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 PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The American Athletic Conference will host its fifth Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Cincinnati on May 11-13 with the University of Cincinnati’s Gettler Stadium hosting for the first time. The meet will be streamed live on Facebook through the American Digital Network.


 
The three-day championship features a combined 36 returning champions from previous years’ meets. No. 4 Houston, the three-time defending men’s champion, enters on the heels of a historic regular season, while the  Cincinnati women look for a three-peat. All 12 women’s teams and the nine men’s programs will compete at the championship.
 
The American welcomes back 11 conference outdoor championship record holders who will return to defend their titles. Twenty-one men have recorded a NCAA top-20 mark during the outdoor season with Houston accounting for 14. The women have combined for 32 top-50 NCAA marks with the Cougars owning seven of them. Memphis and SMU each boast six athletes with a top-50 mark in the country.
   
Houston is the three-time defending conference champion and will look to clinch its third straight and fourth overall title this weekend. UConn is the only other team in American Athletic Conference history to capture the title, having done so in 2015.  Memphis has been on the cusp of winning the meet, finishing in the top 3 each year. The Tigers will make a claim for the crown through their outstanding field performances. Memphis student-athletes have earned five conference Field Athlete of the Week honors and rank in the top-three on the league’s performance list in three throwing events.
 
The Cougars have been ranked in the nation’s top 10 for the entire season, reaching its highest national ranking in program history, coming in at No. 3 in the country on April 2. Elijah Hall, last year’s Most Outstanding Track Performer, is coming off a stunning indoor performance where he captured both the 100 and 200-meter titles and has spent several weeks on the Bowerman Watch List.  
 
100-Meter
Houston has claimed the 100-meter dash title in three out of four American Championships and is once again in a solid position to repeat. Three Cougars hold the top 100-meter marks in the conference’s regular season with John Lewis III running the fastest time this season at 10.13 seconds—good for 11th in the NCAA. Mario Burke, a former 4x100-meter relay champion, is just behind him at 10.24 with fellow relay teammate Cameron Burrell holding the third-fastest 100-meter time at 10.25.
 
200-Meter
The Cougars have also dominated the 200-meter dash in past championship meets and hold six of the top-10 times in the conference this season in this event. Hall is the reigning conference 200-meter champion and ran the fourth-fastest mark in the nation in March, clocking 20.11 seconds, which is 0.39 seconds faster than his meet record time from last year. Memphis’ Imri Persiad ran a 20.73 in late April, which comes the closest to Hall’s leading time.
 
400-Meter
Houston’s Kahmari Montgomery will challenge defending conference 400-meter dash champion Raymond Kibet of Tulane. Montgomery set the indoor 400-meter record and broke the facility mark in February, and he holds the top outdoor time of 44.91 seconds. He is the first league sprinter to complete the full lap around the track in under 45 seconds. Kibet’s top time this season is second-best at 46.59 seconds. He won the race last year in 45.84 seconds.
 
800-Meter
ECU’s mid-distance runner Stefano Migliorati is in a good position to regain his 800-meter title, running the fastest in The American this year at 1:48.78 in April. His time is the only sub-1:49 mark in the conference this season and ranks 37th in the NCAA. Two Tulsa runners, Grey Howard and Robert Tully, have the next best times.
 
1,500-Meter
Only Tulsa and UConn runners have won this event with the Golden Hurricane and Huskies each claiming two titles. UConn’s Michael O’Donnell, who won the crown in 2014 and 2016 is the frontrunner once again after a time of 3:44.10 in April. Wichita State’s Zack Penrod won the mile at the indoor championship in February and moved into second place on the league’s performance list last week.
 
5,000-Meter
With the return of the Cougars’ Brian Barraza, who hasn’t competed in the championship meet since 2016, the 5,000-meters could go to a different team besides Tulsa for the first time in three years. Barraza placed third in the race that year and broke Houston’s school record this season with his time of 13:38.71. No one has ever run a sub-14-minute 5,000-meter in conference championship history. Three UConn runners and two Tulsa athletes have run top-eight conference marks in this event this season.
 
10,000-Meter
Benjamin Preisner could become the fourth-straight Golden Hurricane runner to claim the 10,000-meter title. Preisner enters the championship meet coming off a record performance at the indoor championship in February, earning Co-Most Valuable Performance honors. His time of 28:08.17 is faster than any past conference champion’s time. Four other American Athletic Conference runners have logged sub-30-minute times this season.
 
