ATHENS, W.Va. – As the final days of 2025 come off the calendar, the Concord University Sports Information Department will look back on the best moments from the past 365 days that includes All-American recognitions, plenty of growth and change in and around the Carter Center and unforgettable games and plays.
From December 22-31, the year-end countdown will highlight one moment each in the Best of 2025.
While no team conference championships were claimed by Concord in 2025, the runner-up in the countdown is three Mountain East Conference individual track champions in late April at the MEC Outdoor Championships.
The first champion was
Cassidy Hammonds as she won the heptathlon in dramatic fashion. Hammonds battled West Virginia Wesleyan's Samantha Cash throughout the entirety of the seven-event heptathlon. After the sixth event, Hammonds assumed first place in the heptathlon table. The final event was the 800-meter run in which Hammonds could not allow the three-time defending heptathlon champion win by more than two seconds. Cash won the 800-meters, but only by 1.04 seconds, giving Hammonds the overall heptathlon win by 15 points (4,635-4,620).
The point total was a school record for Hammonds.
The second conference champion was also done in school-record fashion.
In his final time lacing up the spikes for the Mountain Lions,
Ian Gardner delivered his first conference championship in the 400-meter dash after three runner-up finishes in the event in both the indoor and outdoor seasons.
Gardner got around the oval in a time of 47.63 seconds which eclipsed a 21-year school record by 0.15 seconds. His time was 0.04 seconds better than West Virginia State's Tyler Minter. For his performance, Gardner was named all-region.
Gardner also helped the CU 4x400-meter relay team earn third at the MEC Championships.
And the final track champion was in the field as
Cierra Parker was the MEC Champion in the high jump, clearing 1.70 meters (five feet, seven inches). She became Concord's first high jump conference title holder since 2006, and just the second in program history.
Earlier in the spring, Parker set the school record in the high jump at 1.71 meters.
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