Wright State track and field: Cook, Falknor win individual events at league meet

May 15—FAIRBORN — Wright State might have had only two first-place finishes in the Horizon League outdoor track-and-field championships last weekend, but coach Rick Williamson was still enthused about the results.

The Raiders, who started their men's program only a few years ago, had a multitude of athletes grabbing spots on the podium over the three-day meet hosted by Oakland.

"We've had some pretty doggone good women's teams. But when you have people in the finals (of events) going back to back or at the same time, it's just exciting," he said.

"From a team aspect and energy and support, this was probably the best I've been a part of."

Williamson, who is in his 11th year as a head coach after being an assistant for four, was particularly pleased with the men's surge. They finished seventh out of eight teams, while the women were eighth out of 10.

"The men were only nine points out of fourth. Every year, you can see them — because we're so young and new at this — keep getting better and better," he said.

"You can see the potential. Gosh, in the next couple years, we can be a top-three team."

Thomas Cook, a freshman from the Miami Valley School, was coming off a first n the high jump at the league indoor meet last winter and snagged another first by jumping 2.11 meters (almost 6 feet, 11 inches).

That equaled his personal best and puts him in good position to compete in the NCAA regionals. The top 48 nationally after this weekend advance, and he's 34th.

"The kid can just jump. You could see right away on Sunday, he just had his legs. He looked a little tired the last couple weeks. But Sunday, he had some pop in his legs," Williamson said.

After locking up his title, he made a bid for the meet record of 2.14 meters.

"He had two really good attempts," said Williamson, noting Cook only started jumping his last two years in high school. "Once he gets the technique down, who knows how high he'll go?"

Hannah Falknor, a junior from Troy, captured the 100-meter crown and almost pulled off the sprint double in the 200.

"We thought she had a chance to win the 100. In the 200, she barely scraped into the final the day before. She was in lane one — the last qualifier in," Williamson said.

"She came off the turn and was maybe fifth or sixth, and she just started passing people. It was bonkers. We had about an hour window where things were just crazy. It was like, how is this happening?"

Jude Elkins, a junior from Delaware, Ohio, has been battling an ankle injury, but he recovered enough to finish second in the 110 hurdles and fifth in the 100.

"Coach (Shaila) Jones is our new spirit coach. She had this master plan for both Hannah and Jude, and it worked to perfection," Williamson said.