Track and Field finishes strong at Music City Challenge

Friday, February 9

Nashville, TN

TBA

Southern Illinois University

Music City Challenge

Photo by: Harold David Rials

02/10/2018 | 8:49:00 | Track and Field

By: Will Becque, SIUSalukis.com

The Southern Illinois track and field team finished strong on day two of the Music City Challenge Saturday in Nashville, Tenn., with several lifetime- and season-best performances in a SEC-heavy field comprised of more than 27 teams.

Warren Hazel clocked a season-best time of 46.79 to earn runner-up in the 400m dash Saturday. Hazel will most likely enter the MVC Indoor meet with the top time in the conference after his improvement at Vanderbilt. The two-time national qualifier later ran the anchor leg of the 4x400 to help SIU record a season-best time in the event.

Shafiqua Maloney ran 54.89 in the 400m dash to finish 13th. Maloney was the top-finisher from a non-Power 5 conference school with the first sub 55 second 400m of her indoor career.

In the jumps, Kezia Martin set a season-best in the triple jump with a mark of 40'-9.50" (12.43m) to finish sixth Saturday. The mark is the best in the Missouri Valley Conference this season.

The Saluki men's shot putters, who are currently ranked No. 1 in the men's shot put event rankings according to USTFCCCA, had four finish in the top-9 on Saturday with three lifetime-best marks. Jared Kern took finished fifth with a toss of 62'-4" (19.00m), while Adam Kessler finished sixth with the sixth-best toss in program history at 62'-2.50" (18.96m). Ricky Hurley threw a personal-best 59'-7" (18.16m) to place seventh, while Sam Sikon set a PR for the fifth time in six meets this season with a toss of 57'-11.25" (17.66m) to take ninth in a field of 30 throwers. On the women's side, A'veun Moore-Jones threw a personal-best 48'-9.50" (14.87m) to finish ninth while Kayleigh Conlon threw a lifetime-best 45'-7.25" (13.90m) to place 14th.

Cain Hassim cut more than six seconds off his previous best time in the 3K, as he ran 8:28.92 to finish 28th. Cain's brother, Theo Hassim, set a PR by more than 17 seconds and was the second Saluki to cross the finish line at 8:51.97.

Kilee Hagerstrand narrowly set a PR in the 60 meter hurdles, as she ran 8.56 to finish seventh. She finished second in her heat with the eighth-fastest qualifying time at 8.62 to advance and place seventh.

The men's 4x100 relay squad of Johnny McGluen, Lucas Horton, Canoy Tyree and Warren Hazel won their heat with a season-best time of 3:14.34. It was a more than two second improvement on their top time this season and was the fifth-best time at the Music City Challenge. The Salukis finished ahead of squads from Cincinnati, Indiana State, Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech.

The Salukis will next send athletes to the EIU Friday Night Special on Friday, Feb. 16 in Charleston, Ill. before competing at the 2018 MVC Indoor Championships in Cedar Falls, Iowa from Feb. 24-25.