GREENVILLE, Ill. - The men's track and field team once again dominated at the SLIAC Outdoor Championships, taking the title with a team score of 231.50. The Panthers collected seven first-place event finishes with several other podium finishes.
How it Happened:
On Friday,
Will Cress (1.78m) and
Jason Stringfellow (J1.78m) kicked off the scoring with top-eight finishes in the high jump.
In the pole vault,
Christian DuPlayee picked up a third place finish with a 3.75m vault, while
Keenan Powell also picked up a bronze finish in the long jump (6.88m). Powell also earned the gold in the triple jump, collecting a 15.00m jump for ten points.
Leonard Bratton followed in third place with a jump of 13.61m.
In the discus,
Hunter Triplett and
Eric Mitchell dominated, picking up second- and fourth-place finishes, respectively. Mitchell also showed out in his other events, taking second in the hammer with a 43.29m throw and first place in the shot put (15.00m).
Wyatt Case collected a silver finish in the javelin (48.75m), while
Wyatt Isaacson took fifth with a 47.06m.
On the track, the 4x100 team of
Neko Gibson,
Noel Andino,
Gavin Baldwin, and Ty Kellum took the top spot with a time of 41.35. Kellum also picked up a first-place finish in the 100m dash, posting a time of 10.37s, and Gibson took third with a 10.45. In the 200m, Kellum and Gibson flipped roles, as Gibson took first (21.43) and Kellum followed just a couple tenths behind in second (21.65).
Kyle Cooley repped GU in the distance events, taking sixth in the 10K and fourth in the 5K, while
Mason Clayton took fourth in the 1500m run. Clayton also picked up a gold medal in the 3000m steeplechase (10:20.05).
In the 110m hurdles,
Chris Green-Williams earned a podium spot, taking third with a 15.95, while
Jamarion Cobbins followed at fifth. Cobbins also was on the podium in the 400m hurdles, taking third with a time of 57.82.
Andino had a second-place finish in the 400m dash (49.23), while
Jaylin Morrow and
Ahmadjae Fenton followed in fourth and fifth place.
In the 800m,
Luis Zavala placed third, running a 2:01.63, and the 4x400 team (Fenton, Andino,
Ben Wilcoxen, and Morrow) closed out the meet with a first-place outing, running a time of 3:22.39.
With his amazing performances, Mitchell earned Men's Field Athlete of the Year. The Panthers coaching staff collected Coaching Staff of the Year honors, and DuPlayee earned a spot on the All-Sportsmanship team.
Up Next:
The Panthers compete at the NCCAAs in two weeks, starting on Wednesday, May 6th.
