MAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships Up Next for Akron

Friday, May 7

Oxford, Ohio

University of Akron

Mid-American Conference Outdoor Championships

MAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships Up Next for Akron

May 06 | Track & Field

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MAC CHAMPIONSHIPS - MEET INFORMATION | MEET SCHEDULE | ACCEPTED ENTRIES (PRELIMINARY) (PDF) | LIVE STATS | LIVE STREAM | PREVIEW

AKRON, Ohio – The University of Akron men's and women's track and field team will join the rest of their Mid-American Conference members this Friday and Saturday, May 7-8, to compete at the league's Outdoor Championships, as Miami University hosts the two-day event at the George L Rider Track.

UP NEXT: The University of Akron men's and women's track and field team will join the rest of their MAC members this Friday and Saturday, May 7-8, to compete at the league's Outdoor Championships, as Miami University hosts the two-day event at the George L Rider Track.

In all, the championship meet will feature men's teams from Akron, Buffalo, Eastern Michigan, Kent State and Miami, while all 12 league members will be chasing the title on the women's side.

Live stats and a free video stream of the MAC Championships will be available at GoZips.com.

The Zips' men squad will be looking to capture its ninth outdoor league championship, having won eight of the last 12 league titles overall.

On the women's side, the Zips are seeking their fourth consecutive title and their 10th overall outdoor championship after capturing the crown in 2017, 2018 and 2019.

Akron under the leadership of 26th-year head coach Dennis Mitchell figures to be in the running for team titles on both the men's and women's sides again this year.

In addition to a pair of MAC Championships on the line, the Zips will be competing against Kent State in the final standings of the 2020-21 year in the Crystal Clinic Orthopaedic Center Wagon Wheel Challenge. Kent State leads 5.5-5.0 in the current standings.

MAC MEET SCHEDULE: The MAC Championships will begin at 9 a.m. on Friday, May 7 at the George L. Rider Track with the men's 10,000 meters and run through the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase at 6:25 p.m. The start of field events commences with the women's hammer at 10:30 a.m., before the women's heptathlon and men's decathlon gets underway way at 12:30 p.m. and 12:50 p.m., respectively.

The final day of the championship kicks off with the men's hammer at 9:30 a.m., before the conclusion of the women's heptathlon at 10 a.m. and the men's decathlon at 10:30 a.m. The first running event is slated to begin at 1:30 p.m. with the men's 4x100 relay, before the meet wraps up with the women's 4x400 relay at 5:45 p.m. For a complete schedule of events, log on to MAC-Sports.com. Live results (click here) will be available throughout the meet as well as live video (click here).

Scoring in the meet will be on a 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis for individual events and relays for the women and 10-8-6-4-2-1 for the men.

DEFENDING THEIR TITLES: The Zips have two student-athletes seeking to repeat as individual conference champions this season.

Senior Patrick Kimball (Pittsburgh, Pa.) earned his second career league crown winning the men's 110-meter hurdles in a career-best and second-fastest time in program history with a time of 13.96 in 2019, while junior Sara Foster (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio) garnered her first-ever MAC title in the women's heptathlon using a strong second-day surge to register a seven-event cumulative and career-best score of 4,808.

Additionally, juniors Malcom Briley (Pickerington, Ohio) and Amir Willis (Cincinnati, Ohio) return from the victorious men's 4x100 relay squad, while redshirt junior Garrett White (Cleveland Heights, Ohio) is back from the winning 4x400 relay.

NATIONAL RANKINGS: The University of Akron track and field teams has garnered recognition for their efforts during the 2021 outdoor season as the Zips are rated in the Event Squad rankings released on May 3, 2021 as part of the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field National Rating Index.

Akron ranked sixth nationally in the men's hammer and among the top 25 in six different events.

The Zips also rated 13th in the men's pole vault, 21st in the men's triple jump, 22nd in the women's long jump, 23rd in the men's long jump and 25th in the men's 400-meter hurdles.

ZIPS RANK AMONG NATION'S BEST IN 2021 TFRRS RANKINGS: Akron has a trio of student-athletes ranked in the top-25 nationally by the Track and Field Results Reporting System (TFRRS) during the 2021 outdoor campaign, including, junior Nuh Andu (Doha, Qatar), who is 20th in the nation in the men's high jump (7-1.75/2.18m).

