Ninth consecutive SEC Indoor team title claimed by Razorbacks, record 13th overall
FAYETTEVILLE – In his final season as head coach of the Arkansas women’s team, the No.2 Razorbacks captured a ninth consecutive title and Lance Harter’s 44th league championship with 130.5 points.
The team victory was also the 13th SEC Indoor title, moving Arkansas ahead of the 12 claimed by LSU.
Combined with the men’s victory this marks the 10th time Arkansas has swept team titles at the SEC Indoor Championships. Overall, this is the 33rd sweep for the Razorback men and women in SEC Championships – cross country (19), indoors (10), and outdoor (4).
The final day supplied a whirlwind of points after producing 45 on day one of the meet. Florida was runner-up with 85 points and followed by Tennessee (56.33), Alabama (54), Ole Miss (54), Georgia (53), Kentucky (51.33), and LSU (32).
Lauren Gregory defended her title in the 3,000m and won the mile, adding to her 2019 title, while totaling 21.5 points to earn the Cliff Harper trophy as the high-point scorer for the second consecutive year. Last season Gregory scored 20 points.
Gregory set a meet record in the mile with her winning time of 4:31.96, which bettered the previous mark of 4:32.49 set by Dominique Scott of Arkansas in 2015.
Elsewhere, 21 points were achieved in the 400m with five Razorbacks in the final. Amber Anning led the squad with an Arkansas record of 50.68 seconds, topping the 50.88 set by Britton Wilson last year.
Anning, now No. 3 on the British all-time list, finished as runner-up to an American and collegiate record of 50.15 by Florida’s Talitha Diggs, who bettered the 50.34 mark set by USC’s Kendall Ellis in 2018.
Arkansas also placed 4-5-6-8 with Rosey Effiong (51.64), Joanne Reid (51.76), Nickisha Pryce (51.83), and Paris Peoples (52.28). While Anning set a school record, Reid moved to No. 6 and Pryce is now No. 7 on the UA all-time list.
Wilson ran in the 800m this weekend and earned a silver medal with a time of 2:02.13, which matched her debut earlier this season. This time Wilson had splits of 28.01, 30.70 (58.71], 30.56 [1:29.27], and 32.86.
The Razorbacks capped the meet with a third consecutive victory in the 4 x 400m relay in 3:27.57, the fourth fastest time in school history. The relay crew included Reid (52.94), Effiong (52.29), Anning (50.92), and Wilson (51.42).
Finishing behind Arkansas were South Carolina (3:32.35) and Vanderbilt (3:33.23) as disqualifications and a dnf eliminated usual contenders for medal positions. Kentucky (3:28.39) and Auburn (3:32.97) were both disqualified while three teams did not finish – Georgia, LSU, and Texas A&M. Kentucky and Texas A&M were in the same section as Arkansas.
Ackera Nugent scored 14 points on her own, placing second in the 60m hurdles as she bettered her UA school record from 7.88 to 7.81 and set a career best of 7.20 in the 60m for third place. Nugent is now equal to No. 3 on the UA all-time list in the 60m with Veronica Campbell.
Kentucky’s Masai Russell, the collegiate record holder at 7.75 from this season, won the 60m hurdles in a facility and meet record of 7.77 as she and Nugent bettered the 7.79 facility record set by Clemson’s Brianna Rollins in 2013 and a 7.89 meet record by Tonea Marshall of LSU in 2020.
Yoveinny Mota added Razorbacks points in the hurdles by placing fifth in 8.13.
Gregory posted a winning time of 9:09.90 in the 3,000m to defeat the tandem of Hilda Olemomoi of Alabama (9:12.09) and Kentucky’s Tori Herman (9:12.21). Razorbacks Sydney Thorvaldson (9:17.94) and Gracie Hyde (9:24.68) finished fifth and seventh as Arkansas totaled 16 points in the event.
Also racing in the mile for Arkansas were Mary Ellen Eudaly (4:47.60) and Carmie Prinsloo (4:57.12), who placed ninth and 10th.