Alex, Wheeler Earn First Women’s Track and Field Weekly Awards of the Season
Southland Conference
2017 Southland Indoor Track & Field Week One Recap
FRISCO, Texas – Southeastern Louisiana sophomore Dekayta Alex and Nicholls senior Ashley Wheeler were named the first Southland Women’s Indoor Track & Field Athletes of the Week for the 2017 season, the league announced Wednesday. Both student-athletes competed at the LSU Purple Tiger Invitational on Friday, Jan. 6 in Baton Rouge, La. Southland Conference Athletes of the Week are presented by
UniversalCoin.com.
Women’s Track Athlete of the Week – Dekayta Alex, Southeastern Louisiana
A sophomore out of Natchitoches, La., Alex eclipsed her own school record in the 600-meter with a finishing time of 1:36.67. She finished third out of 16 competitors, the best of five fellow Southland athletes. She then went on to help the Lady Lions to another third-place finish in the 4x400-meter relay with a time of 4:01.48, another Southland-best for the event.
Honorable Mention: Maegan Moore, McNeese.
Women’s Field Athlete of the Week – Ashley Wheeler, Nicholls
Wheeler finished second out of nine competitors in the triple jump at the Purple Tiger Invitational with a distance of 38.74 feet – a conference-best for the meet.
Honorable Mention: Alanna Arvie, McNeese; Gerianna Lyons, Northwestern State; Tayla Celestine, Southeastern La.
Southeastern La. next competes at the McNeese Opener in Lake Charles, La. on Friday, Jan. 13. On the same day, Nicholls will be taking part in University of Houston’s Leonard Hilton Invitational in Houston, Texas.
Each school’s sports information director nominates and votes for the athletes of the week, though is not permitted to vote for his or her own student-athlete. To receive honorable mention, an athlete must receive votes from 25 percent of the Southland sports information directors
.