Alabama
SEC Outdoor Championships
Samuel Ogazi, Doris Lemngole Strike Gold on Final Day of SEC Outdoor Championships
5/17/2026 12:47:00 AM | Track & Field, Cross Country
The Crimson Tide finished second in both the men’s (94.5 points) and women’s (91.5 points) team standings
AUBURN, Ala. – Alabama track and field finished second in both team standings at the Southeastern Conference Outdoor Championships, highlighted by gold-medal performances from Doris Lemngole (women's 5,000m) and Samuel Ogazi (men's 400m) on the final day of competition.
Both Crimson Tide standouts defended their conference titles, while Lemngole was awarded the women's Commissioner's Trophy after accumulating the most individual points during the three-day meet (steeplechase – 10 points; 5,000m – 10 points). Ogazi, meanwhile, became the first Nigerian athlete to break the 44-second barrier in the 400 meters, as his 43.95 set both the school and Nigerian national records.
Alabama added two silver medals on the day, led by Trevor Gunzell in men's discus (62.40m | 204-8) and Caren Kiplagat in the women's 5,000m (15:40.73). Dennis Kipruto (men's 5,000m | 13:24.36) and Christopher Young (men's discus | 59.86m (196-4) rounded out the podium finishes with bronze medals.
Head Coach Dan Waters Said
"I thought both teams competed really well throughout the weekend. We had a number of athletes step up, execute their race plans and score important points for us against a very strong conference field. Finishing second in this conference is no small accomplishment, and it speaks to the consistency and competitiveness across the three days. Samuel and Doris obviously had standout performances, but there were contributions across the board that helped make these team finishes possible. We'll take the positives from this weekend, continue to sharpen a few things and get ready for regionals."
Up Next
- Alabama will take a week off before traveling to Lexington, Ky., for the NCAA East First Round
Day Three Scoring Finishes
- 400m
- 1st: Samuel Ogazi | men's final | 43.95 | world-leading time, Nigerian national record, UA school record
- Back-to-back SEC outdoor champion in event, first Nigerian athlete to run sub-44 seconds
- 1st: Samuel Ogazi | men's final | 43.95 | world-leading time, Nigerian national record, UA school record
- 400m Hurdles
- 5th: David Thid | men's final | 49.52 | No. 3 all-time at UA
- 1,500m
- 8th: Milicent Wafula | women's final | 4:15.45
- 5,000m
- 1st: Doris Lemngole | women's | 15:30.69
- 2nd: Caren Kiplagat | women's | 15:40.73 | No. 5 all-time at UA
- 3rd: Dennis Kipruto | men's | 13:24.36 | No. 3 all-time at UA
- 4th: Cynthia Jemutai | men's | 15:50.36 | No. 7 all-time at UA
- 5th: Dismus Lokira | men's | 13:33.64
- 7th: Nelson Pariken | men's | 13:34.27 | PR, No. 5 all-time at UA
- 4x400m Relay
- 5th: Alexander Osayemi, David Thid, Samuel Ogazi, Mouatez Sikiou | men's | 3:02.22
- Discus
- 2nd: Trevor Gunzell | men's | 62.40m (204-8)
- 3rd: Christopher Young | men's | 59.86m (196-4) | season best
- 4th: Joyce Oguama | women's | 58.35m (191-5)
- High Jump
- 5th: My'Kell Beck | men's | 2.17m (7-1.50) | PR, No. 10 all-time at UA