Also rated among the top-25 is sophomore William Gross (Newfane, N.Y.) (21st in the nation in the men's hammer – 221-6/67.52m) and redshirt junior Abby Helminiak (Toledo, Ohio) (22nd in the women's pole vault – 13-9.25/4.20m).

CRACKING THE ALL-TIME TOP-FIVE PERFORMANCES: Equaling the fifth-longest jump in outdoor program history to win the women's long jump at the Akron Field Events Qualifier on April 28 with a career-best mark of 20-3 (6.17m) was junior Jacqueline Pokuaah (Akron, Ohio).

A WEEK AGO: Freshman Fegor Clifford (Delta State, Nigeria) took top honors in the women's triple jump with a career-best mark of 40-5.50 (12.33m), the No. 5 mark in outdoor program history, to lead the efforts of the University of Akron track and field team at the Akron Field Events Qualifier April 27-28, at Lee R. Jackson Track and Field Complex.

William Gross won the men's hammer with a mark of 220-1 (67.10m).

Jacqueline Pokuaah bested the field in the women's long jump equaling a career-best mark of 20-3 (6.17m).

Senior Emily Taylor (Mount Perry, Ohio) won the women's hammer with a throw of 169-0 (51.53m).

Junior Jacob Hutcherson (Uniontown, Ohio) captured the men's shot put with a career-best mark of 50-11 (15.52m), while sophomore Davis Hedrick (Norwalk, Ohio) placed second with a mark of 48-3.25 (14.71m).

Senior Cole Wigal (Belpre, Ohio) and Matt Keim (Bollivar, Ohio) finished one-two in the men's pole vault eclipsing 16-4.25 (5.00m).

Abby Helminiak placed second in the women's pole vault with a mark of 13-4.25 (4.07m).

Sophomore Dimitrije Novakovic (Belgrade, Serbia) finished second in the men's triple jump with a mark of 45-10.50 (13.98m).

Akron registered a pair of victories as part of nine overall top-five performances at the Mountaineer Twilight hosted by West Virginia on May 1.

Senior Alyssa Thomas (Uniontown, Ohio) captured the women's 5,000 meters in a career-best time of 17:14.99.

Freshman Jimmy Harkelroad (Huron, Ohio) bested the field in the men's 400-meter hurdles in a career-best time of 53.15.

Senior Marquis Evans (Dayton, Ohio) placed second in the men's 400 meters in a time of 50.48, while freshman Anna Altstadt (Huntingburg, Ind.) finished second in the women's 100 meters crossing the line in 12.85.

2019 MAC OUTDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS: The University of Akron men's and women's track and field teams swept the team titles on the final day of the of the MAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships hosted by Ball State on May 11, 2019 in Muncie, Ind.

The Zips' women's squad won back-to-back-to-back titles and their ninth overall outdoor championship with 120 points after capturing the crown in 2017 and 2018. Akron bested Central Michigan by 2.5 points for the title.

In the men's race, the Zips won their eighth outdoor league championship with 199 points for a 19-point victory over Eastern Michigan.

For his teams' efforts, Akron head coach Dennis Mitchell was named the MAC Men's and Women's Coach of the Year.

The Zips garnered a trio of individual honors as Noah Williams, Sara Foster and Demetrius Jackson were named the Men's Most Outstanding Men's Track Co-Performer of the Meet, Women's Track Freshman of the Year and Men's Track Freshman of the Year, respectively.

Mackenzie Andrews won her fifth overall and fourth individual MAC title taking down the competition in the women's 1,500 meters in a time of 4:27.51 to pull in the championship in the event for the eighth time in program history.

Dara Perry took home her fourth overall career MAC championship and third in the women's 100-meter hurdles with a time of 13.55 to edge the second- and third-place competitors by five one-hundredths of a second.

Abigale Wilson garnered her second consecutive and third overall league title to win the women's discus registering a season-best mark of 180-8 (55.08m).

Cole Wigal extended Akron's run of dominance in the men's pole vault capturing the Zips' 24th consecutive title (indoor and outdoor) in the event with a career-best clearance of 17-0.75 (5.20m). The title was the first career championship for Wigal, who edged Matt Ludwig on jumps.

