The third ranked Barton Community College men's track and field team finished runner-up this past Saturday at the 2020 Region VI/KJCCC Championships held at the Robert Plaster Center location at Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg, Kansas.
The Cougars won five events, recording twenty-three personal and/or season bests throughout the two-day competition. The squad also added three more national qualifiers, bringing the total to twenty-three, as the Cougars now begin preparation for the NJCAA Indoor Championships March 6-7 at the Liberty Indoor Track Complex in Lynchburg, Virginia.
Final Region VI standings had Barton with 131 points, second to only Cloud County's 151.50 and ahead of Coffeyville's 113.50 points. In the KJCCC West rankings, Barton's 188 was behind Cloud County's 231.50 and sixty-eight points ahead of Hutchinson's third place 120.50.
Like the women's squad, the program record book also took some rewriting on the day with four new or moving up the ranks with a pair of performances placing outside the top-ten best performance list.
Two of the four came from Kaleb Ambrose in the two-day heptathlon event as the sophomore fell just thirty-three points of the school record by compiling 4616 points in placing third in the region. The sophomore either set a new personal or season best in six of the eight events including a program third best 3.61m (11-10.00) height in the pole vault.
Four of the Cougars' region titles came in the shortest four sprint events with the other coming in a Barton dominated weight throw 1-2-4 placings.
The Cougars' first title of Saturday was in the 60m hurdles as top-ten program performers Phillip Lemonious and Deshaun Jones went 1-2. Lemonious, who has the third best time on the all-time chart at 7.75, won the event in a blink of an eye slower time of 7.79 while Jones was also a blink slower than his tenth best time of 7.91 in clocking a 7.96 runner-up finish.
Davonte Burnett, who owns the programs fourth best time in the 200m (20.73, pulled up short in the prelims to miss the finals but made atones on Saturday clocking a Barton third best ever 60m time of 6.62 seconds. Jhonny Renteria also clocked a personal best 6.75 in the prelims before a 6.78 finals time was good for fifth.
The fourth record book entry came in the 200m as freshman Caleb Boger took the gold by .39 seconds clocking a program ninth best ever time of 21.02.
Jevon O'Bryant concluded the Cougars' track region titles in capturing the 400m in 48.02 as Gamali Felix took eighth in a season best 48.78 time.
Barton dominated the meet's weight throw, with Phillipe Barnett coming up just 1.25 inches shy of his program record book throw by marking a 19.81m (65-00.00) toss in winning the title. Fabio Hessling's runner-up throw of a personal best 18.14m (59-06.25) fell just outside the program's top ten list as Tyler Nelson joined the duo for a trip to nationals with a personal best 15.74m (51-07.75) to place fourth in the region.
It took a national leading jump to overtake Shakwon Coke in the long jump as a 7.52m (24-08.25) splash in the sand was good for runner-up. Two more Cougars earned a trip to nationals in the event as Tyrone Treadwell's personal best 7.26m (23-10.00) placed fourth while Anderson Greaves' best of 7.06m (23-02.00) finished sixth.
Despite no effect on the final team standings, the meet concluded with the always exciting 4x400m relay in a photo finish as the region solidified its national respect with five of the teams clocking top eight national times. Butler took the region title on a .24 second margin for the third best time in the nation at 3:12.61 as the Cougars' tandem of Boger, Lemonious, Ajani Murdaugh, and O'Bryant clocked a nation's fourth best 3:12.85 time.
Complete Barton Men Results:
60m: 1st Davonte Burnett (PB 6.62 *Program 3rd best, 5th Jhonny Renteria (6.78, *PB 6.75 in Prelims, 12th Caleb Boger (6.87)
60m Hurdles: 1st Phillip Lemonious (7.79, 2nd Deshaun Jones (7.96, 12th Kaleb Ambrose (PB 8.57)
200m: 1st Caleb Boger (PB 21.02 *Program 9th best, 14th Davonte Burnett (21.93, 20th Tyreke Wilson (SB 22.26)
400m: 1st Jevon O'Bryant (48.02, 8th Gamali Felix (SB 48.78, 19th Ajani Murdaugh (49.86)
600m: 5th Tyrese Reid (PB 1:21.70, 17th Aaron Camille (PB 1:25.11)
1000m: 9th Tyrese Reid (2:37.39)
Long Jump: 2nd Shakwon Coke (7.52m, 24-08.25, 4th Tyrone Treadwell (NQ/PB 7.26m, 23-10.00, 6th Anderson Greaves (NQ/PB 7.06m, 23-02.00)
Triple Jump: 6th Colin James (PB 14.16m, 46-05.50, 11th Tyrone Treadwell (13.80m, 45-03.50, 13th Gabe Brown (PB 13.69m, 44-11.00)
Pole Vault: 3rd Kaleb Ambrose (3.56m, 11-08.00, 6th Simon Steinert (PB 3.26m, 10-08.25)
Shot Put: 3rd Fred Moudani (PB 16.57m, 54-04.50, 6th Logan Carroll (15.20m, 49-10.50, 9th Alan de Falchi (14.27m, 46-10.00)
Weight Throw: 1st Phillipe Barnett (19.81m, 65-00.00, 2nd Fabio Hessling (PB 18.14m, 59-06.25, 4th Tyler Nelson (NQ/PB 15.74m, 51-07.75)
4x400m Relay: 2nd (SB 3:12.85, Caleb Boger, Phillip Lemonious, Ajani Murdaugh, Jevon O'Bryant)
Heptathlon: 3rd Kaleb Ambrose (PB 4616 *Program 2nd best)
60m: 5th (SB 7.31, Long Jump: 2nd (PB 6.36m, 20-10.50, Shot Put: 3rd (PB 10.85m, 35-07.25);
High Jump: 3rd (PB 1.79m, 5-10.50); 60m Hurdles: 2nd (8.59);
Pole Vault: 3rd (PB 3.61m, 11-10.00 *Program 3rd best); 1000m: 3rd (SB 2:59.55)