BIRMINGHAM, Ala.- The UWG men's track and field team delivered a strong and well-rounded performance at the Samford Open in Birmingham, Alabama, earning four medals, seven top five finishes, and recording eight personal bests against a competitive field.
Sprints & Hurdles
The Wolves began competition in the 60m where
Gavin Barlow advanced to the finals after running 6.83 in the preliminaries before posting a time of 6.88 to finish eighth overall.
Kyron Belton continued the strong showing by clocking a personal best time of 6.99 in the event.
In the 60m hurdles, Landon Chovanic led UWG with a time of 8.58, while Ishmeal Neblett recorded a personal best of 8.71. Trey Campbell paced the Wolves in the 200m with a time of 22.64, and Matt Strickland turned in one of the top performances of the meet in the 400m, running 48.29 to earn sixth place overall.
UWG also rounded out the meet with a solid showing in the 4x400m relay, as the team of Landon Chovanic, Matthew Brunner, Trey Campbell, and Matt Strickland finished fourth with a time of 3:19.75.
Distance
UWG posted multiple personal bests across the distance events. In the 800m,
Hyrum Smartt led the way by recording a personal best time of 1:58.68.
Solomon Johnson set a personal best of 4:29.21 in the mile for the Wolves, while
Noah Anderson followed with a personal best time of 8:43.29 in the 3000m to earn ninth place.
Tyler Jones rounded out the distance performances as the lone UWG competitor in the 5000m, where he recorded a personal best time of 16:10.92.
Jumps & Throws
The Wolves were especially impressive in the field events, accounting for multiple podium finishes and a program record. In the high jump,
Blake Davis cleared 1.94 meters to earn third place, while
Isaiah McMichael added a ninth place finish with a jump of 1.89 meters. Davis continued his standout day in the triple jump, recording a personal best mark of 14.29 meters to finish fourth, a performance that also set a new UWG record.
The long jump was another positive area for UWG as Gavin Barlow earned second place with a mark of 7.08 meters, Godsfavor Adenuga followed in fifth at 6.97 meters, and Marcus Thompson Jr. placed tenth with a jump of 6.56 meters.
In the pole vault, Kareem Nazim cleared 4.56 meters to earn second place, Connor McLain followed closely with a third place mark of 4.41 meters, and Rhett Howard recorded a personal best of 3.96 meters. The throws group was led by Nicholas Lane in the weight throw, where he recorded a mark of 13.55 meters to round out a successful day for the Wolves.
With four medals, seven top-five finishes, eight personal bests, and a school record performance, the Wolves will look to continue the momentum as the indoor season continues. UWG will return to action at the Tryon Mid-Winter Collegiate Invitational on February 13-14, which will serve as the final meet before the Indoor ASUN Championships.
