Albany, Ga. - The Columbus State University men's track team, with their unwavering dedication and hard work, wrapped up the weekend at The Alice Coachman Invitational, finishing first place with an impressive 168 points. The Lady Cougars, despite traveling with only 14 athletes, showcased their determination and finished in fourth place, scoring 47 points.
The men's team shined bright in the field events as they outperformed everyone, taking the top three spots in two events.
In the javelin throw, Justin Love placed first, throwing a distance of 44.39m (145'8"), Tyler Southern placed second with a 42.55m (139'7"), and Collin McKinnon placed third, throwing a 41.31m (135'6").
In the men's pole vault, Alex Kendall took the lead role this weekend, placing first with a height of 4.42m (14'6"). Placing second was Matthew Pfledderer clearing a height of 4.27m (14'0"). Pfledderer was followed by Donovan Stone, third place at 3.97m (13'0.25"), and Drake Dalton, sixth place at 3.66m (12'0").
In the hammer throw, Justin Love continued leading the way, placing first with a toss of 46.60m (152'11"). Tereil Mitchum placed second with a toss of 42.19m (138'5"). Afolabi Olatunde placed third with a toss of 40.88m (134'1"). Luke Herron placed sixth at 38.69m (126'11"), and Tyler Southern placed seventh at 34.06m (111'9")
In the men's long jump, Kevin Woods placed fifth with a jump of 6.79m (22'3.50"). Wood was followed by Kendall Parker, who placed seventh with a jump of 6.54m (21'5.50").
Tereil Mitchum (3rd Place) and Tyler Southern (4th Place) led the Cougars in the shot put. Both athletes had a throw of 14.28m (46'10.25"). Freshman Raylene Magby placed sixth with a throw of 13.50m (44'3.50").
Kendall Parker and Joey Turner led the Cougars tied for fifth in the high jump, clearing a height of 1.81m (5'11.25"), and Donovan Stone placed seventh with a height of 1.66m (5'5.25").
On the Track
In the 800 meters, Savian Taylor placed third, crossing the finish line at 1:55.58. Owen Hartshorn was sixth, 2:03.63, and McDonald Tandoh finished eighth, 2:04.82.
In the 1500 meters, Hartshorn finished third, crossing the line at 4:11.05, and Elijah Sires finished fourth with 4:11.06.
In the hurdles, Gary Grimes finished third in the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 15.21s. Grimes finished fourth in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 55.61s, coming in behind teammate Mark Ravenscraft, who placed third with a time of 55.32s. Behind Grimes in fourth place was the school record holder in the 400m hurdles, Dante Walls, with a time of 56.21s.
The men's 4x100m relay team finished fifth with a time of 42.31s. The Lady Cougars 4x100m relay team finished with a time of 50.01s.
The men's 4x400 meter relay A team finished in fourth place with a time of 3:27.49, and the B team finished in eighth place with a time of 3:41.33.
The Lady Cougars had to dig deep, traveling with only 14 ladies to compete in multiple events.
Nakhia Montgomery competed in the 100m, finishing in fourth place with a time of 12.16s; in the 200m, Montgomery finished sixth with a time of 25.71s.
Deandra Downer crossed the finish line at 26.94s, finishing 8th in the 200 meters.
In the 400 meters, Amber Elder finished sixth place with a time of 1:04.82.
Royal Delay crossed the finish line at 800m in third place with a time of 2:26.18; Delay was followed by teammate Kaeleigh Brooks, who crossed the line in seventh place with a time of 2:44.20.
Liza Varnum hurdled her way to fourth place in the 400-meter hurdles, crossing the finish line at 1:09.23.
In the pole vault, Sadie Arnold placed second, clearing a height of 3.20m (10'6), and Meghan Koh vaulted 2.44m (8'0"), finishing in sixth place.
Kayli Miller placed seventh in the discus with a throw of 33.63m (110'4"). Teammate Dana McDaniel placed sixth in the hammer with a toss of 40.08 (131'6").
