MONTREAT N.C. - CIU track & field wrapped up the 2023 Appalachian Athletic Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships on Saturday in North Carolina, securing several qualifying spots, awards, and podium finishes in the process.
Deandre Leith has been dominating men's shot put all season long, and today was no exception. Leith threw a 15.52 on his fifth attempt, which crowned him the AAC men's shot put champion. Fellow Rams
Dizayuh Hinton (13.10m / PR) &
Bryce Scarborough (12.04m / PR) also competed in the event. In men's discus,
Dizayuh Hinton cleared the field to take home the top spot in the event with a throw of 47.25m to go along with a PR. Leith (44.64m PR) finished second directly behind Hinton, while Scarborough (33.97m PR) also competed.
On the track in the 3000m steeplechase,
Nathaniel Long (10.40.32 PR) and
Joel Baumgarten (10.59.03 PR) represented the Rams.
Dario Laing (54.80, school record) won the 400m hurdles, with
Jacob Osmanski (58.25) finishing in second for an impressive notable one-two finish.
Tavarres Berrian (2:03.51) and
Spencer Evans (2:08.51) competed in the 800m,
Ethan Robinson (22.93) ran in the 200m dash, and
Irvin Sumter,
Kenneth Simmons,
Clayton Hammond, & Laing competed in the 4x400m relay and secured sixth place with a team time of 3:26.34
The Rams racked up even more hardware as Laing was awarded the AAC Outdoor Track & Field Freshman of the Year award, and Leith secured ACC Outdoor Field Athlete of the Year.
Dario Laing (Center) and Jacob Osmanski (Left) finished had the top two finishes in 400m hurdles
On the woman's side,
Kloey Pickens won the women's shot put with a 12.90m (PR, school record)toss as
Acoya Hunt (11.46m NCCAA, PR) finished fourth in the event and
Crystal Jones (10.65m) collected ninth place. In the discus,
Dazanni Hinton (38.05 PR, new record) secured a podium finish coming in second, while
Lillian Grumbles (36.00 PR), Alcoy Hunt (35.58m PR), and
Haven Lynn (31.37m PR) represented CIU in the event as well.
On the track,
Lydia Willhite (11:59.44, PR) was the lone Ram competing in the 3000m steeplechase as she impressed with a third-place finish.
Mercy Berkemeyer (2:28.88 PR, school record) ran in the 800m, as Jones (1:08.79) sprinted in the 400m hurdles.
What Coach Tim Thompson is saying: "What a great way to cap the regular season. We had more conference champions than any other previous year. We also had serval school records broken, more NCCAA qualifiers, and a few NAIA qualifiers. The future of this team is now! We are motivated to work even harder because we are far from done"
What's next: NAIA qualifiers will go to the NAIA Outdoor Track & Field Championship in Marion, Ill., on May. 24-26. NCCAA qualifiers will compete at the NCCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championship, which is being hosted by CIU this year on May. 10-12.
