 8, as her height ranks 12th nationally.
Top-20 National Marks
Name, School (Event, National Ranking)
Loretta Blaut, Cincinnati (HJ, 1st)
Irati Mitxelena, Cincinnati (TJ, 13th)
Naomi Urbano, Cincinnati (Pent, 19th)
Kat Surin, UConn (400m, 17th)
Susan Aneno, UConn (800m, 5th)
Divine Oladipo, UConn (SP, 13th)
Mario Burke, Houston (60m, 5th)
Kahmari Montgomery, Houston (4x400m, 1st; 200m, 4th; 400m, 6th)
Obi Igbokwe, Houston (400m, 1st; 4x400m, 1st; 200m, 5th;)
Amere Lattin, Houston (4x400m, 1st; 60mH, 8th)
Jermaine Holt, Houston (4x400m, 1st)
Trumaine Jefferson, Houston (LJ, 13th)
Brianne Bethel, Houston (4x400m, 14th)
Jazmyn Tilford-Rutherf, Houston (4x400m, 14th)
Payge Side, Houston (4x400m, 14th)
Birexus Hawkins, Houston (4x400m, 14th)
Samiyah Samuels, Houston (LJ, 13th)
Taylor Scaife, Houston (WT, 3rd)
Davon DeMoss, Memphis (60m, 10th)
Jordan Wesner, Memphis (HJ, 8th)
Chelsea Francis, SMU (60m, 15th)
Rebekah Markel, Tulane (PV, 12th)
Sidney Sapp, Wichita State (HJ, 14th)
Event-By-Event Preview
MEN’S
Heptathlon
A new men’s indoor heptathlon champion will be crowned this year, as UConn’s Benjamin Grosse enters the meet as the league’s frontrunner with his score of 4,952 recorded on Feb. 1. Houston’s Nathaniel Mechler won the league’s 2018 heptathlon title with 5,703 points and holds the third-best score in the conference this season (4,786). Wichita State has three of the top six top scores in the league heading into the indoor championships with Grant Downes leading the Shockers (4,826) for the second-best score in The American.
Mile Run
Wichita State’s Zach Penrod ended a three-year Tulsa reign in the mile after winning the 2018 indoor title. Penrod’s time of 4:04.66 recorded on Feb. 8 leads the conference this season, as teammate Nathan Wickoren ran 4:06.39 for the next-best time in the league. The field features two UConn and two Tulsa runners in the top 10 heading into the race.
60-Meter Hurdles
Houston has taken the men’s 60-meter hurdles title for the past four years as two-time champion Amere Lattin returns to defend his title. Lattin’s top 2019 time came on Jan. 18 when he bested The American’s meet record mark after clocking 7.73 seconds. His time ranks eighth nationally this season. The Cougars have three of the top-10 60mH times in the conference with freshman Devion Wilson ranking No. 2 with his time of 7.93 seconds. Cincinnati and UConn make up the majority of the remainder of the field.
400-Meter Dash
Houston has the top-four 400m times in the conference this season, which includes the No. 1 and No. 6 times in the NCAA. Obi Igbokwe ran the fastest 400m time in the country and world this season after clocking 45.35 seconds on Feb. 8. Last year’s indoor and outdoor 400m champion Kahmari Montgomery owns the sixth-fastest time in the country (45.74).
60-Meter Dash
Houston’s Mario Burke looks to keep the streak going for the Cougars, who have dominated the 60-meter dash, winning the event in each of the conference’s championships. He looks to regain the 60-meter dash title after winning in 2017, following a second-place finish last year behind teammate and All-America sprinter Elijah Hall. Burke leads The American this season with the fifth-fastest 60m in the nation (6.58 seconds). Four of the top five 60m times in the league belong to the Cougars. Additionally, Memphis’ Davon DeMoss owns the second-best mark in The American this year (6.61 seconds), which is 10th nationally.
800-Meter Run
Cameron Laverty, the 2018 800-meter runner-up, looks to bring the title back to Houston after the Cougars captured gold in the event in the league’s first two indoor championships. Laverty owns the top time on the conference’s 2019 performance list (1:50.38), but UConn’s Tyler Gleen also holds a sub-1:51 mark, having run 1:50.49 at the Dr. Sander Columbia Challenge in January.
