GULF SHORES, Ala. - On the third and final day of the NAIA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Gulf Shores, Ala., the Southwestern College men's track & field squad participated in three different events, placing in the top five of the finals in both the 400m Dash and the 4x400m Relay. The women finished their events on Thursday.
"This is a proud moment in coaching," stated head coach Tim Thompson. "All year long we planned and fought for this! I'm not in the least bit surprised by this team's performance. Southwestern historically has been a national caliber team. I'm honored to help this program return back to competing at the national level. The growth of our program is intentional and just getting started. We are #BuiltDifferent."
Starting the day in the wee hours of the morning was Messis Elgin, who competed in the Half Marathon for Southwestern. His time of 1:14:33.35 placed him 22nd out of a total of 51 harriers. His finish among the top half of the field was an impressive feat.
Then, the 400m Dash was run by Chris Moffett, after he posted the fifth-fastest time in the preliminary round. He continued with his hugely impressive meet on Friday with a fourth-place finish in the finals. He posted a time of 47.20, which puts him in the record books as just 0.01 seconds off the current Southwestern College record in the event. He would then continue his day with the rest of the 4x400m Relay team that afternoon.
"Chris Moffett has big dreams and the worth ethic to match," remarked Thompson. "His fourth-place finish doesn't even begin to represent his talent. He is a 3-time All-American as a Freshman! Mark my words he will be a national champion very soon!"
The 4x400 Relay consisted of David Mvundura, Slavoski Wright, Corey Durham, and Moffett in that order, as they were coming off a seventh-place finish in the prelims, and started the finals in lane eight. They outperformed everyone's expectations of them in the finals, though, as they raced for a third-place finish. They came across at 3:12.09, as Moffett came up clutch to run the anchor lap to clinch the bronze-medal spot. It was another season-best clip for the team that set their previous best time in the preliminaries at 3:12.47.
"I'm extremely proud of our 4x400 team," Thompson continued. "Everyone really stepped up and gave their absolute best effort. David Mvundura set the tone with his leadership and competitive mentality, Slavoksi Wright used the disappointment of not making the finals in the 800m as pure motivation, Corey Durham matured with every step of his relay leg and came up big for us, and Chris Moffett ran with the confidence of a veteran and led this young group of guys to victory. The result was emotional because many times this year we were faced with doubt and fears, both internally and externally. NONE of which were powerful enough to keep us from prevailing. I am truly blessed to be a member of the SC program."
It was an impressive end to the outdoor track & field season for the Moundbuilders on Friday, as they added two more All-American events to their list of performances in 2022. With a total of six athletes earning All-American status (Tony Kinser (High Jump), Moffett (400m Dash, 4x400m Relay), Mvundura (4x400m Relay), Wright (4x400m Relay), and Durham (4x400m Relay)), SC T&F is in a great place moving into the 2022-23 campaign starting with the indoor season.
--buildersports.com--
