Catamounts Return to Johnson City for Buccaneer Invite

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. - For the second time this season, the Western Carolina track & team competed in Johnson City, Tenn., at the Buccaneer Invitational hosted by Southern Conference member ETSU. Senior Devyn Ressler took home the crown in the pole vault to lead the women while junior Christian Carswell won the heptathlon on the men's side.

Ressler led a trio of Catamounts in the pole vault. She cleared 3.80m (12-05.50) to take the top spot while junior Korie Bennett came in fourth with a height of 3.50m (11-05.75). Senior Cara June Elyea rounded our WCU's entrants with a sixth-place finish. She posted a vault of 3.50m (11-05.75).

Carswell won the heptathlon by 55 points after finishing with 4,825 points. Carswell took home 785 points in the high jump as he won the event with a height of 1.98m (6-06.00). In the very first event of the heptathlon he earned 772 points with a time of 7.32 in the 60m. He took home 709 points in both the long jump (6.55m (21-06.00)) and the 60m hurdles (9.17). He finished third in both the pole vault and the 1000m. He posted a height of 4.27m (14-00.00) in the vault good for 693 points. His time in the 1000m was 2:59.10 which garnered him 673 points. Rounding out the seven events was the shot put in which he earned 484 points with a toss of 9.98m (32-09.00).

Senior Michaela Birek and junior Holly Gaines finished second and fourth, respectively, in the women's pentathlon. Birek finished with 3,545 points while Gaines picked up 3,255 points. In the first event, the 60m hurdles, Birek finished fifth with a time of 9.18 for 873 points. Gaines finished 11th with a time of 10.02 which earned her 708 points.

The second event was the high jump and Gaines and Birek finished fourth and fifth, respectively. Gaines earned 678 points with a height of 1.55m (5-01.00) while Birek cleared 1.52m (4-11.75) for 644 points. The third event was the shot put and Birek and Gaines finished seventh and eighth, respectively. Birek registered a distance of 9.65m (31-08.00) while Gaines had a toss of 8.87m (29-01.25). Birek earned 507 points and Gaines picked up 456 points.

In the fourth event, the long jump, Birek took third and Gaines finished sixth. Birek leapt 5.35m (17-06.75) for 657 points while Gaines posted a distance of 5.19m (17-00.50) which earned her 612 points. The final event was Birek and Gaines' best event. They finished first and second, respectively, in the 800m. Birek finished with a time of 2:17.06 which earned 864 points and Gaines posted a time of 2:21.66 which was good for 801 points.

Senior Alisha Bradshaw picked up a third place finish in the women's shot put while sophomore Hailey Cook came in sixth. Bradshaw posted a throw of 14.10m (46-03.25) while Cook's toss was 13.64m (44-09.00).

Junior Michael Cornwell came in third in the men's 3000m seeded run with a time of 8:42.77. Sophomore JC Cornett came in ninth after crossing the line in 8:49.55. The Catamounts final top-three finisher was sophomore Anisia Starege who tied for third in the women's high jump. She posted a height of 1.63m (5-04.25). Junior Molly Fagan tied for ninth in the event with a jump of 1.58m (5-02.25).

Junior Kaitlyn Shetler came in fourth in the women's one mile run with a time of 5:26.30 while finishing eighth in the 800m after crossing the line in 2:24.93. Junior Michaela Williams came in sixth in the 800m with a time of 2:24.20.

Freshman Alyiah Riley came in sixth in the finals of the 60m hurdles after finishing fourth in the prelims and third in the semifinals. Her best time on the weekend was 8.94.

Sophomore Dustin Tripplett came in seventh in the men's pole vault after posting a height of 4.60m (15-01.00). Freshman Corey Ginley cleared 4.45m (14-07.25) which earned him 10th. Freshman Kevin Hires earned eighth in the men's triple jump with a leap of 14.20m (46-07.25).

WCU's final top-10 finisher was freshman Mateius Brown who came in tenth in the shot put with a toss of 14.19m (46-06.75).

The Catamounts will return to action next weekend at the Samford Invitational.

 

ETSU Wraps Up Competition at Buccaneer Invitational

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – The ETSU track & field program closed out the 2015 Buccaneer Invitational with a number of strong performances including one event title and six total top-three event finishes on Saturday inside the ETSU/MSHA Athletics Center on David E. Walker Track at Gentry Field.

