Adejokun, Sampy Win Day One Events

Friday, February 24

Birmingham, Ala.

University of Houston

American Indoor Championships

2/24/2023 7:18:00 PM | Track and Field

Photo Gallery

Priscilla Adejokun wins first weight throw title, Christyan Sampy wins indoor pole vault, breaks school record

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Day one of the American Athletic Conference Indoor Championships began on Friday with two Houston track and field champions being crowned as graduate Priscilla Adejokun won her first weight throw title and senior Christyan Sampy won the pole vault with a new school record.

After the first event concluded, Houston had its first champion as Sampy, who entered the meet with the second-best mark of the season, upset the favorite in the event by jumping a school record 5.54 meters in the pole vault.

The pole vault title is Sampy's first indoor title of his career and marks the first time a Cougar has won the indoor pole vault since 2020. Sampy has now won two pole vault titles, one indoor and one outdoor in 2021.

Later in the meet, Adejokun won her first weight throw title of her career, tossing a season-best 22.12-meters on her third throw. The graduate didn't need her throws in finals to win the title as she gave the women 10 points to round out the day.

Anchored by Devin Vallejo-Bannister, the men's distance medley relay team finished second overall for eight points with a time of 9:45.37 after Tulsa was disqualified for throwing the baton at the finish.

Vallejo-Bannister posted Houston's top prelims time in the 800-meter run in 1:52.71 as four Cougars advanced to the final, the most red and white in an event final these championships. Vallejo-Bannister will be joined by Lloyd Frilot, Adam Mason and Jeremiah Wilson in the 800 final.

On the women's side of the 800, senior Kelly-Ann Beckford cruised to a qualification spot for tomorrow's final.

The biggest personal record of the day came from sophomore Lusekelo Mwamukonda in the men's weight throw. Mwamukonda beat his previous PR by over a meter, finishing fifth with a 16.82-meter toss. The sophomore's previous best mark was 15.25 meters.

The Cougars picked up 15 points in the long jump as junior Shaun Maswanganyi finished third with a season-best 7.31 leap with YEAR Benjamin Okafor finishing fourth and Aaron Davis II finishing fifth.

On the women's side, senior Destiny Lawrence had a massive personal-best with a 6.13-meter jump to finish third out of the second of three flights. Junior Alexis Tilford-Rutherford finished fourth in the event with a jump of 6.08 meters.

Houston is represented in every running final on Saturday in an event that a Cougar was entered into prelims for. There will be four men in the 800 final and three men in the 60-meter dash final. Maswanganyi posted the top time in both the 60 and 200-meter dashes, in season-best times.

Senior Claire Meyer broke the school record in the 5,000 meters by eleven seconds. Meyer finished sixth overall in 16:42.58.

UP NEXT
The Cougars conclude the American Indoor Championships on Saturday with the first event schedule to get underway at 9 a.m. with the heptathlon 60-meter hurdles and then at 9:45 a.m. with the men's high jump. Running events will begin at 11:20 a.m. with the women's mile.

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