200-Meter Dash
Montgomery, a 400m specialist, also owns the fourth-fastest 200-meter dash time in the country this year. The 200m title has been won by a Cougar for the past two years, and Houston possesses the top four times in The American this season. Igbokwe, Lattin and Burke hold the next top 200m times on the league’s performance list behind Montgomery.
5,000-Meter Run
Tulsa has thrived in the 5,000-meter run for the past four years, and in 2019, it’s another Golden Hurricane distance runner to lead The American entering the conference indoor meet. Tulsa’s Scott Beattie, who was the 2018 Cross Country Freshman of the Year, clocked 13:59.42 on Feb. 8 for the No. 1 time in the league this year. Cincinnati’s Aaron Bienenfeld, the conference’s 2018 outdoor 10,000-meter champion, owns the No. 2 5,000m time (14:08.81), followed by ECU’s Nicholas Ciaccia. The American’s reigning champion and record-holder Benjamin Preisner of Tulsa also returns to the race this year.
Distance Medley Relay
The distance medley relay has been an event dominated by Tulsa for the past four years, however, UConn’s squad of Joseph Pearl, Adam Khriss, Joshua Bedard and Michael McGonnigle own the top DMR time in the conference heading into the championship (9:54.42). Wichita State holds the second-fastest DMR time among conference teams this year (9:59.98).
3,000-Meter Run
Three of the conference’s five 3,000-meter titles have gone to Tulsa, but this season, McGonnigle and Patrick Begley of UConn hold the No. 1 and 2 spots on the conference’s performance list, respectively. Last year’s champion Benjamin Preisner of Tulsa returns to defend his title.
4x400-Meter Relay
Houston’s 4x400-meter relay squad continues to shatter records, as the team ran the fastest time in the NCAA this season at the Clemson Tiger Paw Invitational (3:01.51)—the fourth-fastest time in world history. The team of Igbokwe, Lattin, Jermaine Holt and Montgomery claimed the record mark, with next-best 4x400m time in The American recorded this season comes from Memphis at 3:10.03.
Pole Vault
With four-time American indoor pole vault champion Adrian Valles of Cincinnati out of the picture, last year’s runner-up David Bell is in a position to claim the first pole vault title for USF. His conference-best 5.30m clearance ranks .20m above teammate Stone Baker’s mark of 5.10m, which is second in the league this year.
Weight Throw
Two Shockers are the frontrunners heading into the men’s weight throw competition with Cory Martens leading the way. His distance of 19.76 meters stands No. 1 in The American, as teammate Isaiah Evans had the next-best toss with his distance of 19.49 meters. Tulsa’s Aleks Rapp won the title in 2017 as a freshman and returns his junior year to reclaim it. Memphis has three throwers in the top 10 for this event with Adar Sheere leading the Tigers for the third-best toss recorded in the league (19.43 meters).
Long Jump
Two former conference champions will be battling for this year’s long jump title. Wichita State’s Jared Belardo won gold in 2018, but Houston’s Trumaine Jefferson returns to the indoor championship to reclaim the title after winning in 2017. Jefferson ranks No. 1 on the team’s performance list heading into the meet after jumping for 7.81 meters at the Houston Invitational in January. Belardo was The American’s outdoor long jump runner-up in 2018, while Jefferson finished third.
High Jump
Memphis All-America high jumper Jordan Wesner has gone undefeated this season, winning three high jump events to enter the conference meet. Wesner, the 2017 American indoor champion, opened the season with the eighth-highest clearance in the country (2.25 meters) on December 1. UConn sophomore Daniel Claxton won The American’s 2018 outdoor high jump title and owns the second-best indoor clearance in the league this season (2.16 meters).
