HICKORY, N.C. - The Carson-Newman men's track & field team wrapped up the outdoor season in style, earning a third-place finish at the 2021 SAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
The Eagle men's team racked up 130.5 points to earn the bronze medal, while the women's squad earned 50 points and came in ninth.
"We had an excellent weekend," says Director of Track & Field and Cross Country David Needs. "We broke school records, provisionally qualified for nationals and won championships. We had many athletes who battled all day, some through injury. It was a special day for many of our athletes and our performances were consistant across the board."
The day started off with a bang with Joseph Oreva and Courtavious Garrett taking home first and second place in the men's long jump. Oreva won the event with a jump of 7.40 meters, while Garrett finished second with a jump of 7.16 meters. Garrett also finished seventh in the triple jump with a jump of 13.39 meters.
What's better than one medal?
— Carson-Newman Athletics (@CNathletics) April 25, 2021
Two medals. ����@CN_Track takes home gold and silver in the long jump at the @SAC_Athletics Outdoor Championships. pic.twitter.com/NFYWy83Qlx
Theo Devillard finished sixth in the event with a jump of 6.94 meters while Camden Fritz finished 10th with a jump of 6.63 meters.
Devon Moore continued his fantastic outdoor season, once again taking home gold at the SAC Outdoor Championships in the men's 200 meter run with a time of 20.78 seconds, his first ever outdoor conference championship. Teammate Sterling Melancon finished third with a time of 21.28 seconds.
The duo continued their winning ways in the 100 meter run as Moore took with a run of 10.47 seconds, while teammate Sterling Melancon took fourth with a time of 10.50 seconds.
Melancon was recognized for his efforts by being named the 2021 SAC Men's Outdoor Track Freshman of the Year. The Mount Juliet, Tenn. native finished his freshman season with two bronze medals at the conference championships and nine top-10 finishes.
Nine top-10 finishes
— Carson-Newman Athletics (@CNathletics) April 25, 2021
�� Two bronze medals
Sterling Melancon of @CN_Track earns @SAC_Athletics Freshman of the Year honors pic.twitter.com/m94VtdMPvi
"It was a big weekend for Sterling," says Needs. "To not only beat his personal bests but to do it on a big stage was huge, especially when his marks are NCAA provisional ones."
Trayzel Juriedini-Wyche was dominant once again, winning the men's discus by almost two whole meters, setting a new school record with a toss of 51.14 meters. Juriedini-Wyche has now finished in the top-10 of five straight discus events.
Josh Whitaker continued his stellar freshman campaign, winning the men's pole vault title with a clearance of 4.50 meters. Whitaker has finished in the top-three in seven of his eight times competing in the event. Sam Cleek finished fourth with a new personal best of 4.30 meters while Josh Finchum finished ninth with a clearance of 3.85 meters.
The men's high jump squad took home the gold, silver and bronze medals in the event, with Isaiah Kyle taking home the title with a clearance of 2.11 meters. Shane Connell took the silver medal with a clearance of 2.05 meters, while Danilo Cardoso took bronze with a clearance of 1.95 meters. Cleek also finished fifth in the event with a clearance of 1.95 meters.
Luke Smith demolished his old personal best in the shot put by almost a full meter, finishing fifth while Harrison Sheeler finished ninth with a new personal best throw of 13.92 meters.
Isaiah Weasby finished fourth in the 400 meter run with a new personal best time of 48.30 seconds.
Both of the men's and women's 4x100 meter relay team's finished third, the men's team recording a time of 41.55 seconds while the women's team recorded a time of 47.38 seconds.
*insert Spider-Man pointing meme*
— Carson-Newman Athletics (@CNathletics) April 25, 2021
Both 4x100 meter relay teams for @CN_Track take home bronze at the @SAC_Athletics Outdoor Championships pic.twitter.com/bUX1eHQyIS
On the women's side, Abby Owens took home the gold in the pole vault with a clearance of 3.37 meters, a full 0.30 meters higher than the second-place finisher. Owens has finished in the top-three in the event for five meets in a row. Amy Zadroga came in third with a clearance of 3.07 meters, her second career bronze medal at the conference championships.
Nathalie Schumacher finished fourth in the high jump with a clearance of 1.65 meters.
Amanda Lowe finished fifth in the 100 meter run with a time of 12.31 seconds, while her teammate Timaya Ray finished right behind her with a time of 12.32 seconds. Tia Davis came in eighth with a time of 12.43 seconds. Ray also finished sixth in the 200 meter run with a time of 25.32 seconds.
Morgan Bailey set a new personal best in the 400 meter hurdles with a time of 1:10.07 to earn a sixth place finish.
The Eagles will have two more chances to send members to the national championships, beginning with the Montreat Last Chance Meet in Black Mountain, N.C. on Saturday, May, 8.
