CHARLESTON, Ill. – SIUE men's and women's track and field opened its outdoor season at the EIU Big Blue Classic on Friday and Saturday.

Throws:

Luke Hatten placed sixth in the men's shot put with a 13.72m toss. Hatten also took on the discus with a 16th place, 37.30m throw. Joel Degracia placed 7th in the men's hammer with a 46.14m throw.

Alexis Hutchins finished fourth in the women's shot put with a 13.85m toss. Stephanie Montenegro (8th/11.86m) and Maryiah Menicucci (10th/11.52m) also grabbed top 10 placements. Allison Sanders led the women in the discuss with a 37.43m throw while Gabby Yaccino placed fourth in the women's hammer. Sanders also placed 11th in the javelin with a 29.52m mark.

Jumps:

Caden Belcher represented the men in the high jump with a 1.85m leap. Harper Smith jumped on the women's side with a fifth-place, 1.55m leap in the high jump.

In the women's long jump, Folasade Oladipupo took fourth place with a 5.27m jump. Izzy Kennedy (5th/5.26m) and Sheena Cumberbatch (6th/5.23m) followed Oladipupo with back-to-back placements.

Kennedy also placed fifth in the triple jump with a 11.13m mark. Nyah Williams took 11th at 9.99m.

Sprints and Hurdles:

Tyler Bell ran in the 100m hurdles for the men, finishing 13th with a 15.98 time. Cole Knapp (7th/58.38) and Belcher (8th/59.15) represented the men in the 400m hurdles with back-to-back finishes.

Paris Somerville took sixth in the women's 100m hurdles with a 15.10 time. Vashanti Reynolds plaxed ninth in the event at 15.49.

For the women, Nyah Williams paced the Cougars in the 100m dash with a 13.25 time, good for 14th. Jade Bivins also competed with a 13.88 finish. In the 200m dash, Kailah Carter grabbed sixth place with a 25.84 time, good for a new career best. Kaylee Allen (9th/26.13) and Oladipupo (10th/26.51) also grabbed top 10 finishes in the event.

Bobby Nuzzo paced the men with an eighth-place finish in the 100m dash with a 10.85 time. Freshman Konrad Sacha placed third in the men's 200m with a 22.05 time. Nuzzo followed Sacha with a seventh-place finish in the 200m at 22.35. Chase Burston also competed, placing 16th at 23.06.

Sacha also took third in the men's 400m with a 49.97 time. On the women's side, Carter took second in the 400m with a 57.12 time, good for a PR. Allen placed sixth for the women in the event at 1:00.50.

Mid-Distance and Distance:

D'Andre Watson finished 14th in the men's 800m while Zach Walters placed 20th in the 1500m at 4:09.30. Cameron Woodard followed Walters with a 4:11.80 time. Peyton Tieffel represented the women in the 800m with a 19th-place, 2:36.73 finish.

Gabby Horton placed 23rd in the women's 1500m with a 5:08.08 time. Kaitlyn Walker picked up seventh in the women's 5000m with a 18:31.80 finish.

Roland Prenzler took seventh in the men's 5000m with a 15:02.74 time. Spencer Hielkema placed 15th in the event with a 15:25.86 while Tyler Guthrie followed at 15:28.10.

4x100m Relay:

The men's 4x100m relay team of Burston, Sacha, Nuzzo, and Bell placed second with a 41.65 time. For the women, Williams, Anderson, Allen, and Sheena Cumberbatch placed third with a 50.39 time.

Up Next: The Cougars will travel to Cape Girardeau, Missouri for the Joey Haines Invitational on Mar. 31 and Apr. 1.