Capturing the Bucs’ lone event win of the day, sophomore Matt Warriner raced to a first-place time in the ETSU-heavy men’s mile run with a personal-best time of 4:13.73. Also in this race, freshman Haydn Borghetti-Metz placed eighth with a 4:20.44 time and senior Adam Chase rounded out the top 10 with a time of 4:20.73.

Continuing the momentum from yesterday’s preliminary and semifinal successes, junior sprinter Keturah Williams turned in impressive showings in a couple of sprints finals on Saturday. In the women’s 60 meter, the junior contended for the title but was just edged out by St. Augustine’s Omeila Livingston for first place with a 7.573 finish compared to 7.571 in first. In the women’s 200 meter, Williams finished third with a 24.85 time.

After sophomore Ashley Kessler placed second in the women’s pole vault on Friday, fellow sophomore Brett Squibbs did the same on the men’s side today with a mark of 4.90 meters in the event. Samford’s Tray Oates took the event title with a jump of 5.00 meters.

Looking to continuing their successes in men’s heptathlon events from Friday, underclassmen Nathan Rivera and Ben Johnson performed well again in the final three events on Saturday. After leading the field with a score of 2927 yesterday, Johnson fell behind in the standings today to earn a point total of 4695 to finish fifth overall in the heptathlon. Rivera improved following a 2687 score in the initial four events on Friday with top-five placements in each of the 60 meter, 100 meter, and pole vault to earn a runner-up point total of 4770 in the heptathlon. This score was just behind a first-place score of 4825 from Western Carolina’s Christian Carswell.

To close out competition at the meet, the squad of Aubree Collins, Carolyn Hinch, Nicole Alexander and Marabeth Clark blazed to a second-place time in the women’s 4x400-meter relay with a 3:55.17 time. On the men’s side in this relay, the team of Jonathan Foote, Thomas Miller, Mike Williams and A’Darrius Sanders raced to a fifth-place time of 3:20.20. Each relay was a field of competition featuring 29 teams.

The ETSU track & field program will be back in action next weekend with a trip to Birmingham, Alabama to participate in the Samford Invitational.

 

Running Mocs Post Top Times at Middle Tennessee Invitational

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - In just their second race of the season, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men’s and women’s track teams had several runners snare top times as they continue to tune up for the upcoming Southern Conference championships at the end of the month.

In the women’s 800 meter run, freshman Maddison Melchionna took first, leading five teammates in the event with a time of 2:16.89. Senior Rebecca Greenwall ran a personal record 2:17.92, placing third in the race with sophomore Hannah Chamblin also posting a PR with a time 2:18.30. Freshman Makala Diggs was eighth in her first indoor race followed by junior Helenka Kis in 10th and sophomore Joanna Elmore rounded out the Mocs with a 12th place finish.

Senior Amanda Cotter was edged out by teammate Teghan Henderson who ran unattached Saturday in the women’s Mile as she continues to recover from an injury suffered during the cross country season.

Cotter was second, just six hundredths (0.06) of a second behind the cross country All-American. Sophomore Jessica York ran a PR 5:09.23 in the event placing eighth with senior Keeley Stewart finishing 15th.

Freshman Emily Drouin led the women’s 3000 meter run early on but finished fourth in her first indoor event with a time of 10:25.24. Freshman Anna Kate Chance placed sixth in her first race with a time of 10:40.59 while sophomore Katie Ray ran a PR 11:05.19 in the event.

In the men’s Mile, seniors John Gilpin and Paul Stuart each posted PR’s in the event. Gilpin bested his previous top time by nearly 10 seconds placing sixth with a time of 4:17.71 while Stuart was just behind with a time of 4:21.32.

Junior Trevor Janssen just missed out on his PR in the 800m run with a time of 1:56.93, placing fourth. Junior Austin Casassa was eighth with a time of 2:01.76. Juniors Patrick O’Brien and Matthew Marshall finished 10th and 11th in the race respectively. O’Brien finished with a time of 2:02.24 while Marshall was just behind at 2:02.64.

Freshman Jacob Noorbergen placed third in the men’s 200 meter dash with a time of 22.30. Junior Tosin Ayotunde was ninth with a time of 24.17 followed by sophomore Austin Ethridge with a time of 25.55. Freshman Drake Watson placed 11th with a time of 25.90 and junior Geoff Nelson ran the race in a time of 27.38.

The Mocs return to action immediately at the Samford Invitational next weekend in preparation for the league championships which will be held in Birmingham.

 

Murphy dominated the heptathlon en route to a win and an IC4A-qualifying 5,074 points, good for a new personal best. He fell just 23 points shy of former teammate Antonio Wood's facility record in doing so.

