Moore repeats and secures eighth career conference crown, Crump captures first title for Bulldogs since 1991, as both athletes No. 2 in world this year; Chelangat, Colantonio repeat for Alabama, which also gets wins from Kiprop and women’s DMR, with Kentucky’s Williams taking pentathlon

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Jasmine Moore has been in the spotlight in the Southeastern Conference since her freshman year and the Florida star shined again Friday on the opening night of the indoor championship meet.

Cameron Crump has been waiting his entire career for a big moment on center stage and the Mississippi State senior responded with one of the most remarkable performances in collegiate indoor history.

INTERVIEWS | RESULTS

Both long jumpers achieved meet records and elevated to No. 2 in the world this year at Randal Tyson Track Center, with Moore opening her series with a lifetime-best leap of 22 feet, 8 inches (6.91m) to repeat as indoor champion and become the first back-to-back winner since Brittney Reese of Ole Miss (2007-08).

Moore, who has eight career SEC titles, also equaled the No. 2 all-time indoor collegiate competitor and matched the No. 7 performer in American indoor history, trailing only Tara Davis Woodhall at 22-9 (6.93m) from the 2021 Division 1 Indoor Championships at the same venue. Moore tied former Auburn standout Elva Goulbourne from 2002 and Texas Christian star Whitney Gipson in 2012, with Florida teammate Claire Bryant finishing second at 21-6.75 (6.57m).

Davis Woodhall is also the world leader this year at 22-11.25 (6.99m).

Crump soared to a personal-best 27-6.50 (8.39m) effort in the fifth round to eclipse the meet record and equal the No. 5 performer in NCAA indoor history and matching the No. 10 all-time American indoor competitor, capturing the first men’s indoor long jump crown for Mississippi State since Festus Igbinoghene in 1991.

Crump, who trails only Alabama’s Miguel Pate, Houston’s Carl Lewis, LSU’s JuVaughn Harrison and Arkansas’ Erick Walder among the top indoor competitors in collegiate history, is just behind Greece’s Miltiadis Tentoglou at 27-7.25 (8.41m) among global performers this year.

Alabama had a pair of athletes repeat as champions, with Mercy Chelangat securing back-to-back victories in the women’s 5,000 meters in 15:44.48, becoming the first female competitor since Arkansas’ Amy Yoder Begley in 1999-2000 to capture consecutive crowns.

Bobby Colantonio produced a fifth-round mark of 77-9.50 (23.71m) in the weight throw to become the first male athlete to repeat in the event for the Crimson Tide, holding off Ole Miss freshman Tarik Robinson-O’Hagan and his sixth-round performance of 77-6 (23.62m).

Colantonio, the reigning NCAA Division 1 Indoor champion, had four 23-meter efforts to cap his series, with Robinson-O’Hagan becoming the best freshman competitor in collegiate indoor history, surpassing the 2017 mark of 76-11 (23.44m) achieved by former Kansas standout Gleb Dudarev.

Ole Miss continued its dominance of the women’s weight throw after capturing a fourth consecutive championship, with Jalani Davis giving the Rebels three of the top five competitors in collegiate indoor history following her sixth-round performance of 80-9.75 (24.63m) to secure her first title.

Jasmine Mitchell, who was second at 75-11.50 (23.15m) after winning the past two crowns, is No. 3 all-time at 81-10 (24.94m) and last year’s Division 1 indoor champion and 2020 conference winner Shey Taiwo is No. 2 in NCAA history at 83-10 (25.55m) for the Rebels.

Arkansas’ Amanda Fassold and Kentucky’s Keaton Daniel followed their outdoor pole vault championships in May in Oxford, Miss., by adding indoor titles Friday.

Fassold became the eighth different Arkansas female competitor to win an indoor title with a third-attempt clearance at 14-3.50 (4.36m) to edge Siobhan Szerencsits of Kentucky at 14-1.75 (4.31m).

Four Razorbacks placed in the top seven to accumulate 23 points in the pole vault.

Daniel overcame a sore ankle to clear 17-8.50 (5.40m) on his first attempt, giving the Wildcats three of the past four men’s indoor pole vault champions, joining Matthew Peare in 2020-21.

Annika Williams gave Kentucky a second title Friday, becoming the first female competitor from the program since Precious Nwokey in 2011 to capture the pentathlon crown with a lifetime-best 4,346 points.

Williams achieved an indoor-best 20-1 (6.12m) long jump and a personal-best 2:20.76 in the 800 meters to hold off Vanderbilt’s Beatrice Juskeviciute and her lifetime-best 4,271 points.

Florida’s Sterling Lester won the 800 in 2:16.93 to elevate from fifth to third in the final event to secure a berth with Williams and Juskeviciute at the Division 1 Indoor championship meet with 4,163 points.

Alabama’s Victor Kiprop covered the final lap of the men’s 5,000 final in 28.76 to hold off Tennessee’s Yaseen Abdalla by a 14:08.19 to 14:10.19 margin and earn the first title for the Crimson Tide since 2019.

Jami Reed, Amarachukwu Obi, Flomena Asekol and Hilda Olemomoi led Alabama to its second women’s distance medley relay crown in three years by clocking 11:04.99, with Florida taking runner-up in 11:06.01 and Arkansas relying on a 4:32.26 anchor leg from Lauren Gregory to place third in 11:10.45.

Reed, who ran the opening 1,200-meter leg on both relays, is the only member of the two championship lineups for the Crimson Tide.

Tennessee won the men’s DMR championship for the first time since 2007, with Yordanos Zelinski, Rasheeme Griffith, Joe Hoots and Dylan Jacobs clocking 9:32.75, edging Ole Miss in 9:33.18 and Arkansas in 9:33.97.

Ole Miss had won the past four titles and eight in nine years, with only Arkansas interrupting the Rebels’ run in 2018.

Arkansas’ Ayden Owens-Delerme led the men’s heptathlon after four events with 3,457 points, ahead of Georgia’s Johannes Erm at 3,276 points entering the second day of competition.