Cullowhee, N.C. -- Western Carolina track and field dominated the final day of competition at its home meet on Saturday, cruising to six event wins and 30 top-five finishes on their home track at the 2025 Catamount Classic, presented by The Everson at the Catamount Athletics Complex.
Both CJ McFerrin and Ethan Long ended the day ranked within the top 100 nationally in their respective events, the 110m hurdles and the 100m dash, while Ericka Jackson (shot put), Christian Roberts (400m hurdles), John Davis (800m), and the men's 4x400m relay team each earned event wins in the final day of competition ahead of the 2025 Southern Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championship.
Long and McFerrin headlined the day two efforts for the Catamounts, like they have done much of the season to date. Shortly after being honored during the Catamount track and field senior day celebration, McFerrin lined up in the finals of the 110m hurdles. After taking second in Friday's prelims, the senior out of Alpharetta, Ga., dominated the field in the finals, winning the event by over half a second with a 14.00s flat finish and the 81st best time in the NCAA Division I seasonal rankings.
Long performed similarly, though the freshman entered the finals as the favorite after a 10.50s finish in the 100m prelims. The Lakeside Park, Ky., product just edged out UNC Asheville's DeMarr Harvey in the finals with an explosive 10.31s finish, the 89th-best time in the nation.
Both Catamounts would have had school records in their events if not for strong winds during the races.
Ericka Jackson earned her second event win of the meet, doing so in the women's shot put. The freshman thrower recorded a season-best mark in the event with a 13.29m toss on her second attempt. She just edged out ETSU's Alexis Carter, who took second with a mark of 13.24m as the two were the only student-athletes with throws further than 13.0m. WCU's Lexi Durban finished third with a 12.49m throw, also registered on her second attempt.
Freshman Christian Roberts picked up his second consecutive win in the 400m hurdles, clocking a personal record time of 53.61s. He was the only student-athlete to break the 54s threshold in the event. He also earned a top-three finish as a member of WCU's "B" 4x400m relay team and finished third in the 110m hurdle prelims on Friday, but did not compete in the final round.
Catamount seniors John Davis and Henry Stecher took the top two podium spots in the 800m run, as the duo were the only student-athletes in the field to finish under the 1:54.00 mark. Davis took first with a 1:53.49 sprint, while Stecher recorded a personal record of 1:53.58, finishing right on Davis' heels.
Additionally, the quartet of Noah Straley, Spencer Dube, Trevor Williams, and Elias Barton cruised to a top finish in the 4x400m relay to end the annual meet with a season-best time of 3:12.96. The Catamount "B" team of Quinton Godfrey, Langston McCovery, and Devan Sloan El also battled to a third-place finish in the event.
The Catamounts have a week off from competition before going for gold at the 2025 Southern Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Hosted by Samford in Birmingham, Ala., the meet is scheduled for May 12-13.
