TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – SIUE men's and women's track and field opened the indoor portion its schedule on Friday at the John Gartland Invitational. The women collected 92 total points, finishing second of five teams while the men finished fifth.
"We had a lot of solid performances from today," Head Coach Marcus Evans said. "We are walking away with several top three performance on the OVC list (3 on the Men's side/ 13 on the Women's side) and know the work we have put in this fall is a building block for a special spring."
Throws:
In the women's shot put, Claire Bushur led SIUE with a third-place finish at 12.59m while Alexis Hutchins collected fourth at 12.04m. Stephanie Montenegro earned sixth with an 11.64m throw and Maryiah Menicucci took 10th at 10.69m.
Hutchins led the Cougars in the women's weight throw, finishing second with a 17.23m mark. Allison Sanders placed sixth at 15.19m while Montenegro earned eighth at 14.01m.
Jumps:
Harper Smith earned fifth and set a PR in the women's high jump with a 1.65m leap. Aseanti Boone also set a career best mark, placing eighth at 1.55m. The freshman duo of Zaria Searcy (1.55m) and Jada Fryer (1.50m) also competed in the high jump.
In the women's long jump, Folasade Oladipupo placed fifth overall with a 5.42m jump. Dakota Krone took eighth at 5.26m while Sheena Cumberbatch earned 11th at 5.08m. Nyah Williams also competed in the event with a 4.96m jump.
Cumberbatch led the women in the triple jump, collecting first place at 11.36m, good for a career best mark. Krone took third at 10.76m while Williams placed fourth at 10.75m.
In the men's high jump, Caden Belcher placed sixth with a 1.90m leap while Drew Tucker also had a 1.90m jump.
Sprints and Hurdles:
Kaylee Allen competed in the 60m dash on the women's side, placing eighth at 7.87 in the finals. The sophomore's time was good for a new PR in the event. In the women's 200m dash, Sheena Cumberbatch earned ninth with a 27.81 mark.
In the women's 60m hurdles, Vashanti Reynolds placed seventh with a 9.26 time in the final round.
Kailah Carter paced SIUE in the women's 400m, placing second with a 57.70 time. Allen (sixth/1:00.10) and Makayla White (10th/1:01.76) also competed in the event.
For the men, Taylor Lehman (seventh/8.77) and Simon McLaine (eighth/8.80) finished back-to-back in the 60m hurdles final round. Jonah Grawer made his SIUE debut in the 400m dash, placing eighth at 54.05.
Mid-Distance and Distance:
Megan Derrick and Courtney Anthonies finished back-to-back at second and third in the women's 800m. Derrick crossed the line at 2:37.48 while Anthonies finished at 2:38.26. Anthonies mark was a new career best time.
Mia Loafman collected second with a 5:15.80 time in the women's mile. Gabrielle Horton (seventh/5:41.55), Lexi Kampwerth (eighth/5:46.70), and Chessy Nikonowicz (ninth/6:14.37) also ran in the event.
Freshman Riley Doyle placed third in the women's 3,000m race at 11:28.18 while Natalia Rodriguez placed fourth at 11:29.00. Alexis Fisher took fifth at 11:31.87 and Olivia Wolf finished sixth at 11:43.54.
Sophomore D'Andre Watson led the men in the mile, finishing ninth with a new career best time at 4:36.10. Cullen Krieg followed at 4:43.94 for 10th.
Relays:
The women's 4x400m relay team of Allen, Cumberbatch, Boone, and Horton placed fifth with a 4:19.13 time.
On the men's side, the team of McLaine, Tyler Bell, Belcher, and Lehman collected fifth in the 4x400m relay at 3:33.03.
Up Next: SIUE track and field will return to competition after the new year, taking on the Graduate Classic on Jan. 12 in Lincoln, Nebraska.
"Going into break, our student-athletes can focus on maintaining their good form and are aware of what they each individually need to improve on before we get back to campus in January," added Evans.
Stay connected with the Cougars all season long by following @SIUETrackandField on Instagram and @SIUETrackField on X.
