Samford, Western Carolina Lead SoCon Championships

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Samford men’s team and Western Carolina women’s team lead their respective sides after day one at the 2015 SoCon Outdoor Track and Field Championships at the Samford Track and Soccer Stadium in Birmingham, Ala.

The Bulldogs totaled 61 points on the men’s side day one with ETSU in second with 49 points and Western Carolina in third with 40 points. Western Carolina leads with 69 points on the women’s side followed by Samford in second with 54 points. ETSU and VMI are tied for third with 23 points.

Three SoCon records fell on day one of the championships. In the men’s javelin, The Citadel’s Capers Williamson recorded a record throw of 219-5 feet to break the previous record of 217-7 set in 2010. ETSU’s Verena Tobis set the conference record in the women’s javelin with a mark of 144-7, breaking the previous mark of 140-7 set in 2012.

Sarah Sanford set a SoCon record in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 13.52, breaking the old conference record of 13.70 set in 1993. Sanford finished first among all competitors in the prelims and will go for the conference title tomorrow.

Furman claimed the first two events of the day, winning in both the men’s and women’s 10,000-meter finals. Laura Miller lapped the entire field en route to the victory with a time of 36:47.70 in the opening event of the championship. Josh Bricknell then topped the men’s race with a time of 31:12.31.

Samford’s Sidney Jordan won the first field event of the championship, recording a mark of 190-4 feet in the hammer throw. Western Carolina’s Jared Johnson finished second with a throw of 170-6 while Citadel’s Geno Porter came in third.

Samford’s Aerial Horton would make it a sweep of the hammer throw events, finishing first in the women’s with a toss of 166-6 feet. Western Carolina’s Alisha Bradshaw was a close second with a throw of 165-5 with Samford’s Kristin Brining recording a throw of 163-2 to finish third.

Ashley Kessler, of ETSU, won the women’s pole vault with a mark of 12-4.75 feet. Western Carolina’s Devyn Ressler came in second with a mark of 11-10.75 while Morgan Johnson from Samford finished third.

In the women’s long jump, Bria Anderson from VMI recorded a mark of 19-6 to take the top spot. Molly Fagan and Chenell Bryan, both of Western Carolina, finished second and third, respectively, with marks of 19-0 and 18-9.75.

The men’s long jump saw Samford’s Marquis Barnes take the top spot with a 24-3.5. His teammate, Javion Lee, came in second with a 23-9 with Wofford’s Tevin Johnson finishing third.

Samford’s Rachel Wooten took first place in the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 11:01.32. UTC’s Emily Drouin came in second with a time of 11:03.34 followed by Samford’s Bernard Francis in third place.

In the final track event of the day, ETSU’s Adam Chase captured the men’s 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 9:11.44. Western Carolina’s Michael Cornwell finished second with a time of 9:13.63 and Furman’s Lee Shearer was third with a 9:17.45.

The men’s pole vault concluded action on day in dramatic fashion. Samford’s Gavin Gautreau earned the victory over ETSU’s Brett Squibbs to claim the individual title. Both cleared the height of 16-2 but were unable to clear the next high. Gautreau was awarded first place for clearing a previous height in one attempt, which took Squibbs two attempts to clear.

Sunday’s events begin at 9 a.m. with the completion of the men’s decathlon followed by the women’s heptathlon at 9:15 a.m.

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

Men’s Team Results – Day 1

1. Samford – 61 points

2. ETSU – 49 points

3. Western Carolina – 40 points

4. The Citadel – 29 points

5. Furman – 16 points

6. VMI – 14 points

7. Wofford – 10 points

    Chattanooga – 10 points

9. UNCG – 4 points

 

Women’s Team Results – Day 1

1. Western Carolina – 69 points

2. Samford – 54 points

3. ETSU – 23 points

    VMI – 23 points

5. Chattanooga – 19 points

6. Furman – 18 points

7. The Citadel – 14 points

8. Mercer – 12 points

9. Wofford – 2 points

10. UNCG – 0 points

 

Men’s All-Freshman Team – Day 1

10,000m Run

Josh Bricknell, Furman

Carl Oberfeitinger, ETSU

Luke Sumerford, UNCG

 

Hammer

Sadarius Lucas, The Citadel

Logan Louzader, ETSU

 

Pole Vault

Gavin Gautreau, Samford

Tray Oates, Samford

Corey Ginley, Western Carolina

 

Long Jump

Marquis Barnes, Samford

Brenden Caldwall, Western Carolina

Devin Singleton, The Citadel

 

Javelin

Donovan Walton, VMI

Griffin Miller, The Citadel

Joseph Lee, Samford

 

3000m Steeplechase

Haydn Borghetti-Metz, ETSU

Josh Salter, Samford

Paul Richardson, Samford

 

Women’s All-Freshman Team – Day 1

10,000m Run

Laney Browder, Western Carolina

Grace Jenkins, The Citadel

Courtney Czerniak, Mercer

 

Pole Vault

Lauren Torsch, Samford

Emily Fulton, VMI

 

Long Jump

Bria Anderson, VMI

Tiana Pisoni, Samford

Timia Easley, ETSU

 

Javelin

Mady Riegel, The Citadel

Emily Fulton, VMI

Erin West, Western Carolina

 

3000m Steeplechase

Emily Drouin, Chattanooga

Anya Bunao, Wofford

Bethany King, VMI