BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Led by High Point Scorer of the Meet Mike Roth, the UTSA men's track & field team earned a runner-up finish at the Conference USA Indoor Championships, which concluded on Sunday at the Birmingham CrossPlex.
Roth scored 20.5 points on the strength of three appearances on the podium on the meet's final day to help the Roadrunners tally 136 points, the program's highest total in the C-USA Indoor era and the third-most ever at a conference indoor meet.
UTSA placed behind only Charlotte (159) and ahead of Rice (95.5), UTEP (95), Middle Tennessee (81.5), North Texas (48), Louisiana Tech (26) and WKU (19).
The Roadrunners collected four gold medals on the final day and five for the weekend in logging their ninth straight top-three finish at the C-USA Indoor.
Roth raced to gold in the 400 meters in a record-setting performance, secured silver in the 200m and anchored the 4x400m relay team to first place, all in a little more than two hours on Sunday afternoon. He tallied 20.5 points to become the sixth Roadrunner to earn high-point scorer honors at a conference indoor meet and the first since Steven Brown in 2008.
In his first race of the afternoon, the sophomore from Canada circled the 200-meter, banked oval twice in a time of 46.42 to finish first and break the school record of 46.86 set by Vasha Sheriff at the 2017 C-USA Indoor.
Approximately one hour later, he sped to a 21.09 clocking to cross second in the 200m and become the program's No. 2 all-time performer in the deuce.
In the final race of the day, he joined Noah Rhodes, Logan Masters and Dennis Phillips on the 4x4 to help the Roadrunners record their first league victory in the event since 2014. That quartet combined for a 3:12.45 clocking, which ranks just outside the program's all-time top five.
Jack Turner got the final day started off on the right foot, cruising to his third career C-USA Indoor heptathlon title in record-setting fashion. The junior from England scored 5,794 points to clip the previous meet record of 5,787 set by Scott Filip of Rice in 2015.
Turner entered the day with a 166-point advantage ahead of UTEP's Jalen Cadet. He peeled off an 8.19 clocking in the 60m hurdles worth 935 points to cushion his lead before clearing 4.55m (14-11) to add 775 points in the pole vault. He then closed the seven-discipline competition with a time of 2:43.17 in the 1,000m for 839 more points, finishing comfortably in front of runner-up Thomas Oleson of Charlotte (5,115).
Turner's heptathlon win marked a fifth overall conference gold medal for the two-time C-USA Outdoor decathlon champion. His victory marked the program's ninth in the heptathlon, including the fourth in the last five C-USA Indoor meets.
Jemuel Miller skipped to his third career conference gold in the triple jump, which now includes back-to-back indoor crowns. The sophomore All-American from Barbados led a UTSA sweep of the medals and four of the top seven finishers, as the Roadrunners picked up 26 points in the event.
After opening with a 14.87m (48-9.5) mark followed by a foul and a non-improvement to put him in fifth place, Miller marked 15.49m (50-10) in the fourth round to move into runner-up position behind teammate Gabriel Binion, who registered a 15.52m (50-11) effort on his second attempt. Miller then moved into first with a 15.63m (51-3.5) leap in round five and held on for the victory to remain undefeated in the event in league meets.
Jacob Jenkins placed third with a 15.45m (50-8.25) for the bronze behind Miller and Binion, while Christiaan Le Roux — who captured gold in the long jump on Saturday — took seventh place with a 14.74m (48-4.5) jump.
Bashiru Abdullahi and Brice Chabot each collected a bronze medal on the track. Abdullahi clocked an 8.04 for third in the 60m hurdles, while Chabot was third in the 200m with a 21.20, just behind Roth's 21.09.
Phillips placed fourth in the deuce in 21.32 and Trevion McCalla was sixth in 21.64.
In other action on the track, Chabot finished eighth in the 60m in 6.87 and Masters notched a point in the 400m with an eighth-place time of 49.30.
