Hilltoppers Earn 12 Podium Finishes at CUSA Outdoor Championships

Thursday, May 14

Murfreesboro, Tenn.

Western Kentucky University

Conference USA Championships

WKU Track & Field CUSA Outdoor Championships Hudnall

Hilltoppers Earn 12 Podium Finishes at CUSA Outdoor Championships

5/17/2026 12:47:00 PM | Track & Field

Final Results PDF Day 3 Results PDF Day 2 Results PDF Day 1 Results PDF

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – WKU track and field closed competition at the 2026 Conference USA Outdoor Championships with a total of 12 podium finishes, including three first-place titles, Freshman of the Meet honors for Leland Taylor and a third-place overall team finish on the men's side Saturday night at Dean A. Hayes Track & Soccer Stadium on the campus of Middle Tennessee. First-place finishes by Sam Crenshaw in the men's pole vault, Brunel Desinor in the men's 400-meter dash and Trevor Hudnall in the men's 1500 meters highlighted the event for the Hilltoppers.

CUSA OUTDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS
Crenshaw took first place in the men's pole vault on the opening day of outdoor championship competition after clearing a personal-best 5.35m, claiming both the indoor and outdoor CUSA titles in the event this season. The 5.35m clearance also marks a new school record in the pole vault, breaking Crenshaw's previous school record of 5.21m.

Trevor Hudnall earned the CUSA title in the men's 1500 meters with a finishing time of 3:53.23. Desinor rounded out the Hilltoppers' individual conference champions with a first-place finish in the men's 400-meter final, clocking a PR time of 46.14 and adding third place finishes in the men's 4x100m and 4x400m relays for a total of three medals on the final day of competition.

The Hilltoppers' 4x100m relay team of Desinor, Kameron Horton, Zachariah Taylor and Leland Taylor finished with a season-best time of 39.75 to take third in the event, while Desinor, Zachariah Taylor, Leland Taylor and Carter Vinson also earned third place in the men's 4x400m relay with a season-best time of 3:09.32. Leland Taylor was named the Freshman of the Meet following the pair of third-place finishes in both relays, adding a personal-best time of 47.17 in the men's 400-meter final for a second-place finish behind teammate Desinor and a total of three medals on day three.

Horton earned a pair of second-place finishes while recording personal-best times in both the men's 100-meter and 200-meter dash finals. Horton clocked a 10.11 in the 100m followed by a 20.29 in the 200m, adding to the third-place finish in the men's 4x100 relay for a total of three podium finishes on the day.

Shadrack Kipkurgat secured a second-place finish in the men's 5000-meter run with a new personal-best time of 14.27.22, while Myles Gentry took third in the men's long jump with a mark of 7.46 meters. On the men's side, WKU finished in third place overall as a team with 109.50 total points.

Kinley Kunkel's performance highlighted the Hilltoppers' effort on the women's side, with a time of 35:11.75 in the women's 10k run earning Kunkel a second-place finish on the opening day of competition. Kunkel added a third-place podium finish in the women's 5000 meters with a time of 16:32.55.

NCAA Regional competition will be held May 27-30 at Lexington, Kentucky (NCAA East) and Fayetteville, Arkansas (NCAA West).

MEN'S FINAL AWARDS
Team Champions: Liberty
Runners Up: Kennesaw State
High Point Scorer of the Meet: Mustapha Bokpin, MTSU
Freshman of the Meet: Leland Taylor, WKU

WOMEN'S FINAL AWARDS
Team Champions: Liberty
Runners Up: Kennesaw State
High Point Scorer of the Meet: Marlee Cavitt, NM State
Freshman of the Meet: Jermiya Winston, KSU

MEN'S FINAL TEAM SCORES
1. Liberty – 244
2. Kennesaw State – 147
3. WKU – 109.50
4. MTSU – 97
5. Sam Houston – 64
6. LA Tech – 58
7. UTEP – 45
8. FIU – 31.50

WOMEN'S FINAL TEAM SCORES
1. Liberty – 161
2. Kennesaw State – 121
3. FIU – 118.50
4. NM State – 82
5. MTSU – 61
6. LA Tech – 59
7. Missouri State – 57.50
8. Delaware – 50.50
9. UTEP – 32.50
10. Sam Houston – 30
11. WKU – 23
12. Jax State – 21