Catamount track teams finish in second place at SoCon Indoor Championships

The Western Carolina men’s and women’s track and field teams both finished in second place at the SoCon Indoor Championships on February 17 and 18. The Catamounts combined to win 10 individual championships and post 26 all-conference performers. The Catamount women suffered a heartbreakingly close loss to hated rival Appalachian State, as they lost by a score of 161-159.5. The men did not finish quite that close, as they lost by 40 points at 272.5-232.5. The efforts of the Cats were not all for naught as Coach Danny Williamson won his 21st career Coach of the Year honor as he won the 2007 Women’s Indoor Track & Field Coach of the Year. Freshman Dominique Young also was honored as he won the 2007 Men’s Indoor Freshman of the Year with a pair of top three finishes, second in the 200-meter dash and third in the 60-meter dash. The women won four individual titles led by junior Raquel Ramseur’s 400-meter dash victory. Ramseur finished with a time of 56.33. Ramseur also finished second in the 200-meter dash and fourth in the 60-meter dash. Junior Kerrie Savery won the 800-meter run with a time of 2:12.83, finished fourth in the mile, and then teamed with Asia Davis, Ramseur and Aneesha Lane to win the 4×400 meter relay. Junior NaShay McGriff captured the only individual title on Saturday for the Cats, as she won the women’s indoor pentathlon with 3,226 points. Other strong performers for the women were Davis, Tangelia Johnson, Sherelle Froneberger, Deanna Kulesz, Melissa Berry, Anne Bailey, Nicole Lopez and Jessika Johnson. Davis finished second in both the 400-meter dash and 60-meter hurdles, while Johnson finished second in the 60-meter dash. Froneberger finished third in the 200-meter dash, while Kulesz finished third in the mile. Berry, Bailey, Kulesz, and Savery combined to finish third in the women’s distance medley. Lopez finished second in the weight throw, while Johnson finished second in the high jump. The Catamount men were able to win four individual titles led by the sprinters. Football player Albert Ashcraft ran a blazing 6.91 to win the 60-meter dash. Junior Zeb Johnson won the 200-meter dash with a time of 21.88 and finished second in the 400-meter dash. Manteo Mitchell won the 400-meter dash with a time of 49.42. Mitchell, Johnson, Malone and James Gregory combined to win the 4×400 relay with a time of 3:23.58. Matt Harlfinger won the men’s heptathlon with 4,620 points, while freshman Matt Evans won the high jump by clearing 2.03 meters (6’8″). Other strong performers for the men were Malone, Chris Page, Tyler Ferguson, David Gift, Ashten Bennett, Daniel Joseph, Rashad Herndon and Joel Lynch. Malone finished third in both the 60-meter hurdles and the long jump. Page finished third in shot put and weight throw, while Ferguson finished third in triple jump. Gift finished third in the heptathlon, while Bennett finished fourth in the event. Joseph and Herndon finished second and third in the high jump, while Lynch finished third in the pole vault. Ramseur was the only Catamount to qualify for the NCAA Indoor Championships. Western will now try to improve upon that number in a Last Chance Qualifier.