DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - The Columbus State University men's and women's track field teams competed on the opening day of the 2022 Peach Belt Conference Championships on Friday, with William Player highlighting the day's action.

Player captured the men's pole vault title on the opening day of the championship for CSU's only individual win on Friday. The sophomore defended his title in the event, leaping 4.55 meters to best his teammate Ryan Conn (4.40m) to earn the top spot on the podium. Alexander Kendall made it a Cougar sweep of the top-3 position with a jump of 4.25 meters. 

After the opening day, the Cougars are second as a team with 63.5 points, behind only Embry-Riddle (97.5). The Lady Cougars are in fifth entering Saturday.

The Lady Cougars also found success in the field events as Cyan Green broke the school record in the hammer throw. Green finished third in the event, tossing a throw of 45.74 meters to break the record. Tereil Mitchum finished second in the event on the guy's side after a toss of 38.65 meters.

Jackson Fulks grabbed two top-three finishes on Friday. Fulks finished second in the high jump (1.86m) and third in the long jump (6.77m). His teammate, Gavin Nembhard, was second in the long jump after jumping 7.12 meters.

Clareese Spahn competed in the heptathlon for the Lady Cougars. She finished inside the top six in all four events she competed in.

Numerous Cougars and Lady Cougars competed in preliminaries on Friday and advanced to Saturday's final heats. Fulks will be the first seed in the 100-meter dash (10.60 seconds), while Gary Grimes also had the top time in the 110-meter hurdles (15.13). In the 200-meter dash, Colin French ran a 21.63 to earn a spot in the finals.

The teams get back in action at 8 a.m. on Saturday.

Men's Results (top-8 finishers only)
1500-Meter Run
6. Savian Taylor - 3:59.67
8. Blake Lewis - 4:02.18

High Jump
2. Jackson Fulks - 1.86m
7. Donovan Stone - 1.71m
8. Ervin Thomas - 1.66m

Long Jump
2. Gavin Nembhard - 7.12m
3. Jackson Fulks - 6.77m
6. Stacy Lumpkin - 6.21m

Pole Vault
1. William Player - 4.55m
2. Ryan Conn - 4.40m
3. Alexander Kendall - 4.25m
6. Matthew Pfledderer - 3.80m

Hammer Throw
2. Tereil Mitchum - 38.65m
4. Tyler Southern - 33.30m
5. Luke Herron - 30.68m
6. Afolabi Olatunde - 28.37m
7. Tyreik Warren - 24.83m

Javelin
7. Tyler Southern - 47.18m

Women's Results (top-8 finishers only)Long Jump
6. Eronda Doss - 5.31m
8. Tamia Kelley - 4.75m

Hammer Throw
3. Cyan Green - 45.74m (school record)
4. Kailyn Thomas - 42.59m
7. Ar'Rionne Hickson - 38.09m

Pole Vault
5. Cai-Lin Davis - 2.50m