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OU Track: Oklahoma Crowns Three Big 12 Individual Champs on Day 1

The Sooners set several personal bests and landed numerous event finalists as the conference championships continue Saturday.

John E. Hoover

OU Track: Oklahoma Crowns Three Big 12 Individual Champs on Day 1
OU Track: Oklahoma Crowns Three Big 12 Individual Champs on Day 1 /

By OU Media Relations

LUBBOCK, TX – The Oklahoma track and field team wrapped up a successful day one of competition Friday at the 2023 Big 12 Indoor Track and Field Championship.

"The conference championship is an excellent proving ground," said head coach Tim Langford. "This is some of the toughest qualifying rounds in conference history. I was proud to see our team fight for their spots in the finals. In addition, there were some who celebrated their first conference victory."

The Sooners collected three Big 12 individual titles, several podium finishes and numerous personal-best records.

At the conclusion of day one, the women's squad has 47.5 points and sits in second place, while the men's team has collected 10 points for sixth place.

Sophomore Pippi Lotta Enok set the tone for the Sooners in the women's pentathlon garnering 4,207 points for the Big 12 title. Lotta Enok collected six personal bests and set a new school record.

In the men's heptathlon, Kristo Simulask finished day one in first place with 3,390 points. He finished first in both the shot put and long jump competition. The men's heptathlon will resume tomorrow at 11 a.m. CT with 60-meter hurdles.

On the track, Yazmine Wright ran a 4:45.12 in the women's mile preliminaries to advance to Saturday's final.

Freshman David Warmington clocked a huge personal best in the 60-meter hurdles at 7.88 to qualify for the finals.

Senior Abby Moore claimed her first Big 12 title in weight throw after throwing 68-6 (20.88m).

In the women's pole vault, Olivia Lueking took home third place (4.09m) and Cassidy Bradshaw claimed fourth place (4.09m) to earn a spot on the podium.

Back on the track, Ashonti Warner ran 53.51 in the women's 400m dash for sixth place and qualified for Saturday's final.

In the 600-yard run, Jenna James crossed the finish line at 1:20.40 to qualify for the final, while Gage Hensey ran a 1:10.78 on the men's side to also advance to tomorrow's final.

Next, Fernando Morales clocked a 2:22.63 in the men's 1,000-meter prelims to move on to the final and secure the second fastest time in school history.

Kennedy Blackmon qualified for the women's 200-meter final after running a personal best time of 23.24. In addition, Blackmon finished fourth in the women's 60-meter dash to advance to tomorrow's final.

The men's 400-meter preliminary round saw Richard Kuykendoll (45.94) and Muzuri Mattar (45.99) qualify for tomorrow's final.

In his first Big 12 Championship, Nikaoli Williams won the title in the men's long jump after clearing 25-4.5 (7.73m).

On the women's side of the long jump, Jasmine Akins finished in fourth (6.14m), Agur Dwol finished in seventh (6.00), and Adreanna Parlette finished eighth (5.94m).

Anass Mghari ran for 1:49.94 in the men's 800-meter prelims and qualified for Saturday's final.

To finish the day, the women's distance medley relay squad of Sierra Williams, Alyia Green, Edita Sklenska, and Yazmine Wright finished in fourth place with a time of 11:29.03. This performance places them fourth on the OU all-time performance list.

"We salute their performance and look to build on their momentum in (Saturday's) finals," Langford said.

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John E. Hoover
JOHN E. HOOVER

John is an award-winning journalist whose work spans five decades in Oklahoma, with multiple state, regional and national awards as a sportswriter at various newspapers. During his newspaper career, John covered the Dallas Cowboys, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma State Cowboys, the Arkansas Razorbacks and much more. In 2016, John changed careers, migrating into radio and launching a YouTube channel, and has built a successful independent media company, DanCam Media. From there, John has written under the banners of Sporting News, Sports Illustrated, Fan Nation and a handful of local and national magazines while hosting daily sports talk radio shows in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and statewide. John has also spoken on Capitol Hill in Oklahoma City in a successful effort to put more certified athletic trainers in Oklahoma public high schools. Among the dozens of awards he has won, John most cherishes his national "Beat Writer of the Year" from the Associated Press Sports Editors, Oklahoma's "Best Sports Column" from the Society of Professional Journalists, and Two "Excellence in Sports Medicine Reporting" Awards from the National Athletic Trainers Association. John holds a bachelor's degree in Mass Communications from East Central University in Ada, OK. Born and raised in North Pole, Alaska, John played football and wrote for the school paper at Ada High School in Ada, OK. He enjoys books, movies and travel, and lives in Broken Arrow, OK, with his wife and two kids.

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