Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Saluki men, women in second after day one of 2017 MVC Outdoor Track and Field Championships
05/12/2017 | 11:58:00 | Track and Field
Salukis win two event titles and add three top-three finishes on day one of MVC Championships.
WICHITA, Kan. - Day one of the Missouri Valley Conference Outdoor Championships is in the books, and the Southern Illinois men's and women's track and field teams are both in second place. The Salukis won two event titles and added three top-three finishes across seven combined events Friday.
The Saluki women are tied with Northern Iowa for second place with 26 points. Both schools trail the hosts, Wichita State, who have 49 points. The Saluki men scored 30 points on day one, and sit just two points back of the Shockers after three events.
Freya Block got the day started for the Salukis as she threw a lifetime-best 211'-03" (64.40m) to win the hammer throw. She became the 14th athlete in Valley history, and fourth in Saluki history, to win the weight throw and the hammer throw in the same season. Block joins Brittany Riley, Jeneva McCall and DeAnna Price as Salukis who have won MVC titles in the hammer and the weight throw in the same season.
Isaac Ingram made it a clean sweep for the Salukis in the hammer throw, as he won with a personal-best toss of 199'-03" (60.74m). The Harrisburg, Ill. native became the fifth different Saluki male to win the weight throw and hammer throw in the same season. Ingram joins Ron Harrer, Adam Judge, J.C. Lambert and Curtis Wideman as Salukis to have done so.
Southern scored 20 of its 30 points in the hammer as Ricky Hurley threw 187'-03" (57.07m) to take third and earn the first All-MVC honor of his career while Kyle Kling threw 178'-10" (54.50m) to finish fifth and tack on four team points.
SIU's women got a bulk of its first day points in the pole vault, as Southern scored 16 points in courtesy of three top-eight finishes, including Katie Trupp's runner-up performance. Trupp earned her fourth career All-MVC finish, as she took second with a clearance of 12'-11.75" (3.96m). Cara Engel chipped in five points with a fourth place finish, while Kacy Murphy added three points after she took sixth.
SIU's men added another eight points in the 10,000-meter run, as Josh Maier earned his second-straight top-three finish in the event. Maier challenged Drake's Reed Fischer, the eventual champion, throughout the race, despite the fact that the two almost never ran neck and neck. The Alsip, Ill. native kept the pressure on throughout, as he ran a personal-best 30:19.50, finishing less than two seconds behind Fischer and nearly 17 seconds before the third place finisher.
The Saluki men added two points in the javelin, as Kyle Landon, who was throwing the javelin for the first time in his career, finished seventh with a mark of 163'-04" (49.79m).Â
The Saluki women advanced a pair to Sunday's 200m final. Bri'Anna Branch ran the fastest 200m qualifying time at 23.66. It was not only a PR, but also the 2nd-fastest time in SIU history. Tyjuana Eason, meanwhile, won her heat of the 200m with a time of 23.95. Mystique Thompson ran 24.15 and tied with Missouri State's Asha Cave for the eighth, and final, spot in Sunday's final. The two will have a run-off tomorrow to determine who advances.
Warren Hazel also advanced to Sunday's final in the 200m with a personal-best time of 20.89. It was the second-fastest qualifying time and tied for the fifth-best mark in school history.
Competition begins tomorrow at 10:30 a.m. with the completion of the heptathlon and the decathlon. Field events get underway with the women's shot put and the men's high jump at 3 p.m.
Players Mentioned
