CULLOWHEE, N.C. – The Wofford College men's and women's track and field teams recorded their best finishes in school history at the 2016 Southern Conference Track & Field Championships. The event was held in Cullowhee, N.C., at Western Carolina's Catamount Athletic Complex on Thursday and Friday. The men finished seventh with 37 points, while the women were also seventh with 37 points.
 
"I am really proud of our team and the performances they put together," said head coach Johnny Bomar. "We had a rough first day, but really rallied and finished the second day strong. A lot of our top performances came from our freshman class, so I feel we are heading in the right direction. Individually, Alex Burgess and Amber Lust had a phenomenal meet on the women's side."  
 
The women's 37 points scored were the most in school history, topping the previous high of 15 in 2014, and the seventh place finish was also the best in school history. The 37 points for the men were the second-most in school history to 38 points scored in 2003 and the seventh place finish tied for the highest with the 2005, 2006 and 2015 teams. In addition, 14 Terriers earned All-Freshman Team honors and seven school records were set.
 
Freshman Alexandra Burgess won the triple jump with a distance of 12.17 meters to set a new school record. She is only the second women's track and field athlete from Wofford to win an individual title, joining Crystal Belcher (javelin, 2006). Overall, she is only the fourth track and field athlete to earn an individual championship for the Terriers. Burgess was also seventh in the long jump on Thursday.
 
In the 100 meter hurdles, freshman Amber Lust was seventh overall in 14.76 to set a new school record. The women's 4x100 relay team of Amber Lust, McLeod Dean, Olivia Head and Alexandra Burgess took third place to earn All-Conference honors, a first for a Wofford relay team. The 4x400 team of Amber Lust, McLeod Dean, Olivia Head and LeAndrea Combo set a new school mark in 3:56.52 and finished fourth. Freshman Alex King took eighth place in the discus at 36.05 meters and was sixth in the hammer with a school record throw of 43.94 meters on Thursday. In the heptathlon, freshman Amber Lust was fourth overall with a school record 4,393 points, while sophomore Sara Jane Hayes also scored with 3,978 points to take sixth place.
 
Freshman Joe Harbacevich finished second in the 800 meters with a time of 1:52.13 to set a new school record and earn All-Conference honors. Freshman Conrad Heinrich was eighth in the 110 meter hurdles and on Thursday was seventh in the javelin. Freshman Omar Mingo took fourth place in the triple jump with a distance of 13.62 meters. The 4x100 relay team of Sam Robinson, Matt Ransom, Omar Mingo and Ben Hensley was fifth, while the 4x400 team of Matt Ransom, Tevin Johnson, Cisco Ferre and Ben Hensley was sixth overall.
 
In the decathlon, freshman Conrad Heinrich took second place with a score of 6,008 for a new school mark. He was first in the 1500 meters, shot put, discus and javelin. Freshman Sam Robinson was seventh in the decathlon with 5,454 points as he was first in the 110 meter hurdles.
 
Western Carolina handily won the men's title and pulled out a back-and-forth women's title in Friday's final event. The title sweep was the Catamounts' first since 2013. Western Carolina's men finished with 245 points, 93 ahead of runner-up VMI, which entered the day in fourth place. The Catamount women finished with 255 points, a scant 3.5 ahead of Samford's 251.5. VMI's Jordan White was named the men's Most Outstanding Athlete, while WCU's Hailey Cook and Samford's Sarah Sanford tied for the women's award.
 
Men's results
1. Western Carolina – 245 points
2. VMI – 152
2. Samford – 101
3. ETSU – 98
5. Furman – 94
6. The Citadel – 77
7. Wofford – 37
8. UNCG – 8
 
Women's results
1. Western Carolina – 255 points
2. Samford – 251.1
3. ETSU – 91.5
4. Furman – 45
5. VMI – 44
6. Chattanooga – 39
7. Wofford – 37
8. The Citadel – 29
9. Mercer – 13
10. UNCG – 7
 
ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM
Women's hammer throw
Alex King, Wofford
 
Women's long jump
Alexandra Burgess, Wofford
 
Decathlon
Conrad Heinrich, Wofford
 
Men's shot put
Longinus Nnodim, Wofford
 
Men's 800-meter run
Joe Harbacevich, Wofford
 
Men's triple jump
Omar Mingo, Wofford
 
Men's discus
Dalton Sullivan, Wofford
 
Heptathlon
Amber Lust, Wofford
 
Women's 100-meter hurdles
Amber Lust, Wofford
 
Women's 400-meter dash
LeAndrea Combo, Wofford
 
Women's 400-meter dash
Sara Wilson, Wofford
 
Women's triple jump
Alexandra Burgess, Wofford
 
Women's 5,000-meter run
Shannon McAndrew, Wofford
Rebeka Fadgyas, Wofford