SEARCY, Ark. – The Harding women's track and field team utilized its home-track advantage to post a string of national-caliber performances this weekend at the Stallion Transportation Harding Invitational, highlighted by several NCAA provisional qualifying marks and a dominant showing in the field events.
Leading the charge for the Lady Bisons was freshman Yedidya Bangue, who swept the heavy throws. Bangue captured the shot put title with a school-record toss of 14.56m (47-09.25)+, an NCAA provisional mark that broke the previous record of 47-04.50, set by Cara Mason in 2021. Bangue followed that performance by winning the discus with a mark of 46.02m (151-00)+, securing her second provisional standard of the meet.
Vertical Jumps and Sprints
In the pole vault, senior Cadence Sansom continued her exceptional season by clearing 4.05m (13-03.50)+. The mark won the event and stands as an NCAA provisional qualifier. Teammate Karyna Vehner took second place, clearing 3.60m (11-09.75)+ to also hit the provisional standard. Vehner later added a victory in the triple jump with a leap of 12.08m (39-07.75)+.
On the track, sophomore Jerlana Williams blazed to a victory in the 100-meter dash. Williams clocked a wind-aided 11.58+, a time that comfortably meets the NCAA provisional standard. Williams also anchored the winning 4x100-meter relay team (46.43), joining Kelli Totman, Kewes Gomes, and Leila Ngapout.
Distance and Hurdle Dominance
Harding's middle-distance crew earned several podium finishes:
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Kaia Bieker won the 800-meter run in 2:18.34.
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Josie Parks captured the 1,500-meter title with a time of 4:43.73.
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Abigail Huff secured a win in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, crossing the line in 12:52.12.
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In the 3,000-meter run, Dinah Winders led the Lady Bisons with a second-place finish in 10:07.01.
In the 100-meter hurdles, Kewes Gomes took the top spot with a time of 14.84, while the 4x400-meter relay team of Jayden Bowman, Carabeth Hill, Leila Ngapout, and Omolara Ogunmakinju capped the track events with a winning time of 3:54.03.
Field Event Notables
Freshman Erika Konovalenko took second place in a highly competitive javelin field, recording a toss of 46.63m (153-00)+. The mark is an NCAA provisional qualifier and moves her closer to the top of the national leaderboard.
In the heptathlon, sophomore Carly Tucker led four Lady Bisons in the top five, finishing second overall with 4,406 points. She was followed by Kiera Bartlett (4,199) and Celeste Puga (4,038).
