Lexington, Va. – Western Carolina track & field wrapped up its indoor season on Saturday with a successful two-day run at the 2025 Southern Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships with the men's squad posting a runner-up finish and the women placing fourth for a second-consecutive season.
The Catamounts earned two individual conference championships, 19 medalists honors, and 15 SoCon All-Freshman team selections to round out the 2024-25 indoor season.
Ethan Long headlined the Catamount effort as the freshman recorded 26 points, claiming the individual championship in the 200-meter dash and took second in both the 60-meter dash and the 4x400m relay. The Kentucky native was named the meet's most outstanding individual performer, becoming only the sixth Catamount to be named the Heath Whittle Award recipient since 1993 and the first since Trini Feggett in 2019.
Jacob Thomas claimed a second individual championship for the Catamounts in the men's weight throw as the men's team scored 167 points, pushing to the second-place team finish just 10 points in arrears of Samford. The WCU's men's team has claimed second place in the last five indoor championships, though the squad's 167 total points this season are the most since winning the overall championship with 170 points back in 2017.
The Samford Bulldogs just clipped the Catamounts with 177 total points as the 2025 title race was the closest since the Catamounts edged out the Bulldogs 141-138 in 2018.
The WCU women's team pushed on the final day of competition as well, taking their second-consecutive fourth-place finish with 88 points – the most for WCU at the championship meet since 2022. Kyndal Saunders earned the highest placement on the women's side on day two of competition, taking second in the 400m for WCU's third women's silver medal at the meet.
The Catamounts ended the day strong as well, finishing third in the 4x400m relay with the quartet of Saunders, Shaneil Lysight, Cymoria Thomas, and Leah Butler earning bronze.
Catamount Medalists:
Men's
Ethan Long – 1st 200m
Jacob Thomas – 1st Weight Throw
Ethan Long – 2nd 60m
CJ McFerrin – 2nd 60m Hurdles
Drew Zink – 2nd 5000m
Elijah Cochran – 3rd High Jump
Nathan Williams – 2nd Long Jump
Kwan Oates – 3rd Long Jump
Kolton Weaver – 2nd Shot Put
Kwan Oates – 2nd Triple Jump
Damon Worley – 2nd Heptathlon
Trevor Williams, Ian Hicks, Christian Roberts, Ethan Long – 2nd 4x400m relay
Women's
Kyndal Saunders – 2nd 400m
Lexie Durban – 2nd Shot Put
Ericka Jackson – 2nd Shot Put
Kendal Hudson – 3rd Long Jump
Raelyn Vadala – 3rd Triple Jump
Ericka Jackson – 3rd Weight Throw
Shaneil Lysight, Cymoria Thomas, Leah Butler, Kyndal Saunders – 3rd 4x400m relay
All-Freshman Catamounts:
Men's Shot Put: Kolton Weaver
Men's Long Jump: Kwan Oates, Elijah Cochran
Men's Long Jump: Kwan Oates
Men's 60m hurdles: Elijah Cochran
Men's 400m dash: Trevor Williams
Men's 200m dash: Ethan Long, Spencer Dube
Men's High Jump: Elijah Cochran
Women's Weight Throw: Lexie Durban, Emmie Finley
Women's Triple Jump: Octavia Massena
Women's Long Jump: Octavia Massena
Women's Shot Put: Lexie Durban, Emmie Finley
