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Samford leads SoCon Outdoor Track & Field Championships
Bulldogs looking to defend both men’s and women’s titles
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Samford’s men and women lead the Southern Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships after Saturday’s first day of competition at Shauna Yelton Field at the Samford Track and Soccer Stadium. Two meet records fell on the day.
Samford’s men totaled 82 points on day one to hold a 50-point lead over second-place Furman as the Bulldogs try to win their second straight outdoor title. The Samford women, who are seeking their third straight title, enjoy an even wider margin, as they scored 85 points on day one to outdistance second-place ETSU, which has 33.
Samford’s women won three of the six titles handed out on Saturday, with Erin Long and Brittany Bishop establishing meet records. Long, who won her second straight title in the javelin, demolished the old mark in the event, with her throw of 51.02 meters tacking on nearly seven meters to the previous standard of 44.08m, set in 2015 by ETSU’s Verena Tobis. Samford picked up 25 points in the javelin alone, with Alex Webb finishing second and the Bulldogs seeing four score in the event total.
Bishop, who set the meet record in the pole vault at the SoCon indoor meet in February, cleared 4.01 meters in the event Saturday to edge the old mark of 4.00m set by Western Carolina’s Laura Tieszen in 2004. She led a 1-4 Samford finish in the event, with Alexis Cook, Riley Alexander and Kaelyn McCann finishing behind her in that order, all at 3.56 meters.
The Bulldogs’ Hannah Daffin won the hammer throw with a toss of 53.60 meters, while teammate Emma Nolte took third behind ETSU’s Mary Brown.
The Furman women bookended the day’s running events with titles, as Emily Little won the 10,000-meter run in 36:16.17 in the morning and Nicole Matysik won the 3,000-meter steeplechase in the afternoon in 10:55.84.
Western Carolina’s Makaila McIntyre won her third career outdoor SoCon title in the long jump, turning in a mark of 5.73 meters to edge ETSU’s Makayla Brown, who jumped 5.70m. Wofford saw four women combine for 16 points in the event, with Rylee Jorgensen finishing third.
The Samford men claimed five of the six individual titles awarded Saturday. Seth Wolfe won the hammer throw (59.48 meters), Jed Sisco claimed the pole vault (5.20m), Ashton Domingue won the javelin (67.01m), Ty Kimberlin claimed the long jump (7.28m) and Ben Garner won the steeplechase (8:55.55).
UNCG’s Dylan Christopher opened the meet by winning the 10,000m in 30:48.12, picking up the Spartans’ first outdoor title since future Olympian Paul Chelimo claimed the 1,500-meter run at the 2012 SoCon meet. Christopher finished ahead of a trio of Furman Paladins, with Noah Dolhare (second) and Nick Goldstein (third) joining him on the podium.
Samford teammate Matt Cahoon joined Wolfe on the podium with a third-place finish in the hammer, with The Citadel’s JP Caglione taking second. The same dynamic played out in the pole vault, with Samford’s Stockton McGuire taking third behind The Citadel’s Sam Blumer and Samford’s Sisco. Cahoon turned in another podium finish in the javelin, finishing second behind Domingue.
Behind Kimberlin in the long jump were Western Carolina’s Javon and Javell Brown in second and third, respectively. The Catamounts picked up 21 of their 31 points on the day in that event alone.
In the steeplechase, Garner was joined on the podium by a pair of ETSU runners, with Myles Stoots in second and Gavin Cooper in third.
With half the decathlon in the books, Samford’s Kimberlin, the defending champion in the event, leads with 3,797 points. He finished first in the 100-meter run, 400-meter run and long jump and took second in the shot put and high jump on day one.
With four the heptathlon events complete, Wofford’s Netanya Linares leads with 3,006 points on the strength of wins in the 100-meter hurdles and the high jump, a second-place showing in the 200-meter run and a fourth-place finish in the shot put. Linares is vying to become the Terriers’ third different heptathlon winner in as many SoCon Championships.
The SoCon Championships resume Sunday with the resumption of decathlon at 9 a.m. CT and the heptathlon at 9:15. Live results, daily recaps and photos can be found at SoConSports.com. Day two will air on ESPN+ starting at 1 p.m. CT.
