April 25, 2015
LEXINGTON, Ky. - In varied weather conditions, the Bluffton men's and women's track and field team competed in the HCAC Conference Championship at Transylvania University on Friday and Saturday, April 24-25, 2015. During Friday's warm and sunny conditions the Beavers sparkled; in the rain on Saturday they persevered.
Sophomore All-=American TREY EVERETT (Sidney Fairlawn) dominated the jumps competition, winning both the high and triple jumps on Friday and the long jump on Saturday. Despite good conditions, the new high jump surface was slippery resulting in a field of less than expected performances including Everett's clearance of 6' 6". In only his second triple jump of the season he was clearly the class of the competition as he was in the long jump where his 23' 2" jump currently places him 18th on the NCAA performance list.
Senior JEFF PARKER (Bristol, Ind./Northridge) likewise put his stamp on the javelin field, winning the competition for the fourth straight year with a toss of 191' 3", just one inch shy of his school record! Jeff's javelin is currently 15th in the nation.. Also coming home a champion was sophomore TERRILL WEBB (Kenton). In spite of a nagging injury which has plagued her throughout the season, Webb was able to keep her championship record intact, winning both the indoor and outdoor women's vault two years in a row.
A number of other Beavers finished in points-earning positions. Freshman D'NAE REESE (Columbus/Upper Arlington) placed 2nd in the hammer and 5th in the discus while junior EDGAR GONZALEZ (Melvindale, Mich./Melvindale) took 3rd in men's hammer. Fourth place finishes belonged to sophomore ANNA HAIRSTON (Mansfield/Ontario) at 5000 meters and BROCK MORRIS (Burbank/Norwayne) in the pole vault.
Fifth place positions went to BLAKE DREWES (Archbold) in the high jump and the 4 x 400 meter relay composed of Drewes, Everett, freshman KYLE KNEZOVICH (Utica) and sophomore JACK FISHER (Norwalk/St. Paul). Fisher also secured a fifth place finish individually in the 1500 meters.
Earning 6th places finishes were sophomore RAVEN WILSON(Coshocton/Riverview) in the 10,000 meters, freshman TAYLOR BOWMAN(Lebanon) in the pole vault and Drewes in the 400. Both of the women's relays finished 7th with the 4 x 100 relay composed of junior HANNAH KRULL(Lewisburg/Tri-County North), sophomore TAYLOR ROSE(Johnstown/Northridge), junior KRISTIN SCHIEFER (Bucyrus/Wynford), and Webb while the 4 x 400 personnel were Webb, freshman ALISSA HAUKE (Hillsboro), Hairston and Krull.
Also finishing 7th was freshman THADDEUS PHILLIPS (South Bend, Ind./Riley) in the 100 meters. Parker and Fisher captured 8th place finishes in the shot put and 800 meters, respectively, while junior LAUREN HOFFMAN (Dunkirk/Hardin Northern) placed 8th in the pole vault.
The men placed 3rd as a team, equaling their performance at the indoor championship. The women's score was certainly compromised without freshman SARAH HUNTER (Mt. Blanchard/Riverdale) competing due to a bout of tendonitis.
"I am so proud of all the jumpers on this team who had to step up and face some difficult challenges with weather and last minute schedule changes," quipped jumps coach Keri McCoy. "They showed up to compete and put forth great effort across the board. I look forward to continuing to work with Trey for the next several weeks. He had a spectacular performance and showed off his athleticism and skill learning a new event in the triple jump in a very short time. We will continue to help him pursue his goals and represent the Beavers on the national level."
-BEAVERS-