LAWRENCE, Kan. – On the final day of the Big 12 Outdoor Championships, Oklahoma State’s Fouad Messaoudi once again proved why he’s one of the greatest middle-distance runners in conference history. 

With a dominant performance in the 1,500 meters, Messaoudi became just the second man in Big 12 history to win three conference titles in the event, doing so in 2022, 2023 and now 2025. His winning time of 3:37.27 added 10 points for the Cowboys, who finished seventh overall with 50 team points. 

Alex Stitt followed close behind in fourth with a time of 3:38.89, contributing five more points in a deep field.  

In the 800 meters, Hafez Mahadi turned in a fifth-place finish with a time of 1:46.65, a personal best that also ranks second in OSU history. Denis Kipngetich delivered another impressive performance, slashing over 10 seconds off his previous outdoor best to finish third in the 5,000 meters with a time of 13:30.95, a mark that now sits eighth all-time in OSU history.  

The Cowboys also picked up five points in the 4×400 meter relay, as Jordon Smith, Will Bynum, Ty Cook and Mason Page combined for a fourth-place finish in 3:05.31. Caio Almeida also earned two more points for OSU with a seventh-place finish in the 400-meter hurdles. 

On the women’s side, freshman Isca Chelangat led the charge, placing second in the 5,000 meters with a time of 15:31.35, the second-fastest performance in school history. The Cowgirls tallied 52.5 total points to finish sixth in the team standings. 

Kaylie Politza added a sixth-place finish in the 800 meters with a personal-best 2:03.13, which now ranks seventh in OSU history. Madi Surber picked up a point in the 1,500 meters, finishing eighth in 4:17.32, while Kileigh Mixon cleared 1.74m in the high jump to add half a point. 

The Cowgirls closed the meet with a seventh-place finish in the 4×400 relay, as Ansley Scott, Annie Molenhouse, Politza and Jinah Mickens-Malik combined for a time of 3:37.93. 

The Cowboys and Cowgirls continue postseason action in two weeks as they travel to College Station, Texas, to compete in the NCAA West Prelims for a chance to punch their ticket to the national championships in Oregon.

For more information on the Cowboys and Cowgirls, continue to check back with okstate.com. 

Men’s Individual Results 

Triple Jump 

9. Rajuan Ricketts – 14.63m/47’10.75″ 

1,500 Meters 

1. Fouad Messaoudi – 3:37.27 

4. Alex Stitt – 3:38.89 

9. Ayden Granados – 3:54.86 

800 Meters 

5. Hafez Mahadi – 1:46.65 

400 Meter Hurdles 

7. Caio Almeida – 51.01 

5,000 Meters 

3. Denis Kipngetich – 13:30.95 

12. Ryan Schoppe – 13:47.28 

22. Jacob Deacon – 14:14.63 

24. Kian Davis – 14:23.35 

31. David Mora – 14:56.81 

32. Oliver Patton – 14:57.40 

33. Will Conway – 15:09.56 

4×400 Meter Relay 

4. J. Smith, W. Bynum, T. Cook, M. Page – 3:05.31 

Women’s Individual Results 

High Jump 

8. Kileigh Mixon – 1.74m/5’8.5″ 

1,500 Meters 

8. Madi Surber – 4:17.32 

800 Meters 

6. Kaylie Politza – 2:03.13 

400 Meter Hurdles 

9. Kalen Goodman – 1:14.44 

5,000 Meters 

2. Isca Chelangat – 15:31.35 

13. Victoria Lagat – 16:20.95 

15. Lauren Ping – 16:26.43 

16. Josphine Mwaura – 16:28.13 

17. Grace Ping – 16:31.33 

22. Gentry Turner – 16:52.29 

25. Colleen Stegmann – 16:56.28 

26. Autumn Michalski – 16:57.21 

28. Mandeep Sangha – 17:01.43 

30. Aubrey O’Connell – 17:04.23 

33. Kevriana Scott – 17:16.48 

4×400 Meter Relay 

7. A. Scott, A. Molenhouse, K. Politza, J. Mickens-Malik – 3:37.93   

Last season, Roman Payne missed the boys volleyball CIF San Diego Section Open Division semifinals after being invited to play with Team USA’s under-19 team.

His Carlsbad team lost in five sets to Cathedral Catholic.

Earlier this season, Payne lamented how crushing that was to not be there when it mattered most.

Sometimes vindication is a slow burn.

Playing with a renewed vigor, Payne refused to let his team lose a year later, leading the way to an epic 25-18, 25-23, 20-25, 15-25, 15-4 win over Torrey Pines on Saturday at Francis Parker that gave the Lancers their third CIF title in program history.

“It feels amazing,” said Payne, who finished with 17 kills and five stuff blocks. “We’ve been working up to this since day one. That was our goal since day one was to win the CIF Championship. We knew we had it in us. We were No. 1 all year. For me to miss last year and come back this year, it’s a very surreal experience.”

