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PROVIDENCE, R.I.  – The American Athletic Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships heads to Wichita, Kansas, as the conference will host its sixth title meet at Wichita State University for the first time. From May 10-12, The American will crown its top men’s and women’s teams and 42 individual champions at Wichita State’s Cessna Stadium. The meet will be streamed live on Facebook through the American Digital Network.
 
The American welcomes back 21 conference champions to defend individual titles and numerous All-Conference Athletes from around the league. Of the 21 returning champions, 10 have won multiple gold medals at previous American Outdoor Championships.


   
The Houston men, who finished third at the 2018 NCAA Outdoor Championships, have been one of the top teams in the country all season, cracking the nation’s top five after finishing as this year’s NCAA Indoor National Runner-Up.
 
The Cougars have won four of the five American Outdoor titles including the past three championships. Eight All-Conference Athletes from last year’s championship Cougar squad return for the men, including an elite core of senior sprinters. This includes five-time individual outdoor hurdles champion Amere Lattin, this year’s American Indoor Most Valuable Performer Mario Burke and NCAA first team All-Americans Kahmari Montgomery, Trumaine Jefferson and John Lewis III. At last year’s conference outdoor championship, the Houston men were in fourth place with 57 points before winning six track events on Sunday to move into the lead, ending the meet with 172 points.
 
Lattin ranks No. 5 in the nation in both the 110-meter and 400-meter hurdles. Nine-time All-America transfer from Arkansas Obi Igbokwe has given the Cougars even more depth on the track. The senior owns the 17th-fastest 400-meter dash in the country with his time of 45.91 seconds recorded at the Mt. SAC Relays.
 
Combined, the Cougars have accounted for 10 top-20 marks in the NCAA this outdoor season. Houston leads the conference and ranks top five in the country in every sprinting event heading into the championships. The Cougars have at least five of the top 10 times in The American in each sprinting event this season. Houston’s Lagarious McQuirter is the conference’s leader in the long jump with the 19th-furthest leap in the NCAA (7.82 meters). Two-time American indoor shot put champion and last year’s outdoor runner-up, Felipe Valencia is also a Cougar. He leads the league with a distance of 18.52 meters at the 125th Penn Relays.
 
Houston, the two-time reigning 4x100-meter relay national champion, has shined in The American’s sprint relays, going undefeated in the 4x100, and winning three-straight 4x400-meter relay titles at the conference’s outdoor meet. Once again Houston is the frontrunner for these relays heading into the championships, clocking the nation’s second-fastest 4x100m time this year at the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays (38.45 seconds).
 
Cincinnati’s Aaron Bienenfeld has made a statement in distance events. An event dominated by Tulsa for the three years prior, Bienenfeld took the crown in the 10,000-meter run at his home stadium in 2018 with his time of 30:50.31. He leads the field in the 5,000-meter run heading into this week’s race with a conference-leading time of 13:57.81 and ranks third on the conference’s performance list in the 10,000-meter run. Last year’s 5,000m champion, Benjamin Preisner of Tulsa, shot atop The American’s performance list in the 10,000m run on May 2 after clocking 29:13.38.
 
A two-time American Athletic Conference cross country individual champion, Tulane’s Emmanual Rotich ran the eighth-fastest 3,000-meter steeplechase in the NCAA this season on May 2 with his time of 8:41.05 at the Payton Jordan Invitational. Rotich will look to reclaim his steeplechase title at The American championships after winning in 2017.  Memphis’ Julien Sanchez-Pinto ranks second in The American in the 3,000m SC with his first-place time of 8:57.04 at the War Eagle Invitational.
 
UConn and Wichita State have dominated the field in the decathlon this season heading into The American’s title meet, as the conference will see a new men’s decathlon champion this year. UConn’s Jordan Torney (7,225 points) and Benjamin Grosse (6,624 points) scored the highest points, respectively, in The American at the Spec Towns Invitational. The Shockers own the next four highest decathlon scores with 2019 indoor heptathlon champion Ben Johnson ranking third in the league with his total of 6,567 points recorded at the Wichita State KT Woodman Classic.
 
