WKU Track & Field hosted the Brent Chumbley Memorial Hilltopper Relays on Friday and Saturday, where the Hilltoppers took first place in 18 events on their home track.
The Hilltoppers had the most first-place finishes among the four teams competing. Bellarmine, Brescia and Belmont all sent athletes to Bowling Green to participate.
The event was renamed to honor the late Director of Cross Country/Track & Field Brent Chumbley who died on Jan. 31.
“He [Chumbley] was like a father figure, you could go to him for anything,” sophomore hurdler Devon Rodgers said. “No matter how bad it was, he was always there to listen.”
Gayle Harris Watkins, a WKU track and field standout who set and still holds the school record in the 55m hurdles in 1980, had her jersey retired on Saturday morning. Along with the Jersey retirement, the Hilltoppers held a ceremony to honor six seniors.
Friday
Graduate thrower Kaison Barton set a new school record in men’s hammer with a mark of 209 feet, 7 inches, shattering the previous record by 6 feet. The throw stands at 18th all-time in NCAA Division I.
Sophomore Kameron Horton took first place in the men’s 200m run with a time of 21.85, and sophomore Jayla Gilbert put up a first-place finish in the women’s shot put.
Sophomore Haley Zell won the women’s long jump with a mark of 5.78m, and junior Luke Stegman took first in the men’s shot put with a throw of 16.92m.
Freshman Sterling Weldon kept the winning going with first place in men’s long jump, marking 7.6m. Sophomore Kinley Kunkel took first overall in the 5000m run in just 18:09.
Saturday
The Hilltoppers failed to take first in the women’s triple jump or discus to start Saturday, but Stegman took first in the men’s discus with a mark of 49.64, an event with only one non-Hilltopper competing.
Freshman jumper JonJon Hunter took first in the men’s triple jump with a mark of 15.00m, followed by another Hilltopper win in the Men’s 4×100 with a time of 40.68.
Despite Brescia freshman Jenna Krampe putting up a fight for first in the final stretch, sophomore runner Kinley Kunkel took home the women’s 1500m for the Hilltoppers with a time of 4:52.
Freshman runner Tyler Pfefferkorn, one of three Hilltoppers to place on the podium in the men’s 1500m, took home first with a time of 4:13.
Sophomore Sophia Roskoski, with a mark of 3.82m, took home first in the women’s pole vault.
Sophomore Trevor Hudnall dominated in the men’s 800m run, finishing first in just 1:54, and junior Madison Rabe took first in the women’s 100m hurdles with a time of 14.58.
Horton continued his winning ways in the 100m run, taking first in just 10.43, the best of his Hilltopper career.
“I know I made him [Chumbley] proud and our seniors proud,” Horton said. “The way everybody came together as a team today, it felt really good.”
The team will be back in action on Friday, April 4 in the Tennessee Invite.
Sports Reporter Nathan Mueller can be reached at nathan.mueller103@topper.wku.edu
Sports Reporter Austin Rice can be reached at austin.rice714@topper.wku.edu.
