Sunday, May 2
Cullowhee, N.C.
All Day
Mercer University
at
SoCon Championships
Photo by: Larry Dancy
Wright Scores 28 Points at 2021 SoCon Championships
5/2/2021 6:09:00 PM | Track & Field
Wright was named the Most Outstanding Athlete. Mercer finished sixth out of 10 teams.
CULLOWHEE, N.C. – Cherrish Wright was named the Most Outstanding Athlete after scoring 28 points, and the Mercer Bears finished sixth at the 2021 Southern Conference Championships with 59 points.
Wright won a gold medal in the 100 and 200-meter dashes, and Carlandra Jones took the top podium spot in the 400-meter dash to bring the Bears' gold medal total to three.
Mercer has claimed six gold medals since joining the conference. Alex Williams was Mercer's first individual champion in 2018, and the following year both of the Bears' relay teams took gold. The 2020 championships were canceled, but Mercer picked up where it left off in 2019 with three individual championships, one silver medal and one bronze medal in 2021.
Winners of each final received 10 points. Second and third place received eight and six points respectively. Fourth place received five points and from there, competitors received one less point, down to a single point for the eighth-place finisher.
"These ladies did an outstanding job," said head coach Roosevelt Lofton. "After coming off a COVID year, they showed grit, focus and sisterhood. They have worked hard this year, and I am proud of each of them. Cherrish [Wright] is an outstanding athlete who left it all on the track. She has been through a lot this season with injuries, so this was a sweet Most Outstanding Athlete award for her to win. She deserves it. Not only is she the SoCon's Most Outstanding Athlete, but she is ours as well."
Mercer's 4x100-meter relay squad of Wright, Lauryn Dancy, Jones and Kennedi Weston-Jones began the day with a bang, running the relay in an impressive 46.53 seconds to claim the bronze and set the seventh-best time in Bears track and field history.
Giulia Giorgi ran 13th in the 1500-meter run prior to the Wright helping Mercer earn its second medal of the day. In her main event, the 100-meter hurdles, Wright ran second to Wofford's Kerrington Johnson, taking home the silver medal and setting a program record of 13.70 seconds.
The Bears' first win of the day came courtesy of Jones in the 400-meter dash. Jones flew to the front of the field and won the event in a program record 54.74 seconds. Tara Davis also ran in the race and finished fifth in the race with a personal best of 56.66 seconds which ranks seventh in program history. Davis earned all-freshman honors as a sophomore due to the cancelation of the 2020 championships.
Cherrish Wright made it back-to-back wins for the Bears in the fifth event of the day to go final, the 100-meter dash. Wright cruised to the victory and left her competitors in the dust while setting a program record of 11.63 seconds. Dancy ran fifth and claimed the 10th spot in the program record books, crossing the finish line in 11.99 seconds.
Wright continued her dominance as she won Mercer's third consecutive event – the 200-meter dash – and shattered her own program record. Wright crossed the finish line in 23.88 seconds.
Jaycie Calvert represented the Bears in the 5K and finished 24th, setting a new personal best of 20:14.46.
The 4x400-meter relay squad of Weston-Shields, Davis, Jones and Ceylani Rembert turned in the second-fastest time in Mercer history. The quartet finished sixth, finishing the race in 3:49.70.
Five medals and three individual championships propelled the Bears to a sixth-place finish. Samford won the event with 229.5 points, a sizable margin over Wofford (120.5). Western Carolina (114), ETSU (93) and Furman (88) finished third through fifth. Mercer (59) came home sixth and was followed by The Citadel (50), VMI (34), Chattanooga (30) and UNCG (0).
TEAM RESULTS
1. Samford – 229.5 points
2. Wofford – 120.5
3. Western Carolina – 114
4. ETSU – 93
5. Furman – 88
6. Mercer – 59
7. The Citadel – 50
8. VMI – 34
9. Chattanooga – 30
10. UNCG – 0
INDIVIDUAL RESULTS
4x100-Meter Relay
3. Cherrish Wright, Lauryn Dancy, Carlandra Jones and Kennedi Weston-Shields – 46.53 seconds
1500-Meter Run
13. Giulia Giorgi – 4:59.42
100-Meter Hurdles
2. Cherrish Wright – 13.70 seconds
400-Meter Dash
1. Carlandra Jones – 54.74 seconds
5. Tara Davis – 56.66 seconds
100-Meter Dash
1. Cherrish Wright – 11.63 seconds
4. Lauryn Dancy – 11.99 seconds
200-Meter Dash
1. Cherrish Wright – 23.88 seconds
5000-Meter Run
24. Jaycie Calvert – 20.14.46
4x400-Meter Relay
4. Kennedi Weston-Shields, Tara Davis, Carlandra Jones and Ceylani Rembert – 3:49.70
UP NEXT
The Bears will run at the Samford Last Chance Invite on May 15 as several athletes look to record a time fast enough to earn a spot in the NCAA East Regional. The regionals will take place May 27-29 in Jacksonville, Fla.
FOLLOW THE BEARS
For complete coverage of Mercer Track & Field, follow the team at @MercerXCTF (Twitter), /mercerxctf (Facebook) and @mercerbearsxctf (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
Wright won a gold medal in the 100 and 200-meter dashes, and Carlandra Jones took the top podium spot in the 400-meter dash to bring the Bears' gold medal total to three.
Mercer has claimed six gold medals since joining the conference. Alex Williams was Mercer's first individual champion in 2018, and the following year both of the Bears' relay teams took gold. The 2020 championships were canceled, but Mercer picked up where it left off in 2019 with three individual championships, one silver medal and one bronze medal in 2021.
