Huntington, W.Va. – The West Liberty University track & field teams posted a pair of top-5 finishes in the 2024 MEC Indoor Track & Field Championships as the men finished third with 97.50 points while the women finished fifth with 45 points. The Hilltoppers notched one champion, four top-3 finishes, and 11 top-5 finishes on Saturday, bringing the 2-day meet total to two MEC Champions, ten top-3 finishes, and 18 top-5 finishes. The Black & Gold broke seven school records during the conference championships as Mikhi Anderson broke the high jump mark, Lacey Dimit tied the 800m run record, and the women's 4x400 relay team etched their names into the record books.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED – WLU MEN'S TRACK & FIELD

• Shane Anderson notched a top-5 finish in the 60m hurdles of the heptathlon with a time of 9.39. He was joined by Jacob Huffman (10.10), Malachi Stewart (10.44), and JD Henderson (11.78) who finished sixth, seventh, and ninth respectively in the event.
• Anderson collected his second top-5 finish of Saturday's heptathlon events with a fifth place finish in the pole vault as he cleared 3.13m (10' 3.25"). Huffman (2.63m (8' 7.50")) and Henderson (2.43m (7' 11.50")) also recorded top-10 finishes in eighth and ninth while Stewart was 11^th with a mark of 1.93m (6' 4.00").
• In the 1,000m run in the heptathlon, Anderson once again led the way as he collected his third top-10 finish of the day with an eighth place time of 3:13.67. He was followed by Henderson (3:14.40), Stewart (3:15.95), and Huffman (3:20.70) who finished ninth, tenth, and 11^th respectively.
• Anderson finished the heptathlon in sixth place overall with 3,778 points while Huffman was seventh with 3,094 points. Stewart and Henderson rounded out the top-10 in ninth and tenth with 2,741 and 2,705 points.
• John Brown and Joshua Fancher posted a pair of top-5 finishes in the weight throw with personal best marks of 16.86m (55' 3.75") and 15.36m (50' 4.75") for second and fifth place. Also competing in the event was Jordan Dickerson who finished 16^th with a mark of 11.75m (38' 6.75").
• Mikhi Anderson won the high jump while recording a career-best, school-record, meet record, and NCAA Provisional mark with a jump of 2.03m (6' 8.00"). Daminn Cunningham, George Donovic, and Ethan Furbee all tied for fourth as they posted a mark of 1.88m (6' 2.00").
• Cunningham and BriJaun Baylor recorded top-10 finishes in the triple jump with season-best marks of 13.26m (43' 6.00") and 12.73m (41' 9.25"). Quinn Ashbrooke and AJ Cherico also recorded 11^th and 14^th place finishes with jumps of 12.67m (41' 7.00") and 11.84m (38' 10.25").
• Anderson recorded a second place finish in the finals of the 60m hurdles as he posted a time of 8.06 and Donovic crossed the line in a personal-best time of 8.69.
• Lorenzo Ferrera tied for third place in the finals of the 60m dash as he ran to a time of 6.99.
• In the 800m run, Francis Toohey recorded a season-best time of 1:56.23 for a seventh place finish while Tavian Richardson was 12^th with a season-best time of 1:57.72.
• Ferrera notched his second top-5 finish of the day as he recorded a personal-best time of 22.04 for fifth place.
• The team of Arthur Williams, Nathan Baker, Toohey, and Richardson recorded a season-best time of 3:24.49 for sixth place in the 4x400 relay.

HOW IT HAPPENED – WLU WOMEN'S TRACK & FIELD

• Sierra Davis rounded out the top-5 in the weight throw with a career-best mark of 13.44m (44' 1.25"). Kaylee Savage recorded an eighth place finish with a season-best throw of 12.87m (42' 2.75") and Leah Delaney rounded out the top-10 with a personal-best mark of 12.55m (41' 2.25"). Other who competed in the event included Haley Norris who finished 13^th (12.24m (40' 2.00")), Grace Brockmeier who finished 15^th with a career-best throw (11.43m (37' 6.00")), and Adriana Fazzini finished 16^th (10.86m (35' 7.75")).
• Ky'Ara Ross turned in a fourth place finish in the finals of the 60m dash with a personal-best time of 7.87.
• Lacey Dimit ran to a personal-best and school-record time of 2:22.67 in the 800m run for sixth place.
• In the 200m dash, Sierra Lanham crossed the line in a season-best time of 25.99.
• The team of Brookelyn Reynolds, Dimit, Abbe Stackpole, and Lanham recorded a school-record time of 4:09.82 for sixth place in the 4x400 relay. 

UP NEXT
West Liberty has three athletes who have notched NCAA Provisional marks during 2023-24 indoor season and they will await the selections for the NCAA Division II Indoor Track & Field Championships in Pittsburg, Kansas, on March 9-10.