Jan. 7, 2011

Complete Results

COLUMBIA, Mo. - Senior Ben Bishop wasted little time in making his final season one to remember by turning in a record-breaking performance in the first meet of the year at the Missouri Invitational on Friday.

Bishop broke his own SIUE record in the weight throw with an event-winning toss of 70 feet, 2.25 inches on just his third attempt of the year. His throw was nearly 11 feet farther than the nearest competitor.

His throw is the best in all of Division I this year and reached the USATF indoor qualifying mark.

"It was a welcomed surprise for Ben at this point in his training," said Assistant Coach Scott Block. "We will look to build on the foundation he has laid."

In the 600 yard run, Joshua Thomas edged out fellow Cougar freshman Forrest Knight in their respective heat, and finished with a fifth-place time of 1 minute, 15.27 seconds.

Freshmen Jacob Peak and Rickie Walls had impressive debuts for SIUE by finishing fourth and fifth in the long jump with marks of 21-1.5 and 20-11.75, respectively.

Peak also reached the finals of the 60m dash with sophomore Tony Bowman. Bowman placed in sixth (7.06) while Peak finished in eighth (7.25).

Another freshman showed the depth of the most recent incoming class as Jade Ackerman finished with an eighth-place time of 23.52 in the 200m dash.

Sophomore Marc Presley claimed fourth place in the 800m run in a time of 1:59.08 while freshman Brandon Stewart was not far behind in seventh (2:00.97).

In the distance events, juniors Shawn Dillard and Marc Amarillas turned in top ten finishes. Dillard finished seventh in the mile crossing the finish line in 4:40.06 while Amarillas placed sixth in the 3,000m in a time of 9:04.09.

Senior Eric Mammoser placed fourth in the pole vault clearing 15-1, and freshman Titus Hughes recorded a fourth-place finish in the high jump (6-2.25).

William Lindsey ran a personal best in the 60-meter hurdles (8.06) running as an unattached in his second year.

"Overall it was a good meet," said Head Coach Kareem Jackson. "It was a good learning experience for our freshman getting their first taste of collegiate track, especially coming against some tough competition."

SIUE will return to the track at the Illini Classic from Jan. 21-22.

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