Outside hitter Derek Bashford contributed 14 kills and three stuff blocks, and middle Oliver Doty had 13 kills for the Lancers (35-2).

It required a complete team effort to close out the defending Open Division champions, particularly after losing the third and fourth sets.

“I couldn’t be happier,” coach Annette Bashford said. “They really battled. We were challenged in a way that we had to answer. Looking at the season overall, being able to set goals from day one and then to accomplish the goals feels amazing.”

Down 2-0, the Falcons (33-8) stormed back to force a fifth set with a defensive effort led by libero Griffin Dieter.

Torrey Pines was led by Ben Soudak, who had 17 kills and three aces, and Delclan Flanagan, who notched 13 kills.

“It shows the level we can compete at when we’re focused and dialed in and playing well,” Falcons coach Nick Rubacky said. “It’s one of the best teams in the country on the other side of the net and we were putting it on them in sets three and four. We know what we’re capable of.”

Carlsbad, the No. 4 team in the nation, lost its combination of high energy and confidence, only to find it in the fifth. Payne’s stuff block to make it 4-1 came on a play in which he had three blocks. Bashford followed that with a stuff block and had four kills in the set. Doty’s kill in the middle sealed it.

“We’ve faced adversity all year,” Payne said. “All year we’ve been working hard to stay on top.”

Division 2

Clairemont def. La Jolla 25-23, 25-20, 25-27, 25-17: Of Clairemont’s 10 losses this season, six came to Open Division teams.

Battle-tested.

Clairemont showed a championship resolve in defeating La Jolla in the Division II championship match for the first title in program history.

“We came in with a lot of confidence just because we beat them twice, but that’s usually how teams fail when they’re overconfident,” Clairemont coach Sean Alcaraz said. “So we watched film, we studied, we recognized who does what, and they all came out and did their jobs.”

The Chieftains (26-10) advance to next week’s State Championship. They were led by Makoa Miner’s 13 kills and three stuff blocks. Sam Reedholm added nine kills, Grant Schmidt chipped in with eight kills and Sean Sumner had six.

The Vikings (18-23) got a match-high 17 kills from Ben Salmon. Myles Plaskonos added 11 kills and two stuff blocks. Nicolas Bardaro had eight kills and Zepher Smith six. Jake Morrison had five.

Division 4

Fallbrook def. High Tech Mesa 17-25, 26-24, 25-16, 25-16: One of sports’ oldest coach sayings goes something like, it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.

Fallbrook went down a set and faced three set points in the second as its season hung in the balance.

But the Warriors scratched and clawed their way back, taking the second set and the next two to capture their first CIF title in program history.

“That’s what we struggled with at times this year, but we finished that set,” Fallbrook coach Chip Patterson said. “So we got it, and I knew from there we were going to win. Once you let us in, that’s generally how we play.”

Setter Gabriel Palacios consistently fed juniors Aiden Way, who had a match-high 12 kills, and Joshua Robertson, who added 10 for the Warriors (25-14). Jordan Anicete had six kills.

The Thunder (16-13) were led by Justin Farmer, who had 11 kills, two stuff blocks and two aces. Jacob Archbold added nine kills, and Jared Cruz and Curtis Wright each had seven.

Originally Published: May 17, 2025 at 7:30 PM PDT

STORRS, Conn.—Fifth year distance runner Liam Murphy (Millstone, N.J.) won his record-tying 12^th conference gold medal and Villanova had four podium finishes on the final day of the 2025 BIG EAST Track and Field Championships presented by JEEP on Saturday afternoon. The Wildcats scored in 16 of the 17 events they entered on the weekend and finished fourth in the team standings with 95 points.
 
In addition to Murphy defending his BIG EAST title in the 1500 meters, sophomore Dan Watcke (Hinsdale, Ill.) and junior Sal Barretta (Whitestone, N.Y.) each made the awards podium by tallying personal bests in their respective events. Watcke finished third in the 800 meters with an outdoor PR of 1:46.63 to earn a bronze medal, while Barretta garnered his first of two All-BIG EAST honors on the day in the 400 meter hurdles. He lowered his PR set earlier this year by nearly three-quarters of a second to finish third in 53.85.
 
The final event of the weekend was the 4×400 meter relay and Villanova finished third to medal in the relay for the third straight year. Barretta led off for a Wildcats lineup which included sophomore Ethan Walls (Ridgefield, Conn.) running second followed by freshman Liam Gluck (Beavercreek, Ohio) and junior Luke Rakowitz (Dallas, Texas) on the final two legs. The group posted Villanova’s fastest 4×400 time in 14 years with a mark of 3:09.25. Gluck and Rakowitz tallied splits of 47.40 and 47.72, respectively, in the second half of the race.
 
