Bulldogs Lead at Indoor Championships After Day One

JOHNSON CITY, TENN.  – The Samford men's and women's teams gained early, but narrow, leads on their respective sides on Saturday at the opening day of the 2017 Southern Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships in Johnson City, Tennessee.

On the men's side, Samford tallied 59 points, giving them a seven-point lead over Western Carolina (52) and ETSU (48) after the first day of competition. Furman totaled 23 points to put them in fourth place, while The Citadel and Wofford tied for fifth place with five points each.

The Bulldogs lead the women's rankings with 58 points after the first day of competition and are trailed by the Catamounts of Western Carolina, who accumulated 52 points on the day. Furman sits in third place with 30 points followed by VMI (20) and ETSU (18) in fourth and fifth place, respectively. Wofford (6), Chattanooga (3) and The Citadel (1) round out the group through five events scored.

Samford sophomore Selena Popp won the first event of the day in the women's pentathlon with 3,779 points, shattering Kellie Mitchell's (Georgia Southern) 2004 championship record of 3,754 points. Popp won three of the five pentathlon events: high jump (1.75 meters, 5-8.75), shot put (11.13 meters, 36-6.25) and long jump (5.77 meters, 18-11.25). Wofford sophomore Amber Lust placed second in the event with a score of 3,435 points after winning the 60mH (8.93) and 800m (2:29.28). Western Carolina sophomore Marisa Scott finished third for the Catamounts, accumulating 3,352 points in the women's pentathlon.

In the women's shot put, Catamount senior Hailey Cook won her second consecutive title with a heave of 14.84 meters (48-8.25) followed by sophomore teammate Simone Williams (13.02 meters, 42-8.75) and VMI sophomore Tiffany Quick (12.79 meters, 41-8.75).

Samford junior Tray Oates won his third consecutive SoCon men's pole vault title with a mark of 5.20 meters (17-0.75). Oates was followed by Brett Squibbs of ETSU (5.10 meters, 16-8.75) and Samford senior Chris Thrasher (4.85 meters, 15-11.00).

Western Carolina senior Tiffani Lewis, who won the long jump in 2015, claimed her second first-place finish of her career with a leap of 6.05 meters (19-10.25) to earn 10 points in the event.  ETSU sophomore Kyra Atkins placed second, just behind Lewis with a leap of 6.03 meters (19-9.5), followed by WCU freshman Jazmine Gooden (5.82 meters, 19-9.00).

In the men's shot put, the Catamounts swept the platform with Mateius Brown (15.27 meters, 50-1.25), Scott Peretin (14.78 meters, 48-6.00) and Chase Stehling (14.71 meters, 48-3.25).

Samford juniors Karisa Nelson and Emma Garner finished first and second, respectively, in the women's 3,000 meter run. Nelson crossed the finish line in 9:34.87, while Garner finished in 9:35.90. Furman freshman Emma Grace Gurley placed third with a time of 9:38.86.

In the men's 3,000m run, Samford junior Arsène Guillorel placed first for the Bulldogs, finishing in 8:15.26. Behind Guillorel was ETSU junior Simeon Roberts (8:17.08) and Furman junior (8:18.25).

Furman took the women's distance medley relay title with the combination of Riley Burr, Jacquelyn Crow, Ann Sisson and Allie Buchalski, with a time of 11:54.34. Samford's DMR squad placed second, finishing in 12:10.63, while ETSU placed third in 12:11.75.

In the men's long jump, ETSU junior Patrick Taylor placed first for the Bucs with a mark of 7.41 meters (24-3.75). Samford junior Marquis Barnes took second for the Bulldogs with a distance of 7.35 meters (24-1.50), while ETSU senior Nathan Rivera placed third for the Bucs with a mark of 7.00 meters (22-11.75).

The day concluded with the distance medley relays in front of a raucous crowd. Furman's Jake Ogden, Madison Daniel, Ryan Adams and Troy Reeder were the first to complete the race, finishing in 10:05.42 for the Paladins. Western Carolina finished second (10:11.88), followed by Samford (10:16.97) in third.

Defending heptathlon champion Nathan Rivera, a senior at ETSU, leads the heptathlon through four events with 2,882 points. The Knoxville, Tennessee, native swept all four events through day one: 60-meter dash (7.23 seconds), long jump (6.67 meters, 21-10.75), shot put (11.96 meters, 39-3.00) and high jump (1.93 meters, 6-4.00). Samford's Jay Vines is in second with 2,499 points, while Wofford sophomore Conrad Heinrich rounds out the top three with 2,411 points.

Saturday's events begin at 8:30 a.m. with the completion of the men's heptathlon.

For a complete list of Saturday's results and to follow Sunday's live results, visit SoConSports.com

Note: All-conference honors are awarded to the top three finishers in each event.

 

Men's Team Results – Day 1

 

1.     Samford - 59

 

2.     Western Carolina - 52

 

3.     ETSU - 48

 

4.     Furman - 23

 

5.     The Citadel - 5

 

         Wofford – 5

 

Women's Team Results – Day 1

 

1.     Samford – 58

 

2.     Western Carolina – 52

 

3.     Furman – 30

 

4.     VMI – 20

 

5.     ETSU – 18

 

6.     Wofford – 13

 

7.     Chattanooga – 3

 

8.     The Citadel – 1

 

 

Men's All-Freshman Team – Day 1

 

Pole vault

 

Robert Stout, Wofford

 

Shot put

 

Tyler Schiemann, The Citadel

 

Hunter Griffin, Wofford

 

Long jump

 

Dijoun Huitt, Western Carolina

 

Jon Waarvik, Samford

 

Cory Alston, Western Carolina

 

3000-meter run

 

Adam Bradtmueller, ETSU

 

Luke Meade, ETSU

 

Ben O'Connor, ETSU

 

 

 

Women's All-Freshman Team – Day 1

 

Pentathlon

 

Erin Hines, Samford

 

Kiara Price, ETSU

 

Shot put

 

Maggie Johnston, Samford

 

Mahogani Holiday, Western Carolina

 

Amy Yarborough, Western Carolina

 

Long jump

 

Jazmine Gooden, Western Carolina

 

Erin Hines, Samford

 

Imani Bennett, Western Carolina

 

 

 

3,000-meter run

 

Emma Grace Hurley, Furman

 

Gabrielle Jennings, Furman

 

Savannah Carnahan, Furman

 

-www.SoConSports.com-