ATLANTA - Buoyed by 16 top-ten finishes, the Anderson University men's and women's track and field teams posted impressive results at the Emory Invitational on Friday and Saturday.
In Friday's opening-day events, sophomore Jill Baxter finished second in the high jump, reaching a height of 1.56 meters, while teammates Brooklyn Watt (38.30 meters) and D'Yandra Morris (33.57 meters) captured fourth and seventh, respectively, in the hammer throw.
On the men's side, senior Will Byars brought home second in the hammer throw with a toss of 45.67 meters and sophomore Nathan Plank took fourth with a distance of 44.09 meters. Senior Zach Hart placed third in the javelin throw with a distance of 51.75 meters.
Senior Alex Pena took sixth in the 3,000 meter steeplechase in a
time of 10:06.38, with junior Matt Imes placing 14th in the 10,000
meter run.
Saturday's events saw Watt continue the strong effort, winning the
shot put with a toss of 12.46 meters, while Morris placed fourth
(11.71 meters) and Savanna Keese (10.23 meters) notched 16th. Watt
also earned third in the discus throw with a distance of 38.12
meters, while Keese (29.33 meters) and Morris (28.23 meters) placed
12th and 15th, respectively.
Junior Re'Jenia Evans captured 13th in the 100 meter dash with a time of 13.06, with Madison Guest finishing 19th in the 800 meter run in 2:32.38, while Kathryn Purinton placed 26th in a time of 2:39.60.
Rachel Westberry (5:27.21) brought home 12th in the 1500 meter run, with Devan Fisher (5:46.12) crossing the line in 21st. Sydney Hazel (4:58.17) notched ninth place in the 1500 meter run, with Westberry (5:27.21) earning 22nd and Fisher (5:46.12) placing 31st.
Amanda Mahaffey finished 30th in the 5000 meter run in a time of 21:15.18, while Joelle Purinton (17.73) and Jill Baxter (17.82) placed 19th and 20th, respectively, in the 100 meter hurdles.
Josh Butler brought home ninth in the 100 meter dash with a time of 11.25, with Micah Smith earning 32nd in the 400 meter dash in a time of 56.52. Butler also claimed eighth in the 200 meter run, crossing the line in 22.67.
Sophomore Joshua Visi-Clark (1:59.38) placed 15th in the 800 meter run and Ryne Welch (4:25.20) finished 15th in the 1500 meter unseeded run. Freshman Tucker Huelmantel (4:28.84) was 22nd. Ryne Welch (4:25.20) placed 25th in the 1500 meter seeded run, with Huelmantel (4:28.84) garnering 32nd. Park Edwards (15:45.74) finished 16th in the 5000 meter seeded run.
Plank took seventh in the shot put with a distance of 12.62 meters, with Byars earning eighth (12.54 meters). Plank also garnered third in the discus throw (42.08 meters), with Byars finishing 13th with a toss of 35.65 meters.
Anderson will have a three-week layoff before competing in the
University of the Cumberlands Invitational on April 13.
