Bisons say goodbye to the AIC with a first-place finish in track and field Almost anyone can learn to play a sport, but only a select few are willing and able to become true athletes. "If you want to be a good athlete, you have to push yourself to practice often, preferably every day," said Abraham Kirwa, a sophomore from Kenya and a runner for the men's track team at Harding. "I rarely missed an opportunity to practice. Every day, with few exceptions, I ran 30 minutes from 6 to 6:30 a.m., and after my classes I ran for an hour. I averaged about 75 to 80 miles per week." David Smith, a freshman from Canada, also showed desire and a talent to succeed. "I trained five or six days aweek to prepare for the triple jump. I did a lot of plyometric [rebounding] exercises and worked out in the weight room. Throughout the year, Tquan Moore gave me support, and Coach Phillips pushed me to excel," Smith said. Virtually everyone on the 1995 men 's track team showed that, by their honors and by their performance, they were among the few who were willing and able to become true athletes. Eleven men from Harding's track team, including Kirwa and Smith, were named 1995 All-Arkansas Intercollegiate Conference (AIC) track athletes: freshman Tyson Ledgerwood; sophomores Jermaine Cuffie, Christian Howald, and Bryan Rampey; juniors Clay Beason, Ronald Nelson, and Jason Thomas; and seniors Jason Ward and Jeremy Winters. In all the events at the AIC Track and Field championships, Harding produced one or more athletes who finished among the top five , with many of them taking first place. Kirwa won the 1500-, the 5000- and the 10,000-meter races, having the most individual points by the end of the meet. Thomas won the 400-meter intermediate hurdles; Beason, the high jump; Smith, the triple jump; Rampey, the discus throw; and Ward, the pole vault. After the day 's events, Harding was in first place with 136.5 points, approximately twoand-a-half times the score of the second place team from Southern Arkansas. In addition, six Harding men qualified for national competition: Cuffy, Howald, Kirwa, Chad Mashburn (a sophomore), Nelson and Winters. One combination of these athletes placed ninth in the 400-meter relay while another combination placed 13th in the 1600-meter relay, and Kirwa placed 10th in the marathon. The 1995 men's track team showed that, with a willing spirit and an able body, some individuals and teams can achieve what most people only dream about. - Michael Carter Men's Track. First row: Alan Seim, Mitch Seim, Matt, Quigley, Tyson Ledgerwood, Dave Smith, Seth Crum, Christian Howald, Ronald Nelson, David Parks, Jonathan Dandy. Second row: Jason Flint, Jacob Eby, Abe Kirwa, Ryan Flint, Kenneth Kulei, Sigmund Donelson, Chris Williams, Joseph Winters, Kiley Thompson, Carter Davis. Third row: Jason Thomas and Chad Mashburn. Photo by Jeff Montgomery.
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