Shot Put
Houston’s Felipe Valencia took home The American’s indoor shot put title as a freshman in 2016 and returns to reclaim gold in the event as a senior. The thrower owns the No. 1 distance in the league and No. 39 mark in the NCAA (18.50 meters) this season. He also finished second in the league’s 2018 outdoor shot put. Adam Neelly of Memphis was a podium finisher in the indoor shot put in 2018 to help the Tigers sweep the event. He owns the second-furthest throw in the conference this year (18.02 meters).
Triple Jump
UConn’s Malik Snead looks to repeat in the conference’s indoor triple jump after winning the league’s title in 2018. He enters the meet with the top distance in the conference (15.78 meters). Cincinnati’s Andre Wright is close behind with the second-best triple jump mark in The American (15.57 meters), followed by Memphis’ 2017 American champion Olushola Olojo (15.46 meters). USF has three athletes in the top 10 for this event, including last year’s runner-up and outdoor triple jump champion Errol Ennis.
WOMEN’S
Pentathlon
The conference’s two-time defending indoor pentathlon champion Naomi Urbana of Cincinnati looks for a three-peat, and is in a good position to do so with the 19th-best pentathlon score in the NCAA this year (3,805). Teammate Angela Lightfoot finished third in last year’s indoor championship and owns the second-best mark in The American this year (3,862). USF’s Adriana Janic will challenge the two Bearcats with her top score of 3,844 this season.
Mile Run
Temple had a strong mile performance in last year’s championships with Millie Howard taking home the title in a meet-record time of 4:46.21. Once again, the Owls boast four of the top-10 mile times in the league this year, but it’s UConn’s Mia Nahom who leads the pack with a league-best mile time of 4:44.83. Nahom was the mile runner-up in last year’s conference meet.
60-Meter Hurdles
After placing first in the prelims as a freshman in 2018, Houston’s Naomi Taylor finished second to Tulane’s Brandi Hughes in the 60-meter hurdles. Both of them return to this year’s race, as Taylor owns the best time this season (8.26 seconds). Hughes’ best time this year ranks No. 2 on the league’s performance list (8.40 seconds). Zharia Moore of UCF has the third-best conference 60mH time (8.43), as Tulane All-Conference hurdler Jessica Duckett is fourth in the league heading into the championships with her top time of 8.45 seconds.
400-Meter Dash
UConn’s Kat Surin has been a podium finisher in the 400m in each of the past two years. The senior ranks No. 1 on the league’s performance list and No. 17 in the nation this season with her top time of 53.19 seconds recorded in February. SMU freshman Chika Iwuamadi has the second-best mark in the league at 53.72 seconds, and last year’s runner-up, Tiona Lattimore of Cincinnati, is in the conference’s top five this season with her time of 54.87 seconds.
60-Meter Dash
Last year’s Outdoor Track Most Outstanding Performer Brianne Bethel of Houston won the 60-meter dash in 2018, but it’s the 2018 runner-up, Chelsea Francis of SMU, who holds the top 60m dash time to enter this year’s conference race after clocking 7.27 seconds at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Collegiate Invitational in January. UCF’s Nelda Huggins holds the second-best 60m time in the league at 7.35 seconds recorded at the Bob Pollock Invitational.
800-Meter Run
UConn’s Susan Aneno is coming off an impressive run from the 2018 American indoor championship in which she defeated two-time 800m champion Rosie Chamberlain of UCF. Now Aneno will chase The American Championship record, as the senior has been running below the all-time meet mark set in 2014 this season with her best time registered at the Vanderbilt Invitational (2:03.94). She is only one of five athletes this year running sub-2:04 times, as her mark ranks fifth in the nation.
200-Meter Dash
For the past three seasons, the women’s 200-meter dash title has gone to either Houston or SMU, and this year, Houston’s Bethel and SMU’s Francis rank No. 1 and 2, respectively entering the meet. Bethel, the 2018 runner-up, ran 23.45 seconds on Feb. 8 to lead the conference this season. Francis, who finished in third last year, clocked 23.70 seconds on Jan. 18. Three UCF sprinters are close behind with the third, fourth and fifth-best marks in The American this year. Imani Clark leads the Knights with a season-best time of 23.82 seconds.
