Women's team claims third-straight MEC Track & Field Championship
5/4/2021 | Women's Track and Field
GLENVILLE, W.Va. (May 4) - The Wheeling University women's track & field team won its third-straight Mountain East Conference (MEC) Outdoor Championship Tuesday afternoon.
In addition to the team title, senior Liz Fleming (Washington, Pa./Trinity) was named the Women's Field Athlete of the Year and Head Coach Patrick Stanton was named the Women's co-Coach of the Year. He shared the honor with Alan Crease of West Virginia Wesleyan.
Liz Fleming with MEC Commissioner Reid Amos
The Cardinals claimed six individual titles over the three-day event and scored 189 points to defend its league crown. West Virginia Wesleyan took second with 153.5 points, while West Liberty took third with 125 points.
Wheeling earned two of its six individual titles on the final day of the competition.
Junior Caroline Fodor (Weirton, W.Va./Weir) held on to win the 800-meter run with a personal-record time of two minutes, 20.93 seconds.
Freshman Isha Sesay (Stafford, Va./Brooke Point) won the 100-meter hurdles with a PR-time of 14.89 seconds. Classmate Bre'ya Clopper added points with a fourth-place finish at 15.09 seconds.
Patrick Stanton with MEC Commissioner Reid Amos
Clopper also added a third-place time in the 400-meter hurdles at 66.94 seconds. Freshman Delaney Miller (Carroll, Ohio/Bloom Carroll) took fourth (67.48 seconds), freshman Keala McCurry (Miamisburg, Ohio/Miamisburg) took fifth (67.58 seconds) and freshman Jenay Soumahro (Fairfaix, Va./Chantilly) came in sixth overall (68.78 seconds).
Freshman Jaci Rife (Springfield, Ohio/Tecumseh) found the podium once again when she took third place in the 400-meter dash with a PR-time of 58.20 seconds.
In the finals of the 100-meter dash, freshman Ka'niya McGowan (Huber Heights, Ohio/Wayne) placed third with a time of 12.71 seconds, while sophomore Davina Norman (Manassas, Va./Manassas Park) claimed fifth at 12.88 seconds.
Both relay teams placed second overall. The 4x100-team of sophomore Suzan Trammel (Dayton, Ohio/Dunbar), Norman, Rife and McGowan crossed the final tape at 47.68 seconds. The 4x400-meter team of Trammel, Clopper, McGowan and Fodor closed out the day by taking second place with a seasons-best time of four minutes, 5.10 seconds.
The Cardinals won their first MEC Outdoor Championship in 2018 and then again in 2019 prior to this season. A league champion was not crowned in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.