The men's 4x100 relay squad of Malcom Briley, Williams, Amir Willis and Jackson began the victory total for the Zips on the day crossing the line in season-best time of 40.39 to win the league crown in the event for the seventh time.

Williams pulled in his second title of the day claiming the triumph in the men's 400 meters in a school-record time of 45.72.

The Zips completed the sweep of the men's relays taking home the title in the men's 4x400 relay for only the second time in outdoor program history as the quartet of Garrett White, Zach Robinson, Sam Janson and Williams registered a come-from-behind victory in a season-best time of 3:12.00.

Patrick Kimball earned his second career league crown winning the men's 110-meter hurdles in a career-best and second-fastest time in program history with a time of 13.96.

A strong surge at the finish line in a time of 3:55.20 produced second-team All-MAC honors in the men's 1,500 meters for Marc Migliozzi.

Curtis Richardson and Nuh Andu picked up key points in the men's high jump placing second, and third, respectively, with clearances of 6-9.50 (2.07m) and 6-9.50 (2.07m).

The Zips posted second- and third-place efforts in the men's 100 meters as Jackson and Briley crossed the line in career-best times of 10.49 and 10.58, respectively.

A day earlier, Andrews garnered her fourth career MAC title winning the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase to headline a trio of Zips earning individual league championships on the second day of the MAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships hosted by Ball State on May 10, 2019.

Jordan Latimer captured his sixth overall and fifth consecutive (indoor and outdoor) league title in the men's long jump on the strength of a winning jump and facility-record mark of 25-7.50 (7.81m). The victory marked the fifth consecutive year in which a Zip has won the league's outdoor title in the men's long jump.

Andrews became only the second Zip to win the steeplechase in championship history, as she crossed the line flashing her Akron 'Z' in a time of 10:26.74. Making the victory even sweeter for Andrews was a late surge by Haley Hess to earn a second-place finish on the strength of the third-fastest performance in outdoor program history, 10:31.05, a career-best time.

Sara Foster garnered her first-ever MAC title in the women's heptathlon using a strong second-day surge to register a seven-event cumulative and career-best score of 4,808. She earned the fourth consecutive and ninth overall title in the women's heptathlon for the Zips.

Wilson earned second-team All-MAC honors in the women's shot put for the second consecutive year recording a season-best mark of 51-6.25 (15.70m) to place second.

Sparked by a strong second-day performance in the men's decathlon senior Brandon Hochbein (Sarver, Pa.) registered a career-best 10-event cumulative score of 6,771 to garner a career-best second-place finish.

Tevin Brown became the first-ever Zip to capture the men's 10,000-meter title at the MAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships as his second career league title culminated Akron's efforts on the opening day of the championship meet hosted by Ball State on May 9, 2019.

Ian Behm and Lucy Bryan added their second and third career league titles, respectively, to highlight a trio of championships for the Zips.

In the men's 10,000 meters, Brown parlayed a late surge in the race to cross the line in 31:20.78 to pull in his second career MAC title.

Bryan won her third overall and third consecutive MAC title in the women's pole vault persevering through windy conditions to claim the event with a stadium-record mark of 13-9.25 (4.20m).

Abby Helminiak collected second-team All-MAC honors for the first time in her career eclipsing 12-8.25 (3.87m) for a second-place finish in the women's pole vault.

Behm captured his second career league title in the men's javelin persevering through fierce winds to register a winning mark of 224-0 (68.27m) on his sixth and final throw of the competition. Behm's effort allowed him to repeat as league champion after earning his first championship in 2018.

ALL-MAC PERFORMERS (First-Team All-MAC/Second-Team All-MAC): Below is a listed on first- and second-place performances at the Mid-American Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field Championships for the current members of the Zips' squad.

