HICKORY, N.C. The Carson-Newman track & field team walked away from Lenoir-Rhyne with seven event wins after their first outdoor meet in almost two years.
"From a meet stand point, I was pleased with how we did," says Director of Track & Field and Cross Country David Needs. "We went in with 85 percent of our team as freshmen or kids who had never competed in an outdoor meet due to the cancelation of last year's season and the kids that have competed showed leadership and excelled. The weather wasnt ideal but our kids did a good job competing and we can build on that."
The nine event wins at the meet is the most for the track & field team since the Eagles won 10 events almost two years to the day at the 2019 Montreat Invite on March 30, 2019.
Isaiah Kyle lead the way with an emphatic victory in the high jump, winning the event with a clearance of 2.11 meters. That mark is a provisional mark for the NCAA DII Outdoor Championships and ranks Kyle at third in the nation.
"Kyle is a guy we'be been waiting for awhile for and he did excellent," says Needs. "He hadn't jumped since 2018 and now he's basically punched his ticket to nationals."
The top four finishers in the high jump all come from Carson-Newman, as Danilo Cardoso, Sam Cleek and Shane Connell all finished with a clearance of 1.95 meters
Sterling Melancon continued his strong freshman season, winning the 100 meter run by 0.18 seconds with a time of 10.78 seconds. The Mount Juliet, Tenn. native also had a strong day in the 200 meter run, finishing third with a time of 22.22 seconds. Isaiah Weasby finished right behind his teammate in the 200 meter at fourth with a time of 22.33 seconds.
Both men's relay championships were won by the Eagles. The group of Zuriel Jimpson, Melancon, Jordan Hibbert and Devon Moore won the 4x100 relay with a time of 41.50 seconds. Moore, Raymond Brugmans, Melancon and Isaiah Weasby won the 4x400 relay by almost 10 seconds, finishing with a time of 3:24.43. That time is just six seconds away from tying the school record time of 3:17.00 set in 1975.
After winning his first ever indoor event in February, Josh Whitaker continued his dominance in opening weekend meets, winning the men's pole vault in his first career outdoor collegiate event, with a clearance of 4.50 meters, a height 0.15 meters higher than the second place finisher. His teammate Josh Finchum finished seventh with a clearance of 3.45 meters.
The Eagles dominance in the long jump this winter transitioned to the outdoor season as Theo Devillard won the event with a jump of 7.00 meters, a distance 0.15 meters longer than the second-place finisher. Courtavious Garrett took third with a jump of 6.84 meters, while Camden Fritz finished fourth with a jump of 6.53 meters.
Garrett and Fritz also excelled in the triple jump, as Garrett finished fourth with a jump of 12.67 meters while Fritz finished seventh with a jump of 12.24 meters.
On the women's side, Nathalie Schumacher won the high jump with a personal best clearance of 1.64 meters. This is the fourth event win of the 2021 track & field overall season as Schumacher won her first three indoor event championships. Her teammate Morgan Stanton finished seventh with a clearance of 1.49 meters.
Abby Owens finished tied for first in the pole vault with a clearance of 3.35 meters, a new personal best and her second event win of the overall year. Marlee Baker finished seventh in her first outdoor event with a clearance of 2.75 meters. Amy Zadroga finished tied for eighth after a clearance of 2.60 meters.
Susan Nelson was literally leaps and bounds ahead of the competition, winning the long jump with a jump of 5.35 meters, a full 0.40 meters (1'3") further than the second-place finisher.
The rest of the day was filled with several top-10 finishes from the rest of the Eagles squad.
Trayzel Jureidini-Wyche set a new personal best in the discus with a throw of 46.88 meters in his first outdoor meet since the 2019 SAC Championships. Jureidini-Wyche also excelled in the javelin, finishing fifth with a throw of 45.08 meters.
Jimpson raced with the top heat of the 100 meter run, finishing ninth overall with a time of 11.27 seconds.
After missing the past few outdoor seasons due to injury and cancellations, KJ Laribo began his first outdoor season in Mossy Creek with a sixth-place finish in the 400 meter run with a time of 51.49 seconds.
Brugmans came close to breaking the indoor record in the 800 meter several times this winter. The Netherlands native continues to creep toward a record-breaking pace, finishing fourth in the 800 meter race in Hickory with a time 1:58.45, just seven seconds away from the school record. Christian Henry finished ninth in the event with a time of 2:03.41.
No Eagle runner competed in the hurdles in the indoor season, but Jackson Bostick competed in the 400 meter hurdles, finishing fifth with a time of 59.14 seconds.
Hunter Miller set a personal best in the steeplechase, finishing second with a time of 10:47.63.
In the shot put, Logan Pender and Austin Gramann finished third and fourth in the event, with Pender finishing with a throw of 13.54 meters and Gramann finishing with a toss of 13.36 meters.
Gramman finished with a fine day in the hammer throw, finishing sixth with a sling of 41.30 meters. His teammate Draven Green finished seventh with a toss of 39.35 meters.
Overall, the men's side finished with 30 new outdoor personal bests.
For the women, Amanda Lowe finished second in the 100 meter run with a time of 12.19 seconds. Faith Nelms and Tia Davis both finished tied for fifth with a time of 12.31 seconds while freshman Timaya Ray finished seventh with a time of 12.57 seconds.
Davis, Lowe and Ray also excelled in the 200 meter. Davis finished second with a time of 25.41 seconds, with Lowe finishing sixth with a time of 25.86 seconds. Ray finished eighth with a time of 25.99 seconds. Morgan Bailey won her heat and finished 15th overall in her outdoor debut, with a time of 26.79 seconds.
Bailey also finished sixth in the 100 meter hurdles with a time of 16.83 seconds.
Lauren Tabor finished sixth in the women's 800 meter run with a time of 2:29.73 in her first outdoor race.
Rachel Strayer continued her strong season in distance events, finishing sixth in the 1500 meter run with a new personal best time of 4:54.44. Strayer finished her day strong with a third place finish in the 5000 meter run with a time of 18:45.21.
Danielle D'Alesio set a new personal best in the 400 meter hurdles, finishing ninth with a time of 1:17.98.
In the 4x100 relay, the Carson-Newman B team of Nelms, Nelson, Maxie Campbell and Karolina Herastovska finished second with a time of 53.46 seconds, while the A team of Lowe, Davis, Bailey, and Ray finished third with a time of 1:04.46.
Ashton Abbott finished sixth in discus with a throw of 33.72 meters. She also finished 10th in the hammer throw with a toss of 28.87 meters.
The transition from the basketball court to the track for the first time in almost two years was easy for Madison Bunch, as she finished fifth in the javelin with a toss of 27.35 meters. Teammate Alexis Brown finsihed eighth with a toss of 21.30 meters.
The women set 24 total outdoor personal bests, bringing the team total to a whopping 54 outdoor personal bests for the weekend.
The Eagles return to the Tarheel state for the Montreat Invitational in Black Mountain, N.C. beginning on Mar. 26.
