Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Photo by: Will Becque
Salukis tally a pair of runner-up finishes on day two of Tennessee Relays
04/13/2018 | 11:04:00 | Track and Field
Madison Meyer (heptathlon) and Jared Kern (shot put) each finished second to lead Southern on day two of the three-day event.
The Southern Illinois track and field team turned in several noteworthy performances during day two of the 51st annual Tennessee Relays Friday, highlighted by Jared Kern's runner-up finish in the men's shot put and Madison Meyer's second place finish in the heptathlon.
Kern took second to four-time All-American Josh Awotunde of South Carolina in the men's shot put competition. The Machesney Park, Ill. native led until the final round, as he took the lead on his second toss of 63'-4.25" (19.31m) and improved upon his mark two throws later at 64'-6" (19.66m). Awotunde unleashed a toss of 65'-2.25" (19.87m) on his final attempt to win the event title. Kern was joined in the top-10 of the event by Ricky Hurley, who set a personal-best at 59'-9" (18.21m) to finish eighth.Â
Meyer finished second in the heptathlon with 5118 points, some 338 points behind Maya Neal of Tennessee. Meyer came on strong late, as she finished top-3 in the competition's final four events, including a win in the 800m. Meyer clocked a PR in the half-mile at 2:25.99 to win and jump up to second in the final standings. In total, the Carterville, Ill. native set personal-bests in the 100 hurdles, 200m and 800m. Her point total currently ranks her 16th in the NCAA West Region.
A'veun Moore-Jones took eighth in the women's shot put with a mark of 48'-0.50" (14.64m). The women's shot put competition was dominated by underclassmen, as 20 of the 26 throwers in the field were underclassmen, including Moore-Jones.
Sticking with the field events, Southern tallied a pair of personal-bests in the women's javelin. Charlene Helton threw 129'-9" (39.56m) to finish fourth, while Emma Sexton set a PR by more than six feet at 125'-6" (38.25m) to place sixth out of 10 competitors.
Josh Maier, competing unattached, won the men's 5000m with a time of 14:39.67. Claire Darnell and Megan Krolak, meanwhile, both set personal-bests in the women's 5000m as Darnell ran 17:40.03 to finish 16th while Krolak placed 22nd with a time of 17:50.10.Â
In the mid-distances, Luke Horton ran 1:52.02 to finish seventh in the 800m. The Salukis added another top-10 finish in the women's 3000m steeplechase as Kelly O'Shea ran 11:14.17 to finish third.
The sprints were a source of mild frustration for the Salukis, if only because the wind picked up just in time to invalidate most of Southern's marks.Â
Tyjuana Eason cracked the top-10 of a loaded 100 meter dash competition that featured the 2016 Olympian Sydney McLaughlin and Javianne Oliver, who finished the 2017 indoor season with the fastest 60m time in the world. Oliver won the event with a wind-aided 11.04, while McLaughlin was second at 11.07w. Eason finished ninth with a time of 11.52w, which would've been the second-best time in school history had the winds been allowable. Bri'Anna Branch wasn't far behind, as she ran 11.58w to place 12th in a field of 59 runners.
On the men's side, Ryan Mayberry ran 10.68 to set a personal-best in the 100m dash. The Morrison, Ill. native finished 22nd overall and it marked the second-straight meet in which he has improved upon he has set a PR in the event.
In the 100m hurdles, Mesha Newbold ran 13.93w to finish 15th, while Savannah Long ran 14.46w to take 21st.Â
Day three of the Tennessee Relays gets underway at 11 a.m. with the women's discus. Track events begin at 12 p.m. and day three can also be streamed on the SEC+ Network.
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Kern took second to four-time All-American Josh Awotunde of South Carolina in the men's shot put competition. The Machesney Park, Ill. native led until the final round, as he took the lead on his second toss of 63'-4.25" (19.31m) and improved upon his mark two throws later at 64'-6" (19.66m). Awotunde unleashed a toss of 65'-2.25" (19.87m) on his final attempt to win the event title. Kern was joined in the top-10 of the event by Ricky Hurley, who set a personal-best at 59'-9" (18.21m) to finish eighth.Â
Meyer finished second in the heptathlon with 5118 points, some 338 points behind Maya Neal of Tennessee. Meyer came on strong late, as she finished top-3 in the competition's final four events, including a win in the 800m. Meyer clocked a PR in the half-mile at 2:25.99 to win and jump up to second in the final standings. In total, the Carterville, Ill. native set personal-bests in the 100 hurdles, 200m and 800m. Her point total currently ranks her 16th in the NCAA West Region.
A'veun Moore-Jones took eighth in the women's shot put with a mark of 48'-0.50" (14.64m). The women's shot put competition was dominated by underclassmen, as 20 of the 26 throwers in the field were underclassmen, including Moore-Jones.
Sticking with the field events, Southern tallied a pair of personal-bests in the women's javelin. Charlene Helton threw 129'-9" (39.56m) to finish fourth, while Emma Sexton set a PR by more than six feet at 125'-6" (38.25m) to place sixth out of 10 competitors.
Josh Maier, competing unattached, won the men's 5000m with a time of 14:39.67. Claire Darnell and Megan Krolak, meanwhile, both set personal-bests in the women's 5000m as Darnell ran 17:40.03 to finish 16th while Krolak placed 22nd with a time of 17:50.10.Â
In the mid-distances, Luke Horton ran 1:52.02 to finish seventh in the 800m. The Salukis added another top-10 finish in the women's 3000m steeplechase as Kelly O'Shea ran 11:14.17 to finish third.
The sprints were a source of mild frustration for the Salukis, if only because the wind picked up just in time to invalidate most of Southern's marks.Â
Tyjuana Eason cracked the top-10 of a loaded 100 meter dash competition that featured the 2016 Olympian Sydney McLaughlin and Javianne Oliver, who finished the 2017 indoor season with the fastest 60m time in the world. Oliver won the event with a wind-aided 11.04, while McLaughlin was second at 11.07w. Eason finished ninth with a time of 11.52w, which would've been the second-best time in school history had the winds been allowable. Bri'Anna Branch wasn't far behind, as she ran 11.58w to place 12th in a field of 59 runners.
On the men's side, Ryan Mayberry ran 10.68 to set a personal-best in the 100m dash. The Morrison, Ill. native finished 22nd overall and it marked the second-straight meet in which he has improved upon he has set a PR in the event.
In the 100m hurdles, Mesha Newbold ran 13.93w to finish 15th, while Savannah Long ran 14.46w to take 21st.Â
Day three of the Tennessee Relays gets underway at 11 a.m. with the women's discus. Track events begin at 12 p.m. and day three can also be streamed on the SEC+ Network.
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