ACU track and field will welcome three new recruits in the 2015 season. Two throwers and a pole vaulter have just signed their National Letters of Intent to join the Wildcats in the fall.
Kami Berryhill, a two-time state champion and state record holder from Midland Christian, will bring her talents to the women’s track and field program in multiple events. Primarily a pole vaulter, her personal best height of 12 feet, 8 inches would already have her ranked in the all-time, top-10 Wildcat performers both indoors and outdoors.
Her formidable talents also include long-jumping, hurdles, sprinting and relays. Since 2011, she has earned 10 district championships through six events in addition to seven regional titles. She is also the younger sister of assistant track and field coach Angie Aguilar, who, along with her husband and fellow coach Cory Aguilar, was a championship pole vaulter for the Wildcats in the mid 2000s. Both coaches said that she will be an invaluable asset in the rebuilding of the pole vault program.
Also joining the Wildcats next year will be men’s throwers Morgan Knight and Ryan Simmons.
Knight comes to ACU with many accomplishments already from his career at Spring Hill High School in Longview. These include a 3A state championship in discus and a runner-up finish in the shot put. His personal record shot put throw of 57-7 won him the Texas 3A Area Meet and helped him finish his 2013 outdoor season ranked 13th in Texas.
Knight’s 2013 season also included first place titles in shot put and discus in the Running Rabb Relays, and fifth-place finishes in each event at the Texas Relays. His athleticism and intensity are also displayed in his football career at Spring Hill, which has included two all-district first team honors.
Simmons, also a football standout, signed to ACU solely as a thrower. He is the son of former Wildcat All-American and 1985 NCAA D-II discus champion, David Simmons. In his last two seasons, he has been ranked in the top 15 discus throwers in Texas and the top 20 in shot put, with career bests of 179-0 and 56-7, respectively.
Other career highlights for Simmons include his runner-up performances in the state 2A championship in both shot put and his first-place finishes in the region 2-2A championship in both events. In 2012, he won the shot put title at the Texas 3A Region four meet, and took home third place in the discus event at the state meet.
While announcing the signing of their NLIs, Jerrod Cook, assistant throwing and multi-events coach, spoke highly of both Simmons’ and Knight’s competitiveness and leadership capabilities. Expectations are high for the incoming freshmen as ACU continues to bring its track and field legacy back to the top.