5,000-Meter Run
Miller, the 2018 5,000 and 3,000-meter indoor champion, returns to the indoor championship this season, but once again will be challenged by Wichita State’s Winny Koskei in a key long-distance matchup. Koskei won the 5,000 and 10,000-meter outdoor titles in 2018 before racing for first place in the 2018 American Cross Country Championship. Koskei has been on a roll and leads the league with the No. 1 5,000m time in the regular season (16:05.65). Miller won the 5,000m race at the Houston Invitational in 16:22.83 for her top time this season.
Distance Medley Relay
Temple could pick up its first distance medley relay American title after defeating three-time conference champion UConn at the Dr. Sander Columbia Challenge in January. The Owls’ relay squad of Howard, Marissa White, Helene Holm Gottlieb and Grace Moore ran the fastest DMR time of 11:23.03 in the conference this year. Cincinnati ran the DMR in 11:42.48 for the second-fastest time in The American, while UConn holds the third-best mark with a time of 11:48.48.
3,000-Meter Run
Running the 3,000-meter only once this season, SMU’s Miller leads the conference with a personal-best time of 9:21.44. She won the Music City Invitational on Feb. 8 with that mark and is the reigning American indoor 3,000m champion. Teammate Svenja Ojstersek owns the fourth-best 3,000m in the league (9:28.03), while Temple and Wichita State join the Mustangs in each placing two athletes in The American’s top 10 for this event.
4x400-Meter Relay
UConn won its second 4x400-meter title in five years in 2018, but Houston is the frontrunner heading into the race after the team of Jazmyn Tilford-Rutherf, Payge Side and Birexus Hawkins registered the 14th-fastest 4x400m in the country on Feb. 8 (3:35.10) to move to No. 1 in The American this year. Recording 3:38.83, the Huskies (Kristina Cherrington, Surin, Shanelle Colmon and Aneno) won the crown at the Scarlet & White Invitational for the second-fastest mark in the conference this season.
Pole Vault
Tulane senior Rebekah Markel has had a tremendous season in the pole vault. She set the conference’s record twice this year, most recently clearing 4.33 meters on Feb. 8. Her mark ranks 12th in the NCAA this season. ECU’s Sommer Knight cleared 4.14 meters for the second-best mark in the league, while 2018 champion Brooke Catherine of Cincinnati will return to defend her title.
Weight Throw
With three-time conference indoor weight throw champion Annette Echikunwoke out of the picture in 2019, Houston’s Taylor Scaife is the favorite entering the conference meet to take home gold. Scaife has had a standout record year and owns the third-longest toss in the NCAA this season (22.65 meters). UCF’s Gabby Durant and Memphis’ DeeNia McMiller each own top-30 throws in the country this season.
Long Jump
Houston’s Samiyah Samuels jumped for a distance of 6.27 meters to shoot up to No. 1 on The American’s all-time performance list. The junior won the conference’s title in 2018 after finishing as the league’s runner-up in 2017. Samuels also won the conference’s 2018 outdoor title in this event. Cincinnati has two athletes in The American’s top six for the long jump, including reigning triple jump champion Irati Mitxelena.
High Jump
Cincinnati’s Loretta Blaut, a four-time American high jump champion and two-time national runner-up, is once again the favorite heading into the 2019 conference championship. Blaut tied her personal-best and conference record 1.87-meter clearance on February 1. Her mark is tied for No. 1 in the NCAA this season. Wichita State freshman Sidney Sapp cleared 1.80 meters on Feb. 8, which ranks 14th in the nation.
Shot Put
UConn junior Divine Oladipo ranks No. 1 on The American’s all-time performance list with her toss of 16.88 meters recorded on Feb. 2. That distance is good for ranking 13th nationally. She won the conference’s indoor shot put in 2017 as a freshman and was the league’s shot put runner-up during the outdoor championship that year. She finished third at the league’s 2018 indoor championship. Wichita State’s Kelsey Slawson owns the next-best throw in the league this year with her toss of 15.72 meters recorded on Feb. 15.
