Trojans grab another trifecta of OVC weekly awards

For the second time in three weeks, Little Rock Track & Field athletes have been awarded Athlete of the Week honors by the Ohio Valley Conference, after the Trojans' solid all-around performance at the Washburn Open in Kansas last weekend.
 
Andrew Payton was named Male Track Athlete of the Week for this third time this season, Alexia Washington earned her second Female Field Athlete of the Week award, and Morcellous Harris received his first OVC recognition as Male Freshman of the Week.
 

"It is very deserving that these three Trojan student athletes are recognized for their outstanding performances over the weekend.  Andrew Payton has been on tear breaking three school records in our last two meets.  Alexia Washington broke the oldest women's record in our record book and Morcellous Harris, in his first ever Heptathlon, is now ranked 2nd in the OVC behind one of his teammates.  All three of them have worked extremely hard to get to where they are and it is great to see that hard work pay off." – J.P. Behnke, Director of Track & Field

 
Andrew Payton, Redshirt Senior / Tualatin, Ore.
Just two weeks after breaking his own school record in the men's mile, Payton followed that with another record-smashing performance in Topeka. The redshirt senior toppled the previous school record in the 3,000 meters by more than nine seconds, clocking a 8:10.21. The previous record had stood for 24 years. He also ran a leg of the distance medley relay that broke another school record while clocking the second-fastest time in the nation for the 2025 season.
 
Alexia Washington, Sophomore / Rosenberg, Texas
Washington took gold in both the long jump and triple jump at the Washburn Open, obliterating a 31-year-old school record in the long jump by eight inches with a distance of 19-9.75. She won the event last weekend by 9.25 inches over the next best finisher. For good measure, she also leapt 40-7.0 in the triple jump for a second gold.
 
Morcellous Harris, Freshman / Memphis, Tenn.
Competing in his first collegiate heptathlon, Harris made a lasting impression with a point total of 4,816, finishing seventh among a field of 34 competitors. His long jump of 23-8.25 and 1000-meter finish in 2:53.73 are both seventh-best in Little Rock history and his point total is fourth in the record book. He finished fifth or higher in three events in Kansas.