She scored 28 points and won 𝐌𝐎𝐒𝐓 𝐎𝐔𝐓𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐀𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐋𝐓𝐄 honors. Congratulations to Cherrish Wright! @cherrishw43 | #RoarTogether pic.twitter.com/JBHkzOC5Xl
— MercerXCTF (@MercerXCTF) May 2, 2021
Winners of each final received 10 points. Second and third place received eight and six points respectively. Fourth place received five points and from there, competitors received one less point, down to a single point for the eighth-place finisher.
"These ladies did an outstanding job," said head coach Roosevelt Lofton. "After coming off a COVID year, they showed grit, focus and sisterhood. They have worked hard this year, and I am proud of each of them. Cherrish [Wright] is an outstanding athlete who left it all on the track. She has been through a lot this season with injuries, so this was a sweet Most Outstanding Athlete award for her to win. She deserves it. Not only is she the SoCon's Most Outstanding Athlete, but she is ours as well."
Mercer's 4x100-meter relay squad of Wright, Lauryn Dancy, Jones and Kennedi Weston-Jones began the day with a bang, running the relay in an impressive 46.53 seconds to claim the bronze and set the seventh-best time in Bears track and field history.
𝗕𝗜𝗚 congrats to the relay squad for earning all-conference honors!
— MercerXCTF (@MercerXCTF) May 2, 2021
🥉 46. 53 seconds for @cherrishw43, @DancyLauryn, @CarlandraJones & Kennedi Weston-Shields #RoarTogether pic.twitter.com/E83JB4R5Tu
Giulia Giorgi ran 13th in the 1500-meter run prior to the Wright helping Mercer earn its second medal of the day. In her main event, the 100-meter hurdles, Wright ran second to Wofford's Kerrington Johnson, taking home the silver medal and setting a program record of 13.70 seconds.
Look at her go! Another podium finish for @cherrishw43, this time in the 100-meter hurdles!#RoarTogether pic.twitter.com/osHkiZUlTG
— MercerXCTF (@MercerXCTF) May 2, 2021
The Bears' first win of the day came courtesy of Jones in the 400-meter dash. Jones flew to the front of the field and won the event in a program record 54.74 seconds. Tara Davis also ran in the race and finished fifth in the race with a personal best of 56.66 seconds which ranks seventh in program history. Davis earned all-freshman honors as a sophomore due to the cancelation of the 2020 championships.
‼ 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐌𝐏𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐑𝐓 ‼@CarlandraJones wins the 400-meter dash with a time of 54.74 seconds! #RoarTogether pic.twitter.com/0gaLzPk2Gj
— MercerXCTF (@MercerXCTF) May 2, 2021
Cherrish Wright made it back-to-back wins for the Bears in the fifth event of the day to go final, the 100-meter dash. Wright cruised to the victory and left her competitors in the dust while setting a program record of 11.63 seconds. Dancy ran fifth and claimed the 10th spot in the program record books, crossing the finish line in 11.99 seconds.
Wasn't even close! Back-to-back wins for the Bears! @cherrishw43 takes the 🥇 in the 100-meter dash! #RoarTogether pic.twitter.com/foWrg7tdKk
— MercerXCTF (@MercerXCTF) May 2, 2021
Wright continued her dominance as she won Mercer's third consecutive event – the 200-meter dash – and shattered her own program record. Wright crossed the finish line in 23.88 seconds.
The rest of @SoConSports wishes they were as fast as @cherrishw43!
— MercerXCTF (@MercerXCTF) May 2, 2021
Cherrish dominates the 200-meter dash! #RoarTogether pic.twitter.com/FifHmJwGmP
Jaycie Calvert represented the Bears in the 5K and finished 24th, setting a new personal best of 20:14.46.
The 4x400-meter relay squad of Weston-Shields, Davis, Jones and Ceylani Rembert turned in the second-fastest time in Mercer history. The quartet finished sixth, finishing the race in 3:49.70.
Five medals and three individual championships propelled the Bears to a sixth-place finish. Samford won the event with 229.5 points, a sizable margin over Wofford (120.5). Western Carolina (114), ETSU (93) and Furman (88) finished third through fifth. Mercer (59) came home sixth and was followed by The Citadel (50), VMI (34), Chattanooga (30) and UNCG (0).
TEAM RESULTS
1. Samford – 229.5 points
2. Wofford – 120.5
3. Western Carolina – 114
4. ETSU – 93
5. Furman – 88
6. Mercer – 59
7. The Citadel – 50
8. VMI – 34
9. Chattanooga – 30
10. UNCG – 0
INDIVIDUAL RESULTS
4x100-Meter Relay
3. Cherrish Wright, Lauryn Dancy, Carlandra Jones and Kennedi Weston-Shields – 46.53 seconds
1500-Meter Run
13. Giulia Giorgi – 4:59.42
100-Meter Hurdles
2. Cherrish Wright – 13.70 seconds
400-Meter Dash
1. Carlandra Jones – 54.74 seconds
5. Tara Davis – 56.66 seconds
100-Meter Dash
1. Cherrish Wright – 11.63 seconds
4. Lauryn Dancy – 11.99 seconds
200-Meter Dash
1. Cherrish Wright – 23.88 seconds
5000-Meter Run
24. Jaycie Calvert – 20.14.46
4x400-Meter Relay
4. Kennedi Weston-Shields, Tara Davis, Carlandra Jones and Ceylani Rembert – 3:49.70
UP NEXT
The Bears will run at the Samford Last Chance Invite on May 15 as several athletes look to record a time fast enough to earn a spot in the NCAA East Regional. The regionals will take place May 27-29 in Jacksonville, Fla.
FOLLOW THE BEARS
For complete coverage of Mercer Track & Field, follow the team at @MercerXCTF (Twitter), /mercerxctf (Facebook) and @mercerbearsxctf (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
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