Blacksburg, Va. – Western Carolina track and field earned their first reps of 2025 as Friday's first day of competition at the Virginia Tech Invite wrapped up at the on-campus Rector Field House. The Catamounts competed across 13 total events in Blacksburg with senior CJ McFerrin earning the top finish of the day in the men's 60m hurdles.

Competing in just his first meet since the Southern Conference Indoor Championships last season, McFerrin posted a strong time of 8.11 in the preliminary round to qualify for a run in the finals. The Alpharetta, Ga., product saved his best performance for last, hurdling to an 8.01 finish to take third place overall in the event. McFerrin was just .06 seconds shy of his personal best mark of 7.95, the second-fastest time in school history. 

Outside of McFerrin's podium finish, the Catamounts earned three other top ten finishes among tough competition. Senior Imani Boyd took eighth in the women's hurdles and sophomore Amaya Hicks and freshman Trevor Williams earned a pair of ninth place finishes in the women's unseeded 1,000-meter and men's unseeded 300-meter runs. Hicks clocked a time of 3:06.94 for a personal best in the event and the 35.97 for Williams in the 300m was the first of his collegiate career.  

The Catamounts look to finish off the Virginia Tech Invite strong on Saturday as events begin at 11 a.m. with the women's high jump and pole vault. Track events begin at 2 p.m. with the women's 400-meter dash.

Keep track of everything related to Catamount track & field and WCU Athletics through its social media outlets on Facebook (fb.com/catamountsports) and Twitter (@catamounts, @catamountxctf). 
 

Top Catamount Performances 

Bold – Personal Best