110 & 400-Meter Hurdles
Houston is the only team in the conference to earn a 110-meter hurdles title. Amere Lattin holds the top-15 times in the nation in both hurdles events this season and has swept the hurdles titles in the conference championship for the past two seasons. His conference-best 110-meter hurdles mark this season is 13.72 seconds, which ranks 12th in the nation. His league-best 400-meter hurdles time of 50.29 ranks No. 8 in the nation this year. He is the conference title holder in both these events.
 
3,000-Meter Steeplechase
Tulane’s Emmanuel Rotich moved into the top spot on the conference’s performance list ahead of Barraza last week, as the defending conference champion posted the fourth-best time in the nation at 8:40.66.  Barraza, just under one second behind, broke Houston’s record in March with his time of 8:41.5, good for the seventh-best time in the country. Tulsa’s Preisner won the even in 2016 and has the third-best steeplechase time this season at 8:56.22.
 
4x100 & 4x400-Meter Relays
Houston has dominated the relays, winning all four 4x100 races and three of four 4x400 titles in conference championship history. Coming off a national championship 4x100 last year, the Cougars have built on that momentum, most recently smashing their 4x400-meter relay record in winning the 4x400 at the historic Penn Relays in a time of 3:01.82. The time, run by Lattin, Burke, Burell and Montgomery, is No. 2 in the nation. The Coogs have three different top-10 4x100-meter relay teams in the nation this year, with its No. 1 team running the fifth-fastest time in the NCAA at 38.92 seconds. Memphis and Tulane are also expected to pick up some key points in the relays this season.
 
Decathlon
The decathlon will be competitive, as it features three athletes who competed in the NCAA Indoor Championship. Cincinnati’s Alex Bloom will look to defend his title from last season, but will be challenged by Wichita State’s Hunter Veith. The Shocker’s senior broke The American’s decathlon record on March 28 with 8,046 points, good for ranking No. 2 in the NCAA this year. Houston’s Nathaniel Mechler took the conference’s indoor heptathlon title in February and holds the second-best decathlon score recorded this season with 7,722 points.
 
High Jump
Memphis could gain some big points in the high jump with two athletes recording the top marks in The American’s regular season. The Tigers’ Jordan Wesner returns to defend his high jump title after winning last year with a 2.10-meter leap (6-10.75). His top jump of 2.16 meters (7-1.00) recorded in late April this year leads The American. Teammate Noah Agnew has improved throughout the season and cleared the next-best height among conference athletes at 2.11 meters (6-11.0).
 
Pole  Vault
Cincinnati’s Adrian Valles could become the first conference athlete to win four straight outdoor events—a feat he already accomplished at the indoor championship. He holds the league’s pole vault record at 5.65 meters (18-6.5), and his top regular season mark this year is 5.15 meters. He will be challenged by USF’s David Bell, UConn’s Hunter Craig and Houston’s Ben Percefull. Bell has cleared 5.36 meters (17-7) to enter the championship with the top mark in the conference this year.
 
Long Jump
The league’s long jump record holder, Cameron Burrell of Houston, will be competing this year, but is yet to participate in a field event this season. Teammate Trumaine Jefferson won the event last season, but holds the seventh-longest jump in the league this year at 7.62 meters (25-0). The Cougars’ Jared Kerr leaped to the top of the league’s performance list last week with his distance of 7.94 meters (26-0.75). Wichita State could pick up some key points in the long jump with three athletes in the top eight on the conference’s performance list.
 
Triple Jump
Kerr is the defending triple jump champion and enters the meet with the fifth-best distance this year at 1.15 meters (49-8.5). The Shockers are expected to shine in this event with Rayvon Allen (15.64 meters, 51-3.75) and Jared Belardo (15.62 meters, 51-3) holding the No. 1 and 2 spots on the conferences’ performance list, respectively. USF has two jumpers with top-eight triple jump marks, while Memphis’ Olushola Olojo ranks third in the league with his distance of 15.33 meters (50-3.5) recorded in late April.
 
Shot Put and Discus
Memphis’ throwers have had a stellar outdoor regular season and rank in the top three in three different throwing events. Luke Vaughn owns the conference’s furthest shot put and discus—two events he’s won at the championship in the past. His discus toss of 62.18 meters (204-0) at the Mt. SAC Relays ranks No. 3 in the nation, while his shot put distance of 18.51 meters (60-8.75) is 36th. Teammate Rafael Vallery has the second-longest discus toss this season at 58.30 meters (191-3).
 