Amir Willis (4/1) - Indoor: 4x400 Relay - 2021 (1st-3:18.19), 2020 (1st-3:07.89); 60 Meters - 2020 (2nd-6.81); 200 Meters - 2021 (1st-21.48); Outdoor: 4x100 Relay - 2019 (1st-40.39); Zarik Brown (3/1) - Indoor: 4x400 Relay - 2021 (1st-3:18.19), 2020 (1st-3:07.89); Indoor: 400 meters - 2021 (1st-47.71), 2020 (2nd-46.86); Hesham Eldesouky (3/0) - Indoor: Triple Jump - 2021 (1st-51-10.50/15.81m), 2019 (1st-52-6/16.00m); Long Jump - 2021 (1st-24-1.50/7.35m); Patrick Kimball (3/0) - Indoor: 60-Meter Hurdles - 2021 (1st-8.00), 2019 (1st-7.97); Outdoor: 110-Meter Hurdles - 2019 (1st-13.96); Jacqueline Pokuaah (3/0) - Indoor: 60-Meter Hurdles - 2021 (1st-8.59); Triple Jump - 2021 (1st-40-9/12.42m); Long Jump: 2021 (1st-19-11/6.07m); Sara Foster (2/1) - Indoor: Pentathlon - 2021 (2nd-3,540), 2020 (1st-3,645); Outdoor: Heptathlon - 2019 (1st-4,808); Malcom Briley (2/0) - Indoor: 4x400 Relay - 2021 (1st-3:18.19); Outdoor: 4x100 Relay - 2019 (1st-40.39); Nuh Andu (1/2) - Indoor: High Jump - 2021 (2nd- 7-2.25/2.19m), 2020 (1st-6-11/2.11m), 2019 (2nd-6-11.50/2.12m); Cole Wigal (1/2) - Indoor: Pole Vault - 2019 (2nd-16-7.25/5.06m); Outdoor: Pole Vault - 2019 (1st-17-0.75/5.20m), 2018 (2nd-16-7.50/5.07m); Brandon Hochbein (1/1) - Indoor: Heptathlon - 2021 (1st-5,245); Outdoor: Decathlon - 2019 (2nd-6,771); Malik Hudson (1/1) - Indoor: 4x400 Relay - 2018 (2nd-3:18.13) Outdoor: Decathlon - 2018 (2nd-6,723); Hunter Garretson (1/0) - Indoor: Pole Vault - 2021 (1st-17-9.75/5.43m); Kyra Keurentjes (1/0) - Indoor: 800 Meters - 2021 (1st-2:12.08); Blake Lucius (1/0) - Indoor: 800 Meters - 2021 (1st-1:53.75); Charles Sanders (1/0) - Indoor: 4x400 Relay - 2021 (1st-3:18.19); Lindsey Scarton (1/0) - Indoor: DMR - 2019 (1st-11:37.61); Garrett White (1/0) - Outdoor: 4x400 Relay - 2019 (1st-3:12.00); Abby Helminiak (0/3) - Indoor: Pole Vault - 2021 (2nd-13.7.75/4.13m), 2020 (2nd-13-8.25/4.17m); Outdoor: Pole Vault - 2019 (2nd-12-8.25/3.87m); Andre Bollam-Godbott (0/1) - Indoor: 5,000 Meters - 2020 (2nd-14:25.25); Varvara Lissichkina (0/1) - Indoor: 800 Meters - 2020 (2nd-2:08.66); Dimitrije Novakovic (0/1) - Indoor: Long Jump - 2021 (2nd-23-9/7.24m); Jacob Ondash (0/1) - Indoor: DMR - 2019 (2nd-10:06.82); Jace Roundtree (0/1) - Indoor: 60-Meter Hurdles - 2020 (2nd-8.06); Andrew Wahl (0/1) - Indoor: DMR - 2019 (2nd-10:06.82)

AKRON DUO EARNS MAC ATHLETE OF THE WEEK HONORS: Jimmy Harkelroad and William Gross were recognized by the Mid-American Conference as the Men's Track and Field Athletes of the Week, the league announced on Wednesday, May 5.

Gross and Harkelroad are the fourth and fifth Zips to earn weekly league honors during the outdoor campaign in 2021, joining Gross (April 21, May 5), Abby Helminiak (April 7), Jacqueline Pokuaah (April 28) and Amir Willis (April 21, April 28).

Harkelroad bested the field in the men's 400-meter hurdles in a career-best time of 53.15 at the Mountaineer Twilight on Saturday, May 1. His effort stands as the top time in the MAC this season.

Gross captured the hammer at the Akron Field Events Qualifier on April 27. Gross bested the field with a mark of 220-1 (67.10m), representing his second throw of the season of 220' or better. He currently leads the MAC with a mark of 221-6, an effort that ranks 21st in the NCAA this season.

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