Catamounts Open Up Outdoor Season at Georgia Relays
ATHENS, Ga. - The Western Carolina men's and women's track & field teams headed south to open the outdoor season at the Georgia Relays hosted by the University of Georgia. The Catamounts picked up a total of 32 top-five finishes over 11 events on day one. Six Catamounts took home event wins Friday afternoon.
Picking up WCU's first win of the day was junior David Johnson who took the top spot in the men's triple jump with a leap of 14.99m (49-02.25). Johnson led a group of five Catamounts who finishes first through fifth. Freshman Kevin Hires took second with a distance of 14.13m (46-04.25) while junior Tyler Bell picked up third at 13.51m (44-04.00). Sophomores Jerry Bryant (13.23m (43-05.00)) and Tremaine Kernes (13.06m (42-10.25)) rounded out the top-five.
Sophomore Hailey Cook picked up the women's first win as she took the title in the shot put. Cook made a toss of 13.97m (45-10.00) to lead the field while senior Alisha Bradshaw took second with a distance of 13.93m (45-08.50). Junior Jasmin Brown earned a fourth place finish with a mark of 12.54m (41-01.75).
Senior Xaviera Bass took WCU's third first-place finish in the women's 100m hurdles. She crossed the line in 13.82 while sophomore Kayla Williams came in second at 14.15.
The men's 110m hurdles was WCU's next win as the Catamounts swept first through fifth. Senior Marquis Bailey earned the victory with a time of 14.35. Senior Abraham Faison was right on his heels in second at 14.38. Junior Justin D'Angelo came in third after crossing the line in 15.42. Hires (16.17) and junior Christian Carswell (16.21) rounded out the top-five.
The fifth victory came in the men's 5000m as sophomores Clay Howarth and Cooper Wurst finished first and second, respectively. Howarth stopped the clock at 15:43.56 while Wurst stopped the clock in 17:04.37.
The sixth and final victory for the Catamounts came in the women's 5000m. WCU took four of the top five spots led by freshman Laney Browder who turned in a time of 18:59.96. Junior Aleshia Reese came in second with a time of 19:04.67. Freshmen Katarina Ruehl (19:40.19) and Madison Goode (20:46.75) came in fourth and fifth, respectively.
Junior Adam Parker picked up a second place finish in the men's javelin with a toss of 51.39m (168-07). Sophomore Dustin Triplett came in third with a throw of 45.21m (148-04) while Carswell placed fourth at 43.31m (142-01).
Bradshaw and Cook turned in third and fourth place finishes in the women's hammer throw. Bradshaw posted a distance of 47.33m (155-03) while Cook stopped the tape at 45.65m (149-09).
Sophomore Scott Peretin led a trio of Catamounts in the men's hammer throw. Peretin finished third with a toss of 48.57m (159-04). Junior Jared Johnson came in fourth with a throw of 48.18m (158-01) while freshman Mateius Brown placed fifth (44.76m (146-10)).
Sophomore Tiffani Lewis was the final top-five finisher on the women's side as she placed fifth in the triple jump with a distance of 11.28m (37-00.25).
Johnson and Brown placed fourth and fifth, respectively, in the men's shot put to round out the men's top-five finishers. Johnson stopped the tape at 14.90m (48-10.75) while Brown posted a distance of 14.69m (48-02.50).
The Catamounts will be back in action tomorrow, March 21 as they close out competition at the Georgia Relays.
Oates Ties Samford Record At Alabama Relays
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - The Samford University track and field teams continued competition on day two of the John Mitchell Alabama Relays on Friday, March 20, hosted by the University of Alabama at the Sam Bailey Track Stadium.
Redshirt freshman Tray Oates stole the show in the men's pole vault on Friday. The Acworth, Ga. native eclipsed his previous outdoor personal best of 5.16m with a first place finish and school record tying mark of 5.30m (17-4 ). Oates now sits tied with Michael Seaman as the school's all-time leader in the men's pole vault.
Also, the impressive score currently stands as the best score in the Southern Conference right ahead of freshman Gavin Gautreau who posted a 5.05m (16-6 ) took third place finish in the event.
