FRESNO, Calif. – It wasn’t a championship but it was the next best thing – literally.

Azusa Pacific exceeded its own expectations and used a variety of All-American performances to finish second at the NAIA Women’s Outdoor Track & Field Championships hosted by GSAC member Fresno Pacific University. The Cougars tallied 79 points, finishing behind first-time national champ Missouri Baptist which ran away with the title with 126 points. The Cougars edged 3-time defending NAIA cross country champion Simon Fraser (B.C.), which finished third with 74 points. Oklahoma Baptist was fourth with 66 points.

Senior Vivian Chukwuemeka appropriately capped her phenomenal collegiate career by winning the shot put during the final day of competition Saturday. Chukwuemeka matched her own NAIA record that she originally set in her first NAIA championship meet back in 2002 with a tying-put of 59’ 7 ½”. The victory is Chukwuemeka’s third of this championship meet. She won the hammer Thursday and the discus Friday. More significantly, the shot put victory gives Chukwuemeka 16 NAIA individual titles between the indoor and outdoor circuits, the most in association history, breaking old record of 15 set by former Cougar great Ade Olukoju from 1987 to 1990.

Moments after Chuwuemeka’s win, junior Whitney Jacobsmeyer collected her second straight All-America honor in the steeplechase, finishing fifth in the finals with a time of 11:13.52.

The Cougars picked up an additional 11 points in the 400-meter hurdles when juniors Lorraine Swaby and Sarah Jackson finished second and sixth, respectively. Swaby clocked a 1:01:49 while Jackson followed with a 1:02.67. It’s the first time Azusa Pacific has ever had 2 All-Americans in the intermediate hurdles in the same year.

The meet closed with the Cougars picking up an insurance point with an eighth-place finish in the 4x400 relay. Swaby anchored the quartet to a 3:55.15.

With the performance, Azusa Pacific finished among the top 2 for the fourth time in the past 5 years. The Cougars were NAIA runner-up as well in 2002 before taking back-to-back national championships in 2003 and 2004.

On the men’s side of competition, Azusa Pacific finished third as a team with 77 points. Dickinson State (N.D.) collected its third straight national championship with 102 points. Lindenwood (Mo.) was second with 89 points. It was the Cougars’ ninth straight Top-5 finish and their 24th in the past 25 years.

A quartet of Cougars picked up All-America honors to aid the Azusa Pacific cause. Senior Tim Ramirez finished third in the 1500 meters with a time of 3:58.24. Fellow senior Danny Reid was sixth in the 800 with a 1:52.48. Junior Matt Parish finished third in the 400, fighting a strong head wind down the final stretch to record a 48.00.

Matt Sparks, who on Friday won the 110 high hurdles, nearly pulled the difficult double of taking the 400 intermediate hurdles. He finished second with a season-best 53.03.

The Cougars chase for a national championship was hampered by a pulled hamstring that junior Tony Ramirez suffered in the 200-meter finals. Not only did Azusa Pacific not score in the 200, but with Ramirez scratched from anchoring, the Cougar 4x400-meter relay could not live up to its pre-meet billing as the favorite to win. Still, with Sparks, Caleb Lynch, Parish and Tim Ramirez passing the baton, Azusa Pacific clocked a 3:12.23 to finish fourth.