MYRTLE BEACH - CIU men's and women's track & field started their spring break early on Friday as the Rams headed to the Myrtle Beach Collegiate Challenge hosted by the city of Myrtle Beach. The meet featured a full field with teams from all three divisions of the NCAA as well as NAIA squads.
Men's Recap:
On the track, Irvin Sumter stood out for CIU with a top-ten finish and qualified for the semifinals of the men's 100-meter dash with a time of 11.34; Denim Jones clocked in at 11.73 in the same event. Sumter finished 15th overall in the semis' with a time of 11.41.
Dario Laing was the other Ram to compete on the track as the NAIA All-American sprinter finished second in the 110-meter hurdles prelims with a time 14.50 to advance the finals. Laing hits the NAIA "A" Standard qualifying mark.
The Rams had a team of Malik Beaver, Landon Batterman, Joey Canning, and Spencer Evans compete in the 4x800 men's open relay with a time 8:43.79 to finish fifth.
Both Branson Rimmer and Elijah Seawright competed in the field as Seawright finished twelfth in the long jump with a distance of 6.22m. He also competed in the triple jump, finishing ninth with a mark 12.41m. Rimmer finished fourth in the pole vault with a height of 3.81m.
Rimmer was also one of three Rams' to compete in the javelin throw with a heave of 43.40m, which set a personal record. Jeremy Daniels (39.50m) and Bryce Scarborough (27.70m) added to the Rams' performance in jav, representing CIU in the event.
Colton Buchanan would lead the way in the hammer throw as he finished 11th in the event with a distance of 35.47m. Scarborough and freshman Cameron Montgomery represented along with Buchanan as Scarborough collected a distance of 34.08m, and Montgomery chalked up a toss of 33.49m.
Women's Recap:
CIU saw a notable showing from Morgan Johnson, who made it to the finals of the 100-meter hurdles and recorded a PR time of 15.54, which gave her a sixth-place finish. Ane' Peasley (16.39) and TaLayna Reed (17.26) competed alongside Johnson in the event.
Johnson posted another PR in the women's javelin, at 25.37m. Bethany Rymer and Olivia Tanchak rounded out CIU's performance in the jav, with Rymer notching a distance of 16.95m and Tanchak collecting a mark of 10.53m.
CIU throws squad was heavily represented in the women's hammer throw, with five athletes competing in the event. Coral Curry finished fifth overall with a throw of 42.59m. Kloey Pickens finished one spot behind her teammate with a toss of 39.50m, setting her personal record. Hannah Grace Sparks recorded a top-ten finish with a mark of 37.09m. Acoya Hunt PR'd in the event at 33.04m while Lillian Grumbles finished in 14th, one spot behind Hunt, recording a distance of 32.36m.
CIU's women's throws team had five different athletes compete in the hammer throw
Up Next: CIU is back on the South Carolina coast on Saturday, Mar. 9, to wrap up the Myrtle Beach Collegiate Challenge.
