LOUISVILLE, Ky.- West Georgia men's track and field opened the 2025-26 indoor season with a powerful showing at the Commonwealth Opener, winning the meet with a total of 137.5 points against strong Division One programs such as Louisville, Eastern Kentucky, and Bellarmine. The Wolves delivered multiple school records and personal bests throughout the day, proving they are ready for a big year at the Division I level.

Sprints and Hurdles 
West Georgia exploded out of the blocks with an outstanding performance in the 60m dash. Gavin Barlow opened his season by breaking the school record and winning the entire event with a time of 6.80 seconds. He was followed by strong performances from Kyron Belton at 7.01 seconds, Vaughn Dickenson Jr. at 7.05 seconds, and Trey Campbell who ran a personal record of 7.11 seconds. Additional efforts came from Jackson Connors at 7.23 seconds, Rhett Howard at 7.29 seconds, Conner Changizi who ran a personal record of 7.37 seconds, Kellen Andrews at 7.38 seconds, and Hyrum Smartt at 7.68 seconds. 

In the 200m dash, Belton led the Wolves with a time of 22.4 seconds, followed by Ishmeal Neblett at 23.13 seconds and Connors at 23.57 seconds. 

The Wolves continued their momentum in the 300m race, where Matt Strickland broke the school record with a time of 34.52 seconds to place fourth overall. Campbell followed with a time of 35.84 seconds, and Landon Chovanic ran a personal record of 35.91 seconds.

In the 400m race, Ricky Griffin opened his indoor campaign with a time of 56.04 seconds. 

The sixty meter hurdles brought another school record for the Wolves, as Chovanic ran a time of 8.43 seconds to finish fourth overall. He was joined in the event by Zachary Wiggins who finished in 8.60 seconds, Andrews at 8.86 seconds, Neblett at 8.97 seconds, and Matthew Brunner who crossed in 9.20 seconds. 

The Wolves closed the sprint events with a strong performance in the 4x400m relay where the team of Chovanic, Belton, Campbell, and Strickland ran a time of 3:18.30 securing second place for UWG. 

Distance 
The Wolves continued scoring through the mid distance and distance events, beginning with the 600m race where Julian Mays set a school record of 1:24.65. He was followed by Changizi who crossed the line at 1:33.89. 

In the 800m, Smartt earned a fifth place finish with a time of 1:59.61, shortly followed by Daniel Murtagh who took sixth place with a time of 2:04.23. 

West Georgia delivered another strong group showing in the mile as Reed Crabtree finished second with a time of 4:39.54. He was followed by Tyler Jones who crossed at 4:43.48 and Murtagh who finished with a time of 4:44.04. 

Jumps & Throws 
West Georgia produced an exceptional day in the field events, beginning with a dominant performance in the high jump. Isaiah McMichael cleared a height of 2m to break his own school record and win the event. Moments later, Blake Davis matched that same height and secured second place on his third attempt. Additional contributions came from Will Shawley who cleared 1.85m and Brunner who cleared 1.8m. 

The Wolves continued their success in the long jump where Godsfavor Adenuga set another school record with a leap of 7.29m to earn second place. He was followed by Barlow with a jump of 6.8m for third place and then by Marcus Thompson Jr. who jumped 6.63m for fifth place. Additional efforts came from Davis at 6.09m, Griffin who recorded a personal record of 5.95m, Brunner who jumped 5.94m, Andrews who earned a personal record of 5.91m, Changizi who earned a personal record with a jump of 5.74m, and Howard who recorded a mark of 5.4m. 

In the triple jump, the Wolves saw yet another school record as Adenuga jumped 14.26m for fourth place. West Georgia followed that with strong marks from Davis at 13.62m, Thompson Jr. at 13.55m, Griffin who earned a personal best with a jump of 13.25m, and Ryane Martin Jr. who jumped 12.33m.

The Wolves continued their streak of record breaking performances in the pole vault as both Kareem Nazim and Connor McLain cleared 4.61m to set a new school record and finish fourth and fifth respectively. Additional marks came from Shea Thiewes who cleared 4.31m and Sam Hall who cleared 3.71m. 

West Georgia also produced strong efforts in the throws. In the shot put, Nicholas Lane led the way with a throw of 12.26m, followed by Howard with a throw of 10.93m, Andrews with 10.91m, Willis with 10.45m, Changizi with 10.02m, Smartt with 8.92m, and Brunner with 8.59m. 

In the weight throw, Lane earned a fifth place finish with a throw of 14.07m. He was followed by Darius Mcneal who earned a personal record with a throw of 13.76m, along with strong efforts from Ethan Butler-Paige who threw 12.37m and Willis who threw 11.07m. 

The Wolves will compete next on January 17, 2026 at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama. Fans can stay connected with all things UWG track & field by following @uwgxctf on Instagram and @UWGTrack on X.