The Husky men also have some of the top jumpers in The American on their roster. Malik Snead recorded the nation’s 27th-best distance in the triple jump at UConn’s Northeast Challenge (15.66 meters). Last year’s runner-up in the high jump, Safir Scott, ranks No. 1 in The American with his clearance of 2.12 meters at the North Florida Spring Break Invitational. The Huskies could also grab some key points in distance/mid-distance races with Tyler Gleen (800m), Eric Van Der Els (1,500m), Kyle Brackman (5,000m) and Michael McGonnigle (3,000m SC) each ranking top five in their respective event on The American’s performance list.
 
In the absence of last year’s national discus champion, Luke Vaughn of Memphis, the Tigers have seen a freshman thrower step up to the challenge. Adar Sheere is the frontrunner for The American men in this year’s discus throw, leading the conference with his season-best toss of 57.21 meters recorded at the War Eagle Invitational. His top distance ranks 24th nationally.
 
Three of the top five pole vault marks in The American belong to USF. The Bulls are led by David Bell who looks to build off his first-place indoor performance, leading the conference with a season-best clearance of 5.30 meters. Teammates Stone Baker (third) and Mitchell Mueller (fifth) join him in the top five. The Bulls also welcome back The American’s 2019 triple jump champion Errol Ennis, who enters the competition ranked third in the conference.
 
UConn and Memphis have finished in the top five in each of The American’s outdoor championships. The Huskies are the only other team to take home the men’s title, winning in 2015. In its inaugural outdoor American championship, Wichita State earned several trips to the podium and led for portions of the meet, ending the day in third place with 130 points.
   
The Houston women have made winning for the first time a trend. It was a Houston sweep a year ago, as the Cougar women won their first outdoor track and field title in Cincinnati. The Houston women did it again, carrying their success into the indoor season, joining the men in sweeping The American’s titles.
 
Starting the final day of last year’s outdoor championships in fourth place, the Houston women used five first-place track performances and won gold in a field event to propel to the top of the team rankings with 113 points. Among seven returning All-Conference athletes is Houston’s Naomi Taylor, the conference’s 2019 60-meter hurdles indoor champion, who clocked 12.84 seconds (wind-aided) in the 100-meter hurdles at the Houston Spring Break Invitational to lead The American this season. Two-time American long jump outdoor champion Samiyah Samuels also returns for the Cougars. She additionally ran as part of Houston’s first-place 4x100-meter relay squad at last year’s conference title meet.
 
SMU’s Chelsea Francis leads the conference in the 100m (11.23 seconds) and 200m (22.99 seconds) heading into the championships. Houston’s Brianne Bethel, who won both these sprint events last year, is not entered in this year’s championship. UCF’s Shian Hyde and Cincinnati’s Caisja Chandler also have top four 100m and 200m times in The American. Houston posted the top 4x100-meter relay time this season (44.11 seconds) at the 125th Penn Relays, but UCF leads the women in the 4x400-meter relay with their top time of 3:37.35 at the UF Tom Jones Memorial.
 
After redshirting during the outdoor season last year, The American welcomes back one of its most decorated field athletes in Cincinnati’s All-America thrower Annette Echikunwoke. Winning The American’s Field Athlete of the Week honors twice this year, the Pickerington, Ohio, native is a three-time American outdoor champion, winning the hammer throw in 2016 and 2017 and the shot put in 2017. Once again, Echikunwoke has made a splash on The American’s performance list with top-25 distances in the nation in both the hammer and shot put to lead the conference this year.
 
Memphis’ Ashley Pryke won the past two women’s javelin titles, setting The American’s record in 2017 with her distance of 55.18 meters. The senior All-American finished seventh at the NCAA Championships last year and returns this season ranked second nationally with her top toss of the season traveling 57.47 meters. Teammate Mona Jaida owns the next-best throw in The American this year with her distance of 51.34 meters at the Crimson Tide Invitational. Saida Burns-Moore jumped atop The American’s performance list in both the high and triple jumps with first-place finishes at the Memphis Tiger Invitational. The senior cleared 1.81 meters (13th in the country) in the high jump and 13.44 meters (wind-aided) in the triple jump to lead the conference.
 
