BUIES CREEK, N.C. — Campbell men's cross country/track & field student-athlete Amon Kemboi has been named the Howard Bagwell Male Athlete of the Year as voted on by the Big South Conference.
Kemboi is the second Camel to be honored as Big South Male Athlete of the Year since CU rejoined the Big South in 2011-12. He joins former teammate Amon Terer who earned the award last year.
The Kapsabet, Kenya, native was also named Big South Runner of the Year for cross country and track and field, as well as Cross Country Freshman of the Year. In addition, he won six individual Big South titles and captured three All-America honors in cross country, indoor track and outdoor track.
The award is voted on by the conference's Athletic Directors, Senior Woman Administrators, and Sports Information Directors. Kemboi earned 68 points and seven first-place votes to finish ahead of UNC Asheville tennis student-athlete Henry Patton (65 points, seven first-place votes).
In November, Kemboi guided Campbell to its third straight Big South Men's Cross Country championship after claiming the individual title in the 8K with a time of 24:14.7. At the 2017 NCAA Cross Country Championships in November, he turned in a clip of 29:52.1 and finished 29th, picking up his first career USTFCCCA All-America honor.
At the Big South Indoor Track & Field Championships in February, Kemboi won all three events he competed in – the mile, 3000m and the 5000m. His mile time of 4:06.16 set a new Campbell record. In March, Kemboi secured First-Team All-America honors with an eighth-place finish (14:17.42) in the 5000m at the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships.
He was also the Big South Outdoor Track Champion in the 1500m and 5000m, bringing in times of 3:39.72 and 14:06.81, respectively. His 1500m mark set a new conference and Big South Championship meet standard.
Kemboi finished fifth in the men's 5000m at the 2018 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in June with a time of 13:56.37. With just five laps to go, he took the lead from teammate Lawrence Kipkoech and led the competition until the final lap, eventually finishing 1.56 seconds behind the national champion in Stanford's Sean McGorty.
Earlier this year at the Mt. Sac Relays, Kemboi broke his own Campbell record in the 5000m, turning in a clip of 13:37.48, a mark that also ranks third all-time in Big South history.
