NACOGDOCHES, Texas – Lamar University senior
Mariam Buenanueva Saleme broke the school's heptathlon record to earn her second straight conference title on day two of the Southland Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Big Red collected four medals (one gold, three silver) on the day and the women's team leads the field with 63 points while the men sit in fifth with 25.
Stephen F. Austin's men's team (64 pts) clings to a one-point lead over UIW through two days, while Northwestern State's women trail LU by four.
Buenueva Saleme finished with 5,679 points, besting the previous mark of 5,584 set by Parl Eelma (2023). She clinched the conference title by winning the 800 meters (2:20.44) and placing second in both the long jump (5.88m/19-3.5) and the javelin (38.33m/125-9). Through the seven events, Buenanueva Saleme was outside the top two in just one event while earning two firsts.
Neelie Schiel's quest to repeat as the javelin champion came up short as she finished second, but not before breaking her own school record with a throw of 49.71m (163-1). She had previously set the mark of 48.54m (159-3) at the Texas A&M Alumni Muster this season.
Kenson Tate earned his third career outdoor all-conference nod in the men's long jump with a leap of 7.71m (25-3.5) to finish as the Southland runner-up. In both indoor and outdoor seasons combined, Tate has achieved seven career medals in the long jump, including four SLC individual titles, two runners-up and one third place.
Ke'Asia Hall recorded LU's fourth all-conference honor on the day after she took second in the triple jump (12.46m/40-10.5). This was her second all-SLC second team honor this season, as she finished second during the indoor track and field championships.
LU had three more athletes qualify for the finals of their events, including
Luke Parker in the 800m (5
th; 1:50.67),
John Sanderson in the 110-meter hurdles (6
th; 14.10) and
Krystan Bright in the 100m dash (7
th; 13.87).
The final day of the conference meet will commence Saturday at 11:00 a.m. with the women's discus and men's pole vault events. At 5 p.m., the 1,600m relays will kickstart the track events.
