April 26, 2014
JONESBORO, Ark. - Senior thrower Jessica Ramsey picked up two of WKU Track and Field's seven wins at the Arkansas State open this weekend, which was highlighted by her school record discus throw of 176-feet-8 inches (16.98m).
Ramsey's discus mark leads the Sun Belt Conference by nearly three feet and broke teammate Lexia Robinson former record of 173-feet-9 inches that she set just last week. Her clip ranks 21st in the nation and is more than 12 feet farther than the next closest non-WKU thrower in the league. She now owns WKU's shot put and discus records. Robinson finished second behind Ramsey Saturday with a mark of 173'1.
Ramsey also posted a win in the shot put with a heave of 55-feet-8 inches (16.98m), besting the field by over two feet. She currently leads the nation in the event at 57'4.75 (17.49m) and has now cleared 55 feet in three-straight meets. Only nine throwers in the country currently sport shot put marks farther than 55 feet.
The Lady Toppers also went one-two in the triple jump after strong showings from seniors France Makabu and Ana Camargo. The pair currently ranks first and second in the SBC in the event and posted marks of 42-feet-6.75 inches and 41-feet-6 inches on Saturday, respectively. Freshman jumper Sandra Akachukwu secured her first-career long jump win with a leap of 19-feet-10.25 inches.
Senior sprinter Gelela Cooley played a part in two more wins for the Lady Toppers, capturing an individual win in the 400 and running the second leg of WKU's victorious 4X100-meter relay. Cooley's 400-meter dash time of 54.01 bested the field by over a second and leads the Sun Belt Conference in 2014.
Sophomore javelin thrower Tomas Guerra won his third meet of the season with a toss of 223-feet-2 inches (68.02m). He was the only Hilltopper to record a win Saturday. Lady Topper javelin thrower Antonia Susnjar continued her strong freshman campaign with a runner-up showing of 138-feet-9 inches. In five meets this season she has finished runner-up four times and won once.
Senior jumper Derrick Hill cleared the high jump bar at 6-feet-11 inches to finish fifth Saturday. His jump is tied for the highest in the conference this season.
Freshman sprinter Emmanuel Dasor clocked impressive times in the 100 and 200-meter dashes, coming in at 10.41 and 21.10, respectively. Both times were his second-best outputs of the season and ranked third amongst the field Saturday.
The Arkansas State Open was WKU's final tune up for the Sun Belt Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships, which will be held in San Marcos, Texas May 8-10. For more information on WKU Track and Field, follow the programs on Twitter at @WKUTrackField or visit WKUSports.com.
