Former North Hardin Star Dante Johnson Ranked #1 in NAIA, Named Conference Athlete of the Week

COLUMBIA, Ky. Dante Johnson is the Mid-South Conference Men's Track Athlete of the Week and teammate Josh Kles is the MSC Men's Field Athlete of the Week, conference officials announced on Tuesday.The weekly award is the first of the season awarded by the conference.

Johnson recorded four top-15 finishes at the Emory (Ga.) Invitational over the weekend. The Radcliff, Ky., native's top finish came in the 400 meter hurdles. Johnson -- competing for the first time in the event -- finished second with a time of 53.69 seconds. His time was good enough to qualify for the national championships with a national "A" standard time. Johnson added a fifth place as a member of the 4x400 meter relay team and a sixth place in the 110 meter hurdles. He contributed 15 team points towards the Blue Raider total.

Kles recorded a pair of runner-up finishes and a seventh-place finish at Emory on Saturday. The Jefferson, Ky., native, placed second in both the shot put and hammer throw events. His toss of 15.29 meters in the shot put earned him a national standard in the field of 41 competitors. He posted a 41.47 meter throw in the 19-man hammer event. In all, Kles accounted for 18 total team points towards Lindsey Wilson's final score.

The Blue Raiders finished fourth out of 28 teams at the invitational.