In the individual events earlier in the afternoon, Barretta and junior Ronan O’Neill (Wilmette, Ill.) combined for a 3-4 finish in the hurdles. Barretta’s time of 53.85 lowered the identical personal best times that both he and O’Neill had recorded in the same race at Princeton just two weeks earlier. For his part, O’Neill nearly bested the effort as well with a time of 54.63 in Saturday’s final. It is the sixth time in the last seven outdoor BIG EAST meets that the Wildcats have had two or more scorers in the 400 meter hurdles, but the first time since 2015 that Villanova had two of the top four finishers in the event.
 
The field of competitors for the 800 meters this week was a particularly strong one and Watcke was one of four runners who beat the previous facility record in Saturday’s final. He was already in strong position to qualify for the NCAA East Preliminary in the 800 meters for the second straight year, but his time of 1:46.63 boosted Watcke into a top 10 time on the East Region descending order list. The only faster times of his career were marks of 1:46.32 and 1:46.46 during the indoor season earlier this year, with the latter of those times also coming in a BIG EAST final. Freshman Ben Thomas (Sydney, Australia) scored two points in the 800 meters with a seventh place finish in 1:50.25.
 
Sophomore sprinter Parker Turner (Los Angeles, Calif.) scored in the final of both the 100 meters and the 200 meters after he had matched or set new personal bests in each event in Friday’s preliminaries. Turner was fifth in the 100 meters in 10.65 and came in sixth in the 200 meters with a time of 21.51. It is the first time in his career he advanced to the final of two individual events at the BIG EAST Championships after nearly doing so indoors in the 60 meters and 200 meters. He earned All-BIG EAST honors indoors with a third place finish in the 200 meters and had the fastest time that did not make the final in the 60 meter dash.
 
Villanova posted a time below 3:10 in the 4×400 meter relay for the first time since May 8, 2011 when a lineup of Nicoy Hines, Carlton Bowers, Christopher Kearney and Samuel Ellison finished second at the BIG EAST Championships in 3:09.89. Saturday’s crew of Barretta, Walls, Gluck and Rakowitz had the fastest time by a Wildcats 4×400 squad since Elvis Lewis, John Wilsman, Carl Hansen and Drew Eckman ran 3:08.80 on May 27, 2006 at the NCAA East Regional meet.
 
A lineup of redshirt freshman Kai Mitchell-Reiss (Portland, Ore.), Murphy, redshirt freshman CJ Sullivan (Milton, Mass.) and senior Devon Comber (Ambler, Pa.) finished fourth in the 4×800 meter relay in 7:28.82. Murphy had the team’s fastest split at 1:50.36 on the second leg of the race while Comber anchored the relay in 1:52.15 on the final leg. Sullivan split 1:50.72 on the third leg and came home in 55.74 on his second lap, one day after he closed in 57.08 in the final lap of the 5000 meters to earn an individual silver medal.
 
Villanova had a successful day in the field events on Saturday, highlighted by a sixth place finish in the discus from fifth year collegian Temi Ajirotutu (Queens, N.Y.) in his second career BIG EAST meet. Ajirotutu, who has been a four-year offensive lineman on the Wildcats football team, took up throwing as a hobby last year and made his collegiate debut at the 2024 BIG EAST Championships when he competed in both the shot put and the discus. He extended his marks in those events in each of two outings this Spring.
 
It was Saturday’s performance in the discus that stood out. Ajirotutu threw 42.67 meters to lead three Wildcats with a sixth place finish out of 14 competitors. He had previously thrown 37.09 meters at the Larry Ellis Invitational two weeks ago, but he easily topped that mark on each of his first four throws Saturday. Ajirotutu began the day with a mark of 40.12 meters in the first round of attempts and increased the distance to his best mark of the day (42.67m) on his second throw. He was in fifth place at that point in the competition and never fell further than sixth the rest of the way.
 
Sixth year collegian Kelechi Eziri (Charlotte, N.C.) came in sixth in the triple jump with a mark of 14.08 meters and redshirt freshman thrower Aiden Shay (Selinsgrove, Pa.) placed seventh in the javelin with a personal best mark of 47.56 meters to round out the Villanova scorers for the day.
 
Selections for the NCAA East Preliminary meet in Jacksonville, Fla. will be announced this Thursday. The competition will take place the following week from May 28-31 at Hodges Stadium on the University of North Florida campus.

 

Nina Fife

Nina Fife is a sophomore at Pepperdine University double majoring in Journalism and English with a writing and rhetoric emphasis. She began working with The562 in the inaugural intern class before being hired as their Social Media Director and now Assistant Editor. Nina is a proud Long Beach schools alum who graduated with valedictorian honors.

Women’s football

The final touch of the quadruple treble!

After beating Racing Power, by 4-1, in the Portuguese Cup final, in a game held this Sunday, May 19, at the Estádio Nacional, Benfica won the Portuguese Cup for the second time in its history and won all the domestic competitions in the 2023/24 season, becoming the first club to achieve this feat. See the best images from a historic day!