Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Landon wins record-breaking eighth MVC high jump title on day two of MVC Outdoor Championships
05/13/2017 | 11:46:00 | Track and Field
Landon won his eighth career MVC high jump title, passing Indiana State’s Major Clay for most in Valley history
WICHITA, Kan. - Kyle Landon won his record-breaking eighth Missouri Valley Conference high jump title and the Salukis pushed seven through to finals following prelims on day two of the 2017 MVC Outdoor Championships at Wichita State on Saturday.
Landon won the high jump with relative ease, as he entered the field with the bar set at 6'-9" (2.06m), and tallied three-straight first attempt clearances. He clinched his record eighth MVC high jump title with his clearance of 7'-0.50" (2.15m), and later cleared 7'-2.50" (2.20m) on his final attempt at the height. In doing so, the Chester, Ill. native broke a tie with Indiana State's Major Clay (2009-12) for the most high jump titles in Valley history.
The five-time All-American wasn't done, as he was the runner-up in a highly-contested long jump competition that came down to the wire. Landon jumped 24'-11.75" (7.61m) on his third attempt to take the lead and advance to the finals. He was joined in the finals by Franklin Adams and Fraquan Gaines, who both recorded season-best jumps to advance.Â
Landon led the competition up until the final round, as Wichita State's Hunter Veith, who edged out Landon to win the MVC Indoor long jump crown, did likewise Saturday by the slimmest of margins. Veith jumped 25'-00" (7.62m) on his sixth, and final, attempt to win the event. For Landon, it marked his 13th All-MVC finish, while Adams added three team points with a sixth place finish and Gaines placed ninth.
Landon will now shift his focus to Sunday's triple jump competition, with the hopes of adding to his haul of 20 team points.
As a team, the Saluki men are currently in second place with 66 points. The Shockers, competing in their final MVC Track and Field Championship before moving to the American Athletic Conference this summer, are in first with 100 points. Northern Iowa (60) sits just six points back of Southern in third, while Illinois State (36) and Indiana State (21) round out the top-five.
The Saluki women, meanwhile, are in a log jam with 14 points currently the difference between fifth and third place. Southern is in fifth with 33 points, while Indiana State has 42 points and Northern Iowa sits in third with 47. The Illinois State Redbirds are currently in second with 55 points, while Wichita State is comfortably ahead of the pack with 100 points.
The Salukis scored key team points in several events Saturday.
Austin Weigle, who came into the high jump ranked seventh in the MVC, took fifth and scored four team points with a clearance of 6'-8.75" (2.05m) while Matthew Bigelow placed eighth in the decathlon with 5933 points.
The Saluki men added nine points in the shot put, as four Salukis advanced to the finals and three placed in the top-eight. Jared Kern was SIU's top finisher, as he advanced to the final with his first throw of 56'-9.25" (17.30m), but was unable to move up after that and placed fifth. Ricky Hurley finished sixth with a personal-best toss of 56'-4.75" (17.19m), while Kyle Kling took seventh at 56'-1.75" (17.11m). Nathan Stout just missed adding to SIU's haul, as he placed ninth at his first MVC Outdoor Championships.
The Saluki women had a pair of heptathletes place in the top-eight, as both Madison Meyer and Kilee Hagerstrand scored at their first MVC Outdoor Championships. Meyer finished sixth in the heptathlon with 5003 points, while Hagerstrand was right behind her in seventh with 4850 points.
Nikki Freeman threw the shot put a personal-best 45'-00.25" (13.72m) to take eighth and score her first point at a MVC Championship meet.
Southern gave itself plenty of additional chances to add to its team total come Sunday's finale, as seven Salukis, two men and five women, advanced through prelims on Saturday.
Warren Hazel, the reigning MVC Outdoor 400m Champion, ran the fastest 400m qualifying time at 47.34 to move on. The Old Roads, St. Kitts native will be plenty busy tomorrow, as he's set to compete in the 200m, 400m, the 4x100 relay and the 4x400 relay.
Hazel's countrymate, Shafiqua Maloney, posted the top 400m prelim time of 54.58. She will be joined in Sunday's final by Alicia Reed, who ran a personal-best 55.97 to advance.
In the 800m, Lucas Horton won his heat with the second-fastest qualifying time. The Harrisburg, Ill. product finished in 1:52.15, which trailed only Loyola's Jake Mazanke, who ran 1:51.84. The men's 800m final is set for 2:25 p.m.
Three Salukis advanced in the women's 100m, led by Bri'Anna Branch, who ran 11.51 to post the fourth-best time of the prelims. Tyjuana Eason was next at 11.54, while Mystique Thompson ran 11.68 to finish second in her heat.Â
Thompson ran the first sub-24 second 200m dash of her career in Saturday's run-off against Missouri State's Asha Cave, but Cave bested Thompson down the home stretch to advance to Sunday's 200m final. Not only was it a personal-best for Thompson, but it moves her from seventh to fifth on SIU's all-time 200m list.
Sunday's action begins at 11:30 a.m. with the women's triple jump and discus. Live coverage of Sunday's final round begins at 12:55 p.m. on the Valley on ESPN3 and can be viewed here.
Players Mentioned
