1955 TRAILBLAZER ARTICLE ABOUT OVC TITLE

MOREHEAD, Ky. -- Sixty-five years ago, Morehead State student-athletes made history.

The 1955 track team won the school's first official Ohio Valley Conference team championship, romping through the competition at Western Kentucky's (then an OVC member) track. The Eagles built a lead no team could touch and held on to beat Middle Tennessee, Tennessee Polytechnic Institute (later Tennessee Tech), WKU and Murray State.

Morehead State began fielding a track team in 1952 and took just four years to claim the league's trophy.

Team members included Jerry Riddle, Carl Deaton, Ed Wells, Jim Perry, Kenny Daugherty, Harold Falls, Kenny Thompson, Steve Hamilton, Gene Carroll and Joe Wheeler.

According to an article in the school newspaper, The Trailblazer, celebrating the victory, "the team unanimously agreed that the victory was due to the brilliant coaching of Mr. (Nolan) Fowler and the great example set by him in clean living and consistent training."

The Eagles finished last place in 1952 and 1953 and finally defeated at least one team (Murray State ) in 1954 before rising to the pinnacle in 1955.

Morehead State went on to win the OVC track title again in 1956. The Eagles also claimed OVC titles in cross country in 1988 and 1995.