Sophomore Jay Vines tallied a top ten finish and a personal best time of 54.63 in the men's 400 meter hurdles. Vines, a native of Dandridge, Tennessee, set a personal best time of 54.93 in the event back in 2014 at the SoCon Outdoor Championships as a freshman.
Hoover, Alabama native Sarah Sanford eclipsed another milestone in the women's 400 meter dash with a fifth place finish time of 56.58. The time currently stands as her personal best in the event.
A trio of Bulldogs turned in top ten performances in the men's 1,500 meters at the midway point of Friday's meet. Brandon Hazouri placed second with a time of 3:47.48 while teammates Adam Jones (4:48.81) and Arse'ne Guillorel (3:48.92) placed sixth and seventh consecutively.
Freshman Tiana Pisoni posted an impressive overall seventh place finish with an 11.98m leap in the triple jump. Pisoni bettered her score from last week's mark of 11.70m at the Battle of I-65 meet on March 14, at the Samford Track and Soccer Complex.
The Bulldogs return to action on Saturday, March 21, at noon with the women's discus throw. The first running event of the day will start at 2 p.m. with the women's 1x100 meter race.
ETSU Productive on Day Two at Charlotte 49er Classic
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The ETSU track & field program totaled seven top-three finishes on Friday in both preliminary and finals competition on day two at the Charlotte 49er Classic at the Bell Track & Field Center.
Sophomore Nathan Rivera maintained his first-place standing from yesterday in the decathlon with a top-point total of 6330. Freshman Adriana Watkins, too, held her standing from Thursday in the heptathlon with a third-place score of 4116.
In preliminary action, the Bucs found successes with four moving on to Saturday’s finals. Junior sprinter Keturah Williams placed third in the women’s 100-meter dash with a time of 11.94, while in the women’s 400-meter hurdles, senior hurdler Nicole Alexander and freshman Nicki Smith placed fourth and sixth, respectively, with races of 1:04.15 and 1:05.14. On the men’s side, sophomore hurdler Mike Williams took the top spot in the 400mH with a 53.10 time.
In event finals, sophomore jumper Ashley Kessler took the title in the women’s pole vault with a mark of 3.85 meters. Junior Angus Baldwin was the runner-up in the men’s 1500-meter run with a 3:54.42 time, while senior Verena Tobis rounded out the top three in the women’s discus with a toss of 42.80 meters.
On Saturday, competition will commence at 10 a.m. with the men’s shot put, while running events will begin at noon with the 4x100-meter relay. Action at the 49er Classic will wrap up with the 4x400-meter relays at approximately 4:30 p.m.
Stuart, Henderson Lead Mocs at Alabama Relays
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - University of Tennessee at Chattanooga sophomore Paul Stuart placed ninth in the men’s 5K last Friday night on the Mocs’ first day at the Alabama Relays at the Sam Bailey Track.
Stuart was ninth with a time of 14:51.85. In the women’s race, sophomore Teghan Henderson returned to the track and finished 11th with a time of 17:07.35 in the 5K. Senior Amanda Cotter was three spots behind in 14th with a time of 17:17.00.
Freshman Emily Drouin led a trio of Mocs in the 1500 meter run with a time of 4:46.35. Junior Keeley Stewart just missed her PR with a time of 4:56.69 while sophomore Anna Kate Chance blew past hers with a time of 4:58.72.
Junior Tosin Ayotunde edged out his top time in the men’s 400 meter run with a time of 52.55.
The Mocs will wrap up competition Saturday with the Distance Medley Relay and the 800 meter run.
Jenkins Sets Freshman Record For The Citadel on Day One
CONWAY, S.C. – Grace Jenkins set The Citadel freshman 10,000 meters record and moved to No. 2 in all-time history with a mark of 39:57 to lead the Bulldogs on day one of the Shamrock Invitational in Conway, S.C.
Jenkins' time earned her an eighth place finish overall in the event. Caillian Colquitt clocked in right behind her with a time of 40:14 to move to No. 4 in the record books.
Grant Smith continued the momentum on the men's side and brought home the crown in the 10,000 meters, clocking in at 39:27 and moved to No. 9 in Citadel history.
The Bulldogs continue action today at 10:30 a.m., with the women's mile.