JONESBORO, Ark. (4/15/21) – After a successful weekend across three different meets, the Arkansas State men's track and field team swept Thursday's Sun Belt Conference track and field weekly honors, as Lexington Hilton and Carter Shell were tabbed Men's Track and Field Athletes of the Week.
Hilton earned his first Track Athlete of the Week honor after shattering the school record in the men's 10,000m at the Wichita State Open on Saturday night, clocking a time of 29:36.67 in the first 10,000m race of his career. That time bested the previous record by nearly a full minute and is No. 2 in the Sun Belt this season. After transferring from Southern Arkansas, the Green Forest, Arkansas, native now owns two school records in his first season at A-State.
His mark was also the sixth-best time of the week among collegians – the top time among all Division I athletes competing last week.
Shell was named Men's Field Athlete of the Week for the third time in the 2020-21 season after earning a pair of indoor weekly honors in February. The 2019 NCAA Outdoor All-American showed why he was one of the NCAA's best in the long jump on Friday, leaping a personal-best 7.96m (26-1.5) to finish second overall. On four of his six jumps, Shell surpassed his previous best by nearly 20 centimeters (nearly 8 inches) or more each time. Shell's mark moved him into a tie for second in A-State outdoor history and was the best performance by a Red Wolf since Roelf Pienaar in 2015. It also was the third-best mark of the week among collegians.
The Orlando, Florida, native currently ranks third in the NCAA West Region and leads the Sun Belt Conference in that event. On Saturday, he placed third in the triple jump with a mark of 15.04m (49-4.25), which ranks fourth in the league this season.
NEXT UP
The Red Wolves look to continue their impressive outdoor season at home, hosting the Red Wolves Open Friday-Saturday, April 16-17 at the A-State Track and Field Complex. Admission is free for spectators. Action begins at 3 p.m. on Friday, with Saturday set to begin at 10:30 a.m.
SOCIAL MEDIA
For the latest on the A-State track and field program, follow @AStateTrack on Twitter and @Arkansas_State_Track on Instagram, while also liking the team's Facebook page at Facebook.com/AStateTrackAndField.
A-State Track and Field SBC Weekly Honors in 2021:
Camryn Newton-Smith (W Field) – Jan. 28
Jermie Walker (M Track) – Jan. 28
Lauren Beauchamp (W Field) – Feb. 4
Carter Shell (M Field) – 2x: Feb. 4, Feb. 18
Pauline Meyer (W Track) – 2x: Feb. 11, Feb. 18
Grace Flowers (W Field) – Feb. 18
Seth Waters (M Track) – Feb. 18
Babette Vandeput (W Field) – April 8
Lexington Hilton (M Track) – April 15
Carter Shell (M Field) – April 15
