Southern Illinois University
SIU Spring Classic Presented By Woodard Wellness Group
Track & Field dominates first day of Spring Classic
03/25/2011 | 12:00:00 | Track and Field
March 25, 2011
By Michael Benson
SIUSalukis.com
CARBONDALE, Ill. - Despite the frigid conditions, the Saluki track & field team got off to a blistering start Friday by taking three of the four event titles at the SIU Spring Classic Presented By Woodard Wellness Group.
After Friday's action, both the men's and women's teams lead by sizable margins. The men currently have 59 points - 51 better than second-place Illinois State, while the women have a 21 point advantage on Missouri State with 34 points.
"It's bad weather, but it's nice to see our kids come out and compete considering the conditions," said Saluki head coach Connie Price-Smith. "We had great throws in the hammer throw with both the men and the women."
Freshman Douglas Palacious registered his first career event title in the men's long jump, logging a distance of 21-09.00. The Nassau, Bahamas, native was not alone at the top, though, as five other Saluki jumpers finished in the top seven. Among the top finishers were Maxim Bakana (second - 21-01.50), Vincent Johnson (fourth - 20-08.00) and Kendrick Branch (fifth - 20-08.00).
Meanwhile, SIU dominated the hammer throw on both sides. For the women, Southern Illinois took the top four spots and six of the top seven, with Gwen Berry taking top honors at 206-00.00. She was followed by Jeneva McCall in second (205-10.50), Olga Ciura in third (185-05.50), and Erin Atkinson in fourth (181-02.00).
In the men's hammer throw, J.C. Lambert set a new personal best mark of 212-09.50 en route to taking first place. Collin Otto placed second with a toss of 186-01.75 and Brad Foote claimed fourth at 180-09.00.
The SIU Spring Classic Presented By Woodard Wellness Group will continue tomorrow morning at 11 a.m. with the men's high jump and pole vault, along with the women's discus and triple jump.
Players Mentioned
