Final Results

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The University of South Alabama men's and women's track and field teams logged a pair of individual victories and toppled three school records on day two of the Sun Belt Conference Indoor Championships at the Birmingham CrossPlex Tuesday.
 
Noelle Jones took top honors in the pentathlon with 3,721 points in an all-SBC performance in which the redshirt senior logged five personal bests.  In addition to a career-high point total, Jones claimed PRs in the 60-meter hurdles (8.97), high jump (1.70m), shot put (13.66m) and 800-meter dash (2:44.00).  Her performance came on the heels of an all-league high jump effort on Monday, when she cleared 1.68m to capture third place.  Leah Hixon (3,500 pts.) finished fourth overall in the pentathlon and set a PR in the high jump (1.61m) as she and Jones combined for 15 team points.
 
In the men's 60-meter hurdles, Tyler Agee was crowned conference champion, while Ravaughn Pope finished runner-up as the duo combined for 18 team points.  Agee clocked in at 8.15 for his fourth PR in the event this season, and Pope logged his second PR in as many days with a time of 8.21.  Agee and Pope entered the day seeded third and fourth, respectively, after their efforts in Monday's preliminaries.
 
Garrett Schumacher eclipsed his own school record for the second time this season in the men's heptathlon when he finished with a final tally of 5,103 points to place second and earn all-conference honors.  After entering the day in fourth with 2,801 points, the senior posted times of 9.05 seconds in the 60-meter hurdles and 2:50.24 in the 1,000-meter run, as well as a mark of 4.65m in the pole vault.  Schumacher's efforts earned the men's team eight points.
 
Freshman Michael Pienaar earned all-Sun Belt accolades in the men's 5,000-meter run with a time of 14:45.81 and a third-place finish in the 27-man field.
 
Fresh off a school record and a victory in Monday's 3,000-meter run, Kristin Parry broke her own Jaguar record in the women's 5,000-meter run, clocking a time of 17:01.90 for a fourth-place finish and five team points.  Tori Lawson placed 10^th overall at 17:48.17.
 
Like Schumacher and Parry, senior Adam Patterson broke his own all-time school mark in the men's shot put when he posted a 16.47m measure on his second toss.  The attempt was good for fifth place in the event and gave the men's squad four points.  He was joined in the top 10 by Jarrod Kedzior, who placed ninth with a PR of 15.72m.
 
All told, the Jaguars compiled three individual victories, placed eight student-athletes on all-conference teams in nine different events and broke four school records over the course of the competition.  The men's team finished in fourth place with 76.67 points, and the women's squad placed seventh with 52 points.  Texas-Arlington and Western Kentucky took home the men's and women's championships, respectively.
 
Kaitlyn Beans moved into second place in the all-time school rankings in the women's triple jump with a 12.23m leap that was good for fourth place and five points.  Jaylon Holt picked up three points for the men's team in the triple jump when he placed sixth with a mark of 14.53m on his second attempt.  He also placed fifth in the high jump with a 2.00m clearance to earn an additional four points.
 
In the women's mile run, Lawson recorded a sixth-place finish with a time of 4:59.74 to earn three points.  On the men's side, Pienaar came in at 4:17.46 for a ninth-place effort.
 
For the second day in a row, Berta Lucas notched a PR in the women's 60-meter hurdles, knocking one-hundredth of a second off Monday's time to clock in at 8.96 seconds.  Lucas finished in seventh place and added two points to the women's total.
 
A trio of Lady Jags – Kayla Carlile, Ireland Armstrong and Megan James – cleared 3.36m in the women's pole vault, marking new career bests for Armstrong and James.  Carlile and Armstrong finished in a tie for ninth, while James placed 11^th due to a technicality.
 
"I'm a little disappointed in our team finishes, and we had a few setbacks that cost us in that regard," said head track and field coach Paul Brueske.  "But for the most part, I'm really pleased with our effort in this meet.  We had over 20 personal-best performances, and some key guys stepped up and scored some points for us.
 
"We are really looking forward to the outdoor season now.  We're going to continue to work hard and get better, and hopefully we can continue to improve as we move forward."
 
USA will take a brief respite before beginning its outdoor season on March 7 when it hosts the Jaguar Opener, the first of three home meets this year, held at Jaguar Track.
 
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
 
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