Saluki track and field splits up for weekend meets

Thursday, March 28

Raleigh, NC

Southern Illinois University

Raleigh Relays

03/27/2019 | 11:34:00 | Track and Field

By: Will Becque, SIUSalukis.com

The Saluki track and field team will split up this weekend, as 13 Salukis are in Austin, Texas for the 92nd annual Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays, while three distance runners are at the North Carolina State Relays in Raleigh, N.C.

Texas Relays Preview

210 teams are entered in the 92nd running of the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays, with well over 7,000 athletes set to compete during the four-day event. Madison Meyer will get things started for the Salukis in the heptathlon on Wednesday, as the defending MVC Heptathlon Champion will look to get an early score in the event in a field of 25 competitors.

The Saluki throwers will take center stage on day two of the Texas Relays. Shauneice O'Neal, who opened her outdoor season with a personal-best in the hammer throw and currently ranks second in the Missouri Valley Conference in the event, will throw the hammer at 11 a.m. Nate Dyer and Ricky Hurley will follow in the men's hammer throw competition at 2 p.m. Dyer and Hurley currently rank No. 1 and No. 2 in the MVC in the event in what could shape up to be a repeat of last season's MVC hammer throw competition that saw the duo finish 1-2 at the conference outdoor meet.

The spotlight then moves over to the oval on day three. Savannah Long, who set a PR in the 400m hurdles at the Bill Cornell Spring Classic, will run the 100m hurdles for the first time this season beginning at 9:35 a.m. The men's 110m hurdles will follow, as Theo Phipps will make his season debut in the event after he reached the podium in the 60m hurdles at the 2019 MVC Indoor Championships.

The 100-meter dash will follow the hurdles, as Tyjuana Eason and Bri'Anna Branch are both entered in the event. Branch ran 11.88 to win the 100m dash at the Bill Cornell Spring Classic, while Eason won the 200m dash but has yet to run the 100m this season. The quartet of Eason, Genesis Ewell, Savannah Long and Alicia Reed are one of 55 teams set to run the mile relay which will follow the 100m dash.

Southern's throwers will also compete on day three, as Hurley is set to throw the discus at 9 a.m. while Adam Kessler, fresh off his No. 2 mark in the NCAA West Region in the shot put, will compete in his signature event at 10 a.m.

Texas Relays Schedule

110 Hurdles - Theo Phipps - Friday, March 29 - 9:35 a.m.
Shot Put - Adam Kessler - Friday, March 29 - 10 a.m.
Discus - Ricky Hurley - Friday, March 29 - 9 a.m.
Hammer - Nate Dyer, Ricky Hurley - Thursday, March 28 - 2 p.m.
Heptathlon - Madison Meyer - Wednesday and Thursday
100m Dash - Bri'Anna Branch, Tyjuana Eason - Friday, March 29 - 9:35 a.m.
100 Hurdles - Savannah Long - Friday, March 29 - 9:35 a.m.
4x400 Relay (Eason, Ewell, Long, Reed, Kira Williams, Mckenzie Krich) - Friday, March 29 - 9:35 a.m.
Hammer - Shauneice O'Neal - Thursday, March 28 - 11 a.m.

Raleigh Relays Preview

Three Saluki distance runners will take part in the Raleigh Relays, hosted by North Carolina State.

Megan Krolak and Chris Edwards will compete in the 3000m steeplechase beginning with the women's competition on Friday, March 29 at 4:25 p.m. Krolak and Edwards will compete in the steeple for the first time this season after both scored in the event at last year's conference outdoor meet. Krolak also clocked the fifth-fastest time in school history in the event (10:50.10) last season.

Josh Maier is one of 137 entries in the men's 10,000 meter run, which is scheduled for a 10:10 p.m. start time. Maier is the reigning MVC Track Athlete of the Week after he ran the seventh-fastest 1500m time in the NCAA West Region at last weekend's Bill Cornell Spring Classic.

NC Relays Schedule

3000m Steeplechase - Megan Krolak - Friday, March 29 at 4:25 p.m.
3000m Steeplechase - Chris Edwards - Friday, March 29 at 5 p.m.
10K - Josh Maier - Friday, March 29 at 10:10 p.m.

Leading the Valley