Triple Jump
Cincinnati’s Irati Mitxelena won the conference’s indoor triple jump title in 2018, and is in a good spot to repeat in 2019, as the junior registered the No. 1 distance all-time in The American this year on Feb. 8 (13.17 meters). Memphis’ Saida Burns-Moore has shined in the triple and high jumps this season, and holds the No. 2 triple jump in The American to enter the meet (13.01 meters).
Championships Schedule:
Friday, February 22
Women's Pentathlon
9:00 a.m. W-Pentathlon 60m Hurdles
9:45 a.m. W-Pentathlon High Jump (2 Pits)
11:30 a.m. W-Pentathlon Shot Put
12:45 p.m. W- Pentathlon Long Jump (Pit A)
2:00 p.m. W-Pentathlon 800m Run
Men's Heptathlon
11:00 a.m. M-Heptathlon 60m Dash
11:45 a.m. M-Heptathlon Long Jump (Pit B)
1:00 p.m. M-Heptathlon Shot Put
3:20 p.m. M-Heptathlon High Jump
Field Events
12:00 p.m. Pole Vault - Men Trials & FINAL
2:00 p.m. Long Jump - Women Trials & FINAL
2:15 p.m. 35 lb. Weight Throw - Men Trials & FINAL
3:30 p.m. Pole Vault - Women Trials & FINAL
4:00 p.m. Long Jump - Men Trails & FINAL
4:15 p.m. 20lb. Weight Throw - Women Trials & FINAL
Track Events
12:25 p.m. Mile Run - Women Trials
12:30 p.m. Mile Run - Men Trials
12:55 p.m. 400m Dash - Women Trials
1:10 p.m. 400m Dash- Men Trials
1:35 p.m. 60m Hurdles - Women Trials
1:45 p.m. 60m Hurdles - Men Trials
1:55 p.m. 60m Dash - Women Trials
2:05 p.m. 60m Dash- Men Trials
2:30 p.m. 800m Run - Women Trials
2:45 p.m. 800m Run - Men Trials
3:00 p.m. 200m Dash - Women Trials
3:15 p.m. 200m Dash - Men Trials
3:30 p.m. 5,000m Run - Women Unseeded
3:55 p.m. 5,000m Run - Men Unseeded
4:15 p.m. 5,000m Run - Women Seeded
4:40 p.m. 5,000m Run - Men Seeded
5:00 p.m. Distance Medley Relay - Women FINAL
5:20 p.m. Distance Medley Relay - Men FINAL
Saturday, February 23
Men's Heptathlon
9:00 a.m. M-Heptathlon 60m Hurdles
10:00 a.m. M-Heptathlon Pole Vault
3:05 p.m. M-Heptathlon 1000m Run
Field Events
9:45 a.m. High Jump - Men Trials & FINAL
9:45 a.m. High Jump - Women Trials & FINAL
10:00 a.m. Shot Put - Men Trials & FINAL
11:00 a.m. Triple Jump - Women (Pit A) Trials & FINAL
12:30 p.m. Shot Put - Women Trials & FINAL
1:00 p.m. Triple Jump - Men (pit B) Trials & FINAL
Track Events - ALL FINALS
11:20 a.m. Mile Run - Women
11:30 a.m. Mile Run - Men
11:40 p.m. 400m Dash - Women (2-Section Final)
11:50 p.m. 400m Dash - Men (2-Section Final)
12:10 p.m. 60m Hurdles - Women
12:20 p.m. 60m Hurdles - Men
12:30 p.m. 60m Dash- Women
12:40 p.m. 60m Dash - Men
1:00 p.m. 800m Run - Women
1:10 p.m. 800m Run - Men
1:20 p.m. 200m Dash - Women (2-Section final)
1:30 p.m. 200m Dash - Men (2-Section final)
1:40 p.m. 3,000m Run - Women Unseeded
1:55 p.m. 3,000m Run - Men Unseeded
2:10 p.m. 3,000m Run - Women Seeded
2:25 p.m. 3,000m Run - Men Seeded
2:40 p.m. 4 x 400m Relay - Women
2:50 p.m. 4 x 400m Relay - Men
3:20 p.m. AWARDS CEREMONY
All times central