Javelin Throw
Five conference athletes boast NCAA top-25 javelin throws this year, as the meet will feature the league’s meet-record holder and two former champions. Memphis’ Michael Criticos is the conference’s meet-record holder with his toss of 71.85 meters (235-09) in 2016. His throw of 70.01 meters (229-8) this year ranks third in the league and 17th in the nation. UConn’s Seth Zuidema won the title in 2017 and has the 21st-longest toss in the NCAA this year at 69.15 meters (226-10). The Huskies could get some big points in this event with Kevin Foster ranking 19th in the NCAA. However, Aaron True of Wichita State holds the nation’s sixth-best javelin throw and leads the conference with his distance of 72.05 meters (236-5). Houston’s Jack Thomas will make a claim for the crown with the second-best throw in the conference recorded in March, which ranks seventh in the nation (71.58 meters, 234-10).
 
Hammer Throw
A Husky has taken the hammer throw title for the past three years, but ECU’s Ryan Davis, who won the indoor weight throw, will look to change that this season. Davis leads the conference with his distance of 64.38 meters (211-3). His mark ranks 37th in the nation this year and bests returning 2017 champion Cameron Thompson of UConn’s top mark this season.
   
Cincinnati is the two-time defending outdoor champion and will look to capture its third in a row at its home meet behind its sprinting and field-event performances. UConn has finished in the top three in every outdoor championship, while SMU, who won the first two titles in 2014 and 2015, will look to bring the trophy back to Dallas.
 
100-and 200-Meter
SMU’s sprinting duo of Latessa Johnson and Chelsea Francis had another solid regular season, ranking at the top of The American’s performance list in both the 100-and-200-meter dashes. Johnson is the reigning 200m champion, while Francis is the reigning 100m champion. Both athletes have been clocking times this season better than any 100 or 200m times run in the conference championship history. Both of their top times in their respective events are top-20 NCAA marks. Houston’s Brianne Bethel holds the No. 2 time in the conference in both the 100 and 200m dashes.
 
400-Meter
UConn and Cincinnati will battle for points in the 400-meter dash. The Huskies’ Susan Aneno ran the full-lap event in 53.76 seconds for the top time on the performance list this year, while teammate Kat Surin is just behind her in third place at 53.97 seconds. Cincinnati’s Tiona Lattimore has run 53.93 for the second-best conference mark this year and is joined in the top eight by teammate Haisha Bisiolu.
 
800-Meter
Similar to the indoor meet, the outdoor 800-meter race will be a tight one that features two former champions in UCF’s Rosie Chamberlain and Aneno of UConn. Chamberlain ran the fastest 800m in meet history in 2016 to set the record at 2:04.62, while Aneno ran ahead of the pack last year to take home the title in 2:04.97. Aneno ran 2:04.97 at the Florida Relays this season to rank No. 1 on the league’s performance list, ahead of Chamberlain and Millie Howard of Temple—the conference’s indoor mile record holder. Howard finished third in last year’s race. Both Aneno and Chamberlain’s times are top-30 NCAA marks this season.
 
1,500-Meter
A new 1,500-meter run champion will be crowned this season, and Martina Rodriguez-Sala of Memphis holds the top-time in The American this year at 4:17.99. She placed fourth in the 1,500-meter run in 2016. Temple’s Howard ran 4:21.02, while SMU’s Hannah Miller holds the third-best time at 4:28.11.
 
5,000 and 10,000-Meter
SMU’s Miller has gone this distance this season and will look to make more Mustang history at this meet. The sophomore won the individual cross country title, earned the women’s Most Valuable Indoor Performance in February and currently ranks top three in three conference distance events, including the No. 1 times in the league for the 5,000 and 10,000-meter runs. She ran the 19th-fastest 10,000-meters at Stanford on March 30.
 
100 and 400-Meter Hurdles
Tulane’s Jessica Duckett will be out to collect more hardware, as the hurdler swept the events at last year’s championship. Duckett will be competing for her third-straight 400m hurdles title and second 100m hurdles win, and enters the championship owning the top American times in both events this season. She catapulted to the top of the league’s performance list after a pair of solid marks at the LSU Alumni Gold in April. Her hurdle times are top-35 in the NCAA this year.
 