Men’s results – Day 1
1. Samford – 82 points
2. Furman – 32
3. Western Carolina – 31
4. The Citadel – 27
T5. ETSU – 22
T5. VMI – 22
7. UNCG – 15
8. Wofford – 3
Women’s results – Day 1
1. Samford – 85 points
2. ETSU – 33
3. Wofford – 32
4. Western Carolina – 26
5. Furman – 25
6. The Citadel – 15
7. Chattanooga – 13
8. VMI – 4
T9. Mercer – 0
T9. UNCG – 0
Day 1 champions
Men: 10,000-meter run Dylan Christopher, UNCG (30:48.12); hammer throw Seth Wolfe, Samford (59.48 meters); pole vault Jed Sisco, Samford (5.20 meters); javelin Ashton Domingue, Samford (67.01 meters); long jump Ty Kimberlin, Samford (7.28 meters); 3,000-meter steeplechase Ben Garner, Samford (8:55.55).
Women: 10,000-meter run Emily Little, Furman (36:16.17); hammer throw Hannah Daffin, Samford (53.60 meters); long jump Makaila McIntyre, Western Carolina (5.73 meters); javelin Erin Long, Samford, (51.02 meters*); 3,000-meter steeplechase Nicole Matysik, Furman (10:55.84); pole vault Brittany Bishop, Samford (4.01m*).
* meet record
Men’s All-Freshman – Day 1
Men’s 10,000-meter run
Nick Goldstein, Furman
Ethan Vargas, Furman
Nicholas Kiser, Western Carolina
Men’s hammer throw
None
Men’s pole vault
None
Men’s javelin
Ian McCorkle, The Citadel
Men’s long jump
Charles Male, VMI
Damian Hines, Samford
Owen Barr, Western Carolina
Men’s 3,000-meter steeplechase
Foster Wilfong, Furman
Casey Burr, Furman
Women’s All-Freshman – Day 1
10,000-meter run
Carolyne Shealy, Wofford
Sierra Bower, Furman
Alesea Caldwell, Western Carolina
Women’s hammer throw
None
Women’s long jump
Kelsey Martin, Samford
Eleyah Armstrong, VMI
Gracie Morse, Chattanooga
Women’s javelin
Ali Ruffin, The Citadel
Taniyah Thomas, Western Carolina
Women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase
Mary Claire Ridgeway, Wofford
Gretal Shank, VMI
Women’s pole vault
Diana Romero-Barba, ETSU
Samford’s men totaled 82 points on day one to hold a 50-point lead over second-place Furman as the Bulldogs try to win their second straight outdoor title. The Samford women, who are seeking their third straight title, enjoy an even wider margin, as they scored 85 points on day one to outdistance second-place ETSU, which has 33.
Samford’s women won three of the six titles handed out on Saturday, with Erin Long and Brittany Bishop establishing meet records. Long, who won her second straight title in the javelin, demolished the old mark in the event, with her throw of 51.02 meters tacking on nearly seven meters to the previous standard of 44.08m, set in 2015 by ETSU’s Verena Tobis. Samford picked up 25 points in the javelin alone, with Alex Webb finishing second and the Bulldogs seeing four score in the event total.
Bishop, who set the meet record in the pole vault at the SoCon indoor meet in February, cleared 4.01 meters in the event Saturday to edge the old mark of 4.00m set by Western Carolina’s Laura Tieszen in 2004. She led a 1-4 Samford finish in the event, with Alexis Cook, Riley Alexander and Kaelyn McCann finishing behind her in that order, all at 3.56 meters.
The Bulldogs’ Hannah Daffin won the hammer throw with a toss of 53.60 meters, while teammate Emma Nolte took third behind ETSU’s Mary Brown.
The Furman women bookended the day’s running events with titles, as Emily Little won the 10,000-meter run in 36:16.17 in the morning and Nicole Matysik won the 3,000-meter steeplechase in the afternoon in 10:55.84.
Western Carolina’s Makaila McIntyre won her third career outdoor SoCon title in the long jump, turning in a mark of 5.73 meters to edge ETSU’s Makayla Brown, who jumped 5.70m. Wofford saw four women combine for 16 points in the event, with Rylee Jorgensen finishing third.
The Samford men claimed five of the six individual titles awarded Saturday. Seth Wolfe won the hammer throw (59.48 meters), Jed Sisco claimed the pole vault (5.20m), Ashton Domingue won the javelin (67.01m), Ty Kimberlin claimed the long jump (7.28m) and Ben Garner won the steeplechase (8:55.55).