Two-time 800-meter champion, Susan Aneno of UConn, returns looking to win a third-straight 800m title. The senior is in a good position to do so, clocking the nation’s sixth-fastest 800m time this season at the UF Tom Jones Memorial in April (2:03.41). Classmate Kat Surin posted a conference-leading time of 52.54 seconds in the 400-meter dash. Surin won the conference’s 400m title at the indoor championships. In the field, UConn’s Chanell Botsis owns top-five marks on The American’s performance list in the hammer and javelin throws. Taylor Woods won the UConn Northeast Challenge long jump title with her distance of 6.34 meters, good for ranking second in The American behind Tulsa’s Carsyn Spurgeon (6.43 meters). 
 
Temple has shined in mid-distance races this year with Millie Howard and Helene Holm Gottlieb posting the No. 1 and 2 times in the 1,500-meter run, respectively—an event the Owls haven’t won since 2016 when Blanca Fernandez collected back-to-back titles. Howard’s 1,500m time of 4:16.81 ranks 25th nationally. Gottlieb also owns a top-two American time in the 800m this year (2:08.51) recorded at the Charlotte 49er Classic.
 
In the women’s pole vault, Tulane’s Rebekah Markel leads the field with her top outdoor clearance this season of 4.21 meters. The senior has won five outdoor events this year and is coming off a conference record-breaking indoor performance of 4.23 meters. Last year’s American champion Brooke Catherine of Cincinnati returns to defend her outdoor title, ranked third in The American this season with her top clearance of 4.06 meters. ECU’s Sommer Knight is second in the league after getting over a height of 4.15 meters.  
 
Last year, the ECU women recorded its best finish in meet history, taking second place, while Cincinnati rounded-out the top three. The Bearcats have been a top-three team for the past four years, winning the league’s outdoor title in 2016 and 2017. Last year marked a third-straight top five finish for the Pirates.
   
Wichita State has 13 All-Conference athletes returning, including four American champions. At The American’s indoor meet, distance runner Rebekah Topham earned the most points (22.5) in the meet to claim the conference’s Most Valuable Indoor Performance award. Topham won the mile and 3,000-meter run, while also running the anchor leg of Wichita State’s first-place distance medley relay team. Topham owns the fastest 3,000-meter steeplechase time in The American this season (10:09.94) and has top-five times in the conference in the 1,500 (third) and 5,000 meters (fifth).
 
In addition to winning the 2018 cross country title, Winny Koskei turned in some of the most impressive performances at last year’s outdoor meet. The Kericho, Kenya, native won both the 5,000 and 10,000-meter titles, defeating then-frontrunner Hannah Miller of SMU. It’ll be a distance battle on the track once again, as Miller and Koskei both return and hold the top two 5,000 and 10,000-meter times in The American, respectively.
 
On the men’s side, javelin thrower Aaron True has been one of the top athletes for the Shockers. Last year, he set the conference’s meet record with a distance of 77.49 meters. Returning as a senior, True has been one of the best javelin throwers in the country, ranking third nationally this season, bolstering Wichita State’s top-five national ranking in the javelin throw this year. Teammate Jeff Ast ranks second in the conference in the javelin throw with his season-best distance of 62.09 meters at the Wichita State Shocker Open.
 
The Shockers could also score big points in the hammer throw with Cory Martens and Isaiah Evans leading the conference, respectively. Martens registered a distance of 61.41 meters at the Wichita State Herm Wilson Invitational in March before Evans had the second-longest toss in The American at the Wichita State Shocker Open on May 3 (59.73 meters). Martens and Evans also rank in the conference’s top five in the discus throw.
 
A year ago, Wichita State’s Austin Corley stunned two-time defending 400-meter hurdles champion Amere Lattin of Houston with his meet-record performance of 50.07 seconds, which catapulted him into the nation’s top 10 after entering the meet ranked 38th. Corley returns to defend his title this year ranked 21st nationally after clocking 50.90 seconds at the Kansas Relays in April.
 
Another impressive Shocker performance at last year’s meet came from Kendra Henry who won the heptathlon as a freshman and then placed fourth in the javelin throw the following day. The Wichita State women rank top five in the NCAA in the heptathlon this season. However, it’s Cincinnati’s Katie Straus who ranks atop The American in the heptathlon with 4,996 points registered at the Tennessee Relays in April.
 