3,000-Meter Steeplechase
An event won by SMU three out of four years, a new conference champion will emerge in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, as ECU’s Grace Sullivan leads the contenders with a conference-best time of 10:23.92. Temple will look to make a splash in this event, having a trio of athletes posting top-eight conference times.
 
4x400-Meter Relay
UConn swept the indoor relays at February’s championship and have run the fastest 4x400-meter relay in the conference at 3:38.84. Houston’s time of 3:41.07 ranks second, while last year’s champion, Cincinnati, holds the third-best league time at 3:42.46.
 
4x100-Meter Relay
An event dominated by UCF in the past, Cincinnati claimed the top spot on the podium at last year’s outdoor championship. However, this year’s top-three 4x100m relay teams are USF (44.96), Houston (45.00) and Wichita State (40.28).
 
High Jump
Loretta Blaut is the reigning conference champion and has already bested her conference meet-record height this season at 1.82 meters—the 11th-best jump in the nation. She was the runner-up at the indoor national championship in March. Memphis’ Saida Burns-Moore and Temple’s Aisha Brown both have cleared top-40 NCAA heights this year.
 
Pole Vault
The American will have a new women’s pole vault champion this season, and the Bearcats’ Catherine Brooke will be among the front runners for this event. She took this year’s conference indoor title and has cleared an outdoor league-best 4.20 meters this season.
 
Long Jump
Cincinnati’s Kellsa Mbah broke the meet’s long jump record last season, clearing 6.32 meters (20-9), but ranks second to the conference’s indoor long jump champion Samiyah Samuels of Houston on the conference’s performance list. Samuels jumped 6.29 meters (20-7.75), the 28th-longest distance in the nation this year. USF has three athletes with top-eight conference long jump marks this year.
 
Triple Jump
Three Memphis jumpers rank in the league’s top eight for the triple jump. The Tigers’ Burns-Moore holds the No. 3 distance at 12.69 meters (41-7.75). Cincinnati’s indoor triple jump champion Irati Mitxelena is second among the league’s triple jumpers, while Houston’s Tonye’cia Burks ranks No. 1 in the league with her distance of 12.84 meters (42-1.5).
 
Shot Put
The shot put will be a competitive event with the league’s three frontrunners representing three different schools, with each of their top throws within 0.22 meters of one another. Tochi Nlemchi of SMU won the title in 2016 and placed second in 2015. She leads the pack with her distance of 16.71 meters (54-10). Houston’s Nora Monie and UConn’s Divine Oladipo have recorded personal records this year and are second and third, respectively, on the league’s performance list. Oladipo was the runner-up in last year’s meet.
 
Discus Throw
UConn’s Oladipo is no stranger to the podium, posting top-three finishes in conference championship action, including a third-place discus throw finish at last year’s meet. Her toss of 54.23 meters (177-54) at the historic Penn Relays leads the conference this year. ECU’s Baker Mohogany, the 2017 American Champion, owns the fourth-best performance in the conference this season. Mona Jaidi and Samantha Lenton of Memphis are No. 1 and 2 on the league’s performance list, respectively.
 
Hammer Throw
Houston’s Taylor Scaife catapulted to the top of the league’s hammer throw performance list in her final meet of the regular season with her distance of 62.37 meters (204-7). She will look to better her finish last year, placing fourth at the outdoor championships. With her toss of 61.12 meters (200-6), UCF’s Gabby Durant holds the league’s second-best distance in the hammer throw. With the absence of two-time champion Annette Echikunwoke of Cincinnati, the league will see a new hammer throw champion this season.
 
Javelin Throw
Memphis could gain a big boost in the javelin throw with last year’s winner and the league’s meet-record holder Ashley Pryke returning to defend her title. She came close to her record-mark in March, reaching 54.55 meters (179-0). Teammate Jaidi possesses the conference’s second-best distance at 48.30 meters (158-5), while another Tiger, Jasmine Wilson, holds the fourth-furthest javelin toss in The American this season.
 
Heptathlon
Cincinnati’s Naomi Urbano won the heptathlon title last season and is coming off a first-place pentathlon finish at the conference’s indoor championship in February. Teammate Angela Lightfoot, who placed fifth in last year’s outdoor championship, recorded 4,782 points in April to own the second-best heptathlon score in the conference. USF’s Kaitlyn Kirby is No. 1 on The American’s performance list and 47th in the nation with her score of 5,163 recorded on March 28. The freshman was the runner-up in the pentathlon at the conference’s indoor championship in February.