The Roadrunners claimed four of the top-eight finishes in the shot put. Michael Campbell, who earned silver in the weight throw on Saturday, measured 16.75m (54-11.5) for fifth place. Jorge Ayala finished sixth with a 16.65m (54-7.5) mark, while Paul Bouey and Angel Robles placed seventh (16.07m/52-8.75) and eighth (16.00m/52-6), respectively.
Justin Wright picked up a fifth-place finish in the heptathlon with 4,155 points, while Joel McFarlane placed eighth despite not being able to finish the second day of competition.
2023 Conference USA Indoor Championships
Birmingham CrossPlex • Birmingham, Ala.
Team Standings
1. Charlotte 159
2. UTSA 136
3. Rice 95.5
4. UTEP 95
5. Middle Tennessee 81.5
6. North Texas 48
7. Louisiana Tech 26
8. WKU 19
UTSA Results
60 Meters (prelims)
7. Brice Chabot 6.75q
10. Trevion McCalla 6.80
11. Dennis Phillips 6.80
16. Antony Ma 6.92
60 Meters (final)
8. Brice Chabot 6.87
200 Meters (prelims)
2. Brice Chabot 21.18q
4. Mike Roth 21.30q
6. Dennis Phillips 21.46q
8. Trevion McCalla 21.64q
18. Antony Ma 22.35
200 Meters (final)
2. Mike Roth 21.09
3. Brice Chabot 21.20
4. Dennis Phillips 21.32
6. Trevion McCalla 21.64
400 Meters (prelims)
4. Mike Roth 48.53q
6. Logan Masters 48.71q
10. Noah Rhodes 49.55
400 Meters (final)
1. Mike Roth 46.42
8. Logan Masters 49.30
3,000 Meters
12. Caden Cunningham 8:31.39
15. Spencer Herbstritt 8:38.90
16. Jake Smith 8:41.58
5,000 Meters
9. Jake Smith 15:19.56
60-Meter Hurdles (prelims)
4. Bashiru Abdullahi 8.00Q
10. Gabriel Green 8.80
60-Meter Hurdles (final)
3. Bashiru Abdullahi 8.04
4x400-Meter Relay
1. UTSA (Noah Rhodes, Logan Masters, Dennis Phillips, Mike Roth) 3:12.45
Distance Medley Relay
5. UTSA (Spencer Herbstritt, Noah Rhodes, Chuey Hernandez, Caden Cunningham) 10:22.99
High Jump
9. Dylan James 1.89m (6-2.25)
Long Jump
1. Christiaan Le Roux 7.64m (25-0.75)
3. Gabriel Binion 7.36m (24-1.74)
4. Jemuel Miller 7.34m (24-1)
7. Jacob Jenkins 7.23m (23-8.75)
- Joel McFarlane FOUL
Triple Jump
1. Jemuel Miller 15.63m (51-3.5)
2. Gabriel Binion 15.52m (50-11)
3. Jacob Jenkins 15.45m (50-8.25)
7. Christiaan Le Roux 14.74m (48-4.5)
- Dylan James FOUL
Shot Put
5. Michael Campbell 16.75m (54-11.5)
6. Jorge Ayala 16.65m (54-7.5)
7. Paul Bouey 16.07m (52-8.75)
8. Angel Robles 16.00m (52-6)
Weight Throw
2. Michael Campbell 19.29m (63-3.5)
Heptathlon
1. Jack Turner 5,794 (MR) — 60 Meters (7.03/872); Long Jump (7.33m/893); Shot Put (13.31m/686); High Jump (1.99m/794); 60-Meter Hurdles (8.19/935); Pole Vault (4.55m/775); 1,000 Meters (2:43.17/839)
5. Justin Wright 4,155 — 60 Meters (7.92/583); Long Jump (6.12m/613); Shot Put (10.32m/505); High Jump (1.78m/610); 60-Meter Hurdles (8.87/775); Pole Vault (3.65m/522); 1,000 Meters (3:12.55/547)
8. Joel McFarlane 2,618 — 60 Meters (7.12/840); Long Jump (6.79m/764); Shot Put (12.19m/618); High Jump (1.51m/396); DNF
-UTSA-