In the 800, it was Martin pulling away over the final 300 meters to win easily in 1:52.60. It was a meet record performance and the third IC4A qualifying time of the season for Martin, all of which have come in different events (1,000-meters, mile, 800-meters).

Aron Long punched his ticket to the IC4A meet in the 200-meters, finishing fourth in 22.17 seconds, just ahead of teammate Pete Reed's 22.25 fifth-place clocking. Reed also finished third in the 60-meters and missed IC4A qualifying times by less than .05 seconds in both events.

VMI's other IC4A qualifier Saturday was Jordan White, who finished fourth in the shot put with a 15.81 meter (51'10 1/2") effort.

In other results, Davon Guerrier finished second in the 60-meter hurdles, crossing the line in 8.47 seconds. Lee Warren was fifth in 8.52 seconds. Julian Jackson, meanwhile, led a contingent of Keydets with a seventh-place finish in the 400 (50.22).

On the women's side, it was Renee Reives posting her second ECAC qualifying effort in three meets with a second-place finish in the shot put. Reives stretched the tape to 13.50 meters (44'3 1/2").

In addition, Yaa Agyepong-Wiafe was 10th in the 60-meter hurdles (9.28).

VMI track and field will return to action Friday, as the Keydets open competition at the Liberty Quad in Lynchburg. 

 

Wofford Track & Field Break Three Program Records at ETSU Buccaneer Invitational

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – The Wofford College men’s and women’s track & field teams combined for three broken school records this weekend in the ETSU Buccaneer Invitational at the ETSU Athletic Center.

On the men’s side, the Terriers broke two school records. In the 4x400 meter relay, the team of senior Travis Butler, freshman Matt Ransom, senior Sam Parrott and junior anchor Alex Michaels broke the program record, running the relay in 3:29.61, good for a 19th place finish.

Thrower Gaston Hayworth broke the school’s weight throw record again for the fourth time this season. The sophomore set a new high at 13.38 meters at the meet. His previous record was set at 12.94 meters.

For the women, freshman Katie Beuerlein set a new school record and personal best in the long jump. The newcomer leapt 4.98 meters, topping previous record holder Sloane Brandon, who jumped 4.47 meters last season.

Among the other notable finishes, Michaels also excelled in the 800 meters, placing eleventh with a time of 1:58.90.

The Terriers take to the track again next weekend at the Marshall Invitational. The meet will be the team’s last preparation before the Southern Conference Indoor Championships, taking place February 27th and 28th in Birmingham, Alabama.

 

Bulldogs Complete Action at Weekend Meets

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – The Citadel track and field teams set multiple personal records and shook up The Citadel top 10 list at the Buccaneer Invitational in Johnson City, Tenn., and the USC Open in Columbia, S.C.

At the Buccaneer Invitational, Darrell Hayden took home the crown in the 800 meters with a career-best time of 1:56.19 to move into No. 6 in Citadel history.

Jackson Nosbisch posted his personal-best mark in the high jump with a leap of 6'5.5" to take sixth place and notch his name at No. 8 in the Citadel record books.

On the women's side, Mariana Garcia-Torres earned second place in the 800 meters clocking in at 2:22.39 to move to No. 4 all time and Emani Little recorded her career-best time of 2:23.31 to finish in third place and now stands at No. 5 in the record books.

Jackie Thompson continued her success from day one and posted her personal-best time of 5:26.74 in the mile to finish in fifth and move to No. 6 all time.

At the USC Open, Kaitlyn Moore threw her personal-best in the shot put with a heave of 36'11.75" to finish in second place and etch her name at No. 6 all time. Moore also recorded her career-best in the weight throw with a toss of 37'10.75" to place third.

Savannah Emmrich earned a fifth place finish and tied her season-best mark of 9'10" in the pole vault and Taylor Viana ran her personal-best in the 55 hurdles with a time of 9.55 to move into No. 7 all time.

On the men's side, Ian Aikman placed second and recorded his season-best in the pole vault with a mark of 12'11.75".

Geno Porter took home third place in the weight throw with a heave of 56'3.75" while Sadarius Lucas placed eighth with a throw of 43'7.25".

Derrick Freeland finished in fourth place in the shot put with a career-best toss of 44'6.25 and Malik Diggs ran his personal-best in the 55 hurdles with a time of 8.12.

The Bulldogs are back in action on Thursday, Feb. 12 at the High Point Challenge in Winston-Salem, N.C.