Championships Schedule:
 
Friday, May 10
 
Decathlon
12:00 p.m. 100m Dash
12:40 p.m. (est.) Long Jump
1:40 p.m. (est.) Shot Put
2:45 p.m. (est.) High Jump
4:00 p.m. (est.) 400m Dash
 
Heptathlon
12:30 p.m. 100m Hurdles
1:10 p.m. (est.) High Jump
3:00 p.m. (est.) Shot Put
4:00 p.m. (est.) 200m Dash
 
Field Events
12:00 p.m. Hammer Throw – W Trials & FINAL
2:30 p.m. Hammer Throw – M Trials & FINAL
4:30 p.m. Javelin –  W Trials & FINAL
6:30 p.m. Javelin – M Trials & FINAL
 
Track Events
6:30 p.m. 800m Run – W Trials
6:45 p.m. 800m Run – M Trials
7:00 p.m. 200m Dash – W Trials
7:15 p.m. 200m Dash – M Trials
7:30 p.m. 400 Hurdles – W Trials
7:40 p.m. 400 Hurdles – M Trials
7:55 p.m. 10,000m Run – W FINAL
8:35 p.m. 10,000m Run – M FINAL
 
Saturday, May 11
 
Decathlon
10:30 a.m. 110m Hurdles
11:20 a.m. (est.) Discus Throw
12:30 p.m. (est.) Pole Vault
3:30 p.m. (est.) Javelin
5:00 p.m. (est.) 1500m Run
 
Heptathlon
11:00 a.m. Long Jump
1:00 p.m. (est.) Javelin
2:30 p.m. (est.) 800m Run
 
Field Events
3:00 p.m. Long Jump – W Trials & FINAL
3:30 p.m. Shot Put – W Trials & FINAL
4:30 p.m. Pole Vault – W Trials & FINAL
5:00 p.m. Long Jump – M Trials & FINAL
5:30 p.m. Shot Put – M Trials & FINAL
 
Track Events
5:30 p.m. 100m Hurdles – W Trials
5:45 p.m. 110m Hurdles – M Trials
6:00 p.m. 1500m Run – W Trials
6:15 p.m. 1500m Run – M Trials
6:30 p.m. 400m Dash – W Trials
6:45 p.m. 400m Dash – M Trials
7:00 p.m. 100m Dash – W Trials
7:15 p.m. 100m Dash – M Trials
7:30 p.m. 3,000m Steeplechase – W FINAL
7:45 p.m. 3,000m Steeplechase – M FINAL
 
Sunday, May 12
 
Field Events
2:30 p.m. High Jump – M Trials & FINAL
2:30 p.m. Triple Jump – W Trials & FINAL
2:30 p.m. Discus – W Trials & FINAL
3:30 p.m. Pole Vault – M Trials & FINAL
4:30 p.m. High Jump – W Trials & FINAL
4:30 p.m. Triple Jump – M Trials & FINAL
4:30 p.m. Discus – M Trials & FINAL
 
Track Events
4:30 p.m. 400m Relay – W FINAL
4:40 p.m. 400m Relay – M FINAL
4:50 p.m. 1500m Run – W FINAL
5:00 p.m. 1500m Run – M FINAL
5:10 p.m. 100m Hurdles – W FINAL
5:20 p.m. 110m Hurdles – M FINAL
5:30 p.m. 400m Dash – W FINAL
5:35 p.m. 400m Dash – M FINAL
5:45 p.m. 100m Dash – W FINAL
5:50 p.m. 100m Dash – M FINAL
6:00 p.m. 800m Run – W FINAL
6:05 p.m. 800m Run – M FINAL
6:15 p.m. 400m Hurdles – W FINAL
6:20 p.m. 400m Hurdles – M FINAL
6:30 p.m. 200m Dash – W FINAL
6:35 p.m. 200m Dash – M FINAL
6:40 p.m. 5,000m Run – W (unseeded) FINAL
7:05 p.m. 5,000m Run – W (seeded) FINAL
7:25 p.m. 5,000m Run – M FINAL
7:45 p.m. 1600m Relay – W FINAL
7:55 p.m. 1600m Relay – M FINAL
 
8:10 p.m. AWARDS CEREMONY
 
All times central