BPC Wins 1st SSAC Indoor Title

Courtesy of BPC

The Brewton-Parker Men’s Track and Field program competed at the SSAC Indoor Track and Field Championships on Monday at the Birmingham Crossplex.

The Barons made history on Monday with a first-place finish, earning the program’s first Southern States Athletic Conference Title. BPC outlasted the five-team field with a total of 237 points, besting the runner-up William Carey by 33 team points.

BPC won the championship in convincing fashion by dominating the field events with seven of the top-11 scorers. The Barons also won a multitude of runners earning points in eight different track events. Matthew Dunn led the way, scoring 16 points for the team followed by Jaylen Green, Nathaniel Shield, and Brandon Schultz winning their respective events for 10 points each. In addition to the individual championship winners, the Barons’ 4×800 Relay team won first for 10 points.

Bre w t o n – Pa r k e r posted three of the top four finishers in the weight throw, four of the top six in the shot put, four of the top five in the triple jump, and four of the top seven in the high jump en route to the championship title. Schultz continued to perform well, recording another time above the NAIA “A” Standard qualifying mark in the 60-meter hurdles.

Dunn led with his 16 points to the BPC tally by winning the weight throw with a mark of 10.03 meters while also capturing third in the shot put with a mark of 10.70 meters. For the rest of the weight throws, Kohlman Greer finished second with a mark of 10.02 followed by Jonathan Whiting with a mark of 5.85 meters for fourth. During the shot put, Greer finished fourth with a mark of 10.45 meters followed by Jamon Tymes in fifth with a mark of 9.81 meters, and Whiting in sixth with a mark of 8.84 meters.

During the 60-meter hurdles, Schultz picked up first-place with a time of 8.10 to remain above the NAIA “A” Standard. Tymes finished in second with a time of 8.79 followed by Bradley Taylor in third with a time of 8.88. Calab Williams finished in fifth with a time of 9.55.

Shields won a mark of 3.80 meters to win the pole vault finals while Green finished with a mark of 1.95 meters in the high jump to take home the title. Joshua Dunbar finished in third in the high jump with a mark of 1.90 meters followed by Ryder Sasser in fifth with a height of 1.80 meters and La’eeq Mahdi in seventh with a mark of 1.65 meters.

As for the rest of the jumps, Mahdi finished second in the triple jump with a mark of 12.96 meters while also adding a seventh-place finish in the long jump with a mark of 6.24 meters. Derrick Reid finished in third in the triple jump, marking 12.05 meters. Cordae Riggins finished in fourth with a mark of 12.04 meters followed by Jace Usphur in fifth with a mark of 11.80 meters. During the long jump, Dunbar finished in sixth with a mark of 6.27 meters followed by Colt Brantley in ninth with a mark of 5.91 meters, and Riggins in 10th with a mark of 5.26 meters.

The Barons performed well in the relays, picking up a top finish and two runner-up finishes. In the 4×800, BPC won first with the squad of Mason Smith, Jordan Hackett, Eric Smith, and Aaron Pinckard running a time of 9:04.10 for 10 points. The squad of Warren Hollis, Joseph Williams, Deandrea Jolly, and Taylor competed in the 4×400, gathering second with a time of 3:32.67. As for the distance medley relay, David Williams, Simon Steele Jr., DeMario Thomas, and Mason Smith finished in second with a time of 12:02.93.

During the 60-meter finals, Ty’Sheem Denton and Brantley earned points for the Barons. Denton finished in fourth with a time of 7.11 followed by Brantley in seventh with a time of 7.18. In the 200, Denton led with a sixthplace finish and a time of 22.67. De’Cobian Kendricks, Schultz, and Jolly finished in 10th, 11th, and 12th, respectively.

For the 400, Hollis led with a third-place finish and a time of 51.22 followed by Jaylen Mable in fourth with a time of 51.28. Jolly was the last Baron to earn points in the event with a time of 51.60 for seventh.

Thomas led the charge in the 600-meter finals, finishing in second with a time of 1:29.36 followed by Mason Smith in fourth with a time of 1:30.91. Eric Smith earned sixth with a time of 1:32.64 while Reid finished in seventh with a time of 1:52.24.

Four Barons earned points in the 800-meter finals, as Steele Jr. led with a fifth-place finish and a time of 2:09.66. David Williams won sixth in a time of 2:13.55 followed by Hackett in seventh in a time of 2:13.96. Eric Smith rounded out the four scorers with a time of 2:16.15 for eighth.

The trio of Thomas, Mason Smith, and Hackett earned points in the 1,000-meter run. Thomas won third, Smith picked up sixth, and Hackett finished in eighth. During the mile, David Williams finished in seventh with a time of 4:54.00 to earn two points. For the final long-distance races, Pinckard, Hunter Milhollin, Frankie Williams, and Jace Gabbard finished in 5th, 7th, 8th, and 9th, in the 3,000-meter run respectively. Pinckard led with a time of 10:20.99. As for the 5,000-meter run, Pinckard, Williams, and Milhollin competed and earned points in 4th, 5th, and 6th, respectively. Pinckard again led the way with a time of 18:39.53.

The Barons will continue the indoor season at the USC Indoor Open at the University of South Carolina on Feb. 18.