UNCG’s Dylan Christopher opened the meet by winning the 10,000m in 30:48.12, picking up the Spartans’ first outdoor title since future Olympian Paul Chelimo claimed the 1,500-meter run at the 2012 SoCon meet. Christopher finished ahead of a trio of Furman Paladins, with Noah Dolhare (second) and Nick Goldstein (third) joining him on the podium.
Samford teammate Matt Cahoon joined Wolfe on the podium with a third-place finish in the hammer, with The Citadel’s JP Caglione taking second. The same dynamic played out in the pole vault, with Samford’s Stockton McGuire taking third behind The Citadel’s Sam Blumer and Samford’s Sisco. Cahoon turned in another podium finish in the javelin, finishing second behind Domingue.
Behind Kimberlin in the long jump were Western Carolina’s Javon and Javell Brown in second and third, respectively. The Catamounts picked up 21 of their 31 points on the day in that event alone.
In the steeplechase, Garner was joined on the podium by a pair of ETSU runners, with Myles Stoots in second and Gavin Cooper in third.
With half the decathlon in the books, Samford’s Kimberlin, the defending champion in the event, leads with 3,797 points. He finished first in the 100-meter run, 400-meter run and long jump and took second in the shot put and high jump on day one.
With four the heptathlon events complete, Wofford’s Netanya Linares leads with 3,006 points on the strength of wins in the 100-meter hurdles and the high jump, a second-place showing in the 200-meter run and a fourth-place finish in the shot put. Linares is vying to become the Terriers’ third different heptathlon winner in as many SoCon Championships.
The SoCon Championships resume Sunday with the resumption of decathlon at 9 a.m. CT and the heptathlon at 9:15. Live results, daily recaps and photos can be found at SoConSports.com. Day two will air on ESPN+ starting at 1 p.m. CT.
Men’s results – Day 1
1. Samford – 82 points
2. Furman – 32
3. Western Carolina – 31
4. The Citadel – 27
T5. ETSU – 22
T5. VMI – 22
7. UNCG – 15
8. Wofford – 3
Women’s results – Day 1
1. Samford – 85 points
2. ETSU – 33
3. Wofford – 32
4. Western Carolina – 26
5. Furman – 25
6. The Citadel – 15
7. Chattanooga – 13
8. VMI – 4
T9. Mercer – 0
T9. UNCG – 0
Day 1 champions
Men: 10,000-meter run Dylan Christopher, UNCG (30:48.12); hammer throw Seth Wolfe, Samford (59.48 meters); pole vault Jed Sisco, Samford (5.20 meters); javelin Ashton Domingue, Samford (67.01 meters); long jump Ty Kimberlin, Samford (7.28 meters); 3,000-meter steeplechase Ben Garner, Samford (8:55.55).
Women: 10,000-meter run Emily Little, Furman (36:16.17); hammer throw Hannah Daffin, Samford (53.60 meters); long jump Makaila McIntyre, Western Carolina (5.73 meters); javelin Erin Long, Samford, (51.02 meters*); 3,000-meter steeplechase Nicole Matysik, Furman (10:55.84); pole vault Brittany Bishop, Samford (4.01m*).
* meet record
Men’s All-Freshman – Day 1
Men’s 10,000-meter run
Nick Goldstein, Furman
Ethan Vargas, Furman
Nicholas Kiser, Western Carolina
Men’s hammer throw
None
Men’s pole vault
None
Men’s javelin
Ian McCorkle, The Citadel
Men’s long jump
Charles Male, VMI
Damian Hines, Samford
Owen Barr, Western Carolina
Men’s 3,000-meter steeplechase
Foster Wilfong, Furman
Casey Burr, Furman
Women’s All-Freshman – Day 1
10,000-meter run
Carolyne Shealy, Wofford
Sierra Bower, Furman
Alesea Caldwell, Western Carolina
Women’s hammer throw
None
Women’s long jump
Kelsey Martin, Samford
Eleyah Armstrong, VMI
Gracie Morse, Chattanooga
Women’s javelin
Ali Ruffin, The Citadel
Taniyah Thomas, Western Carolina
Women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase
Mary Claire Ridgeway, Wofford
Gretal Shank, VMI
Women’s pole vault
Diana Romero-Barba, ETSU
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