Ben Bell Wins Decathlon to Lead GWU Track & Field at the Winthrop University Invitational
March 30, 2014 | Track & Field
Rock Hill, S.C. - Junior Ben Bell won the decathlon, and Gardner-Webb's track & field squad recorded fourteen Top 5 performances to turn heads at the Winthrop University Invitational, held March 28-29.
In the women's shot put, Sarah Mitchell recorded a Top 3 distance to lead Gardner-Webb in the event. The freshman from Roswell, Ga. tossed 12.98 m on her best throw, good for 2nd place overall in the event. Senior Stephanie Hamilton (Blair, Neb.) added a 10th place finish out of Flight 3 after maxing out at 11.40 m.
Mitchell added the 2nd best distance overall and Flight 2's top throw in the women's discus at 40.49 m. Senior Jasmine Miles (Amelia, Va.) was 3rd in Flight 3 with a toss of 38.66 m, and fellow senior senior Kyntoya Hansford (Miami, Fla.) placed 7th in Flight with a distance of 33.39 m.
In the women's hammer throw, Miles led the way with the 4th place distance at 46.53 m. Hansford posted Flight 2's 4th furthest throw at 41.88 m, and Hamilton recorded the 6th best toss in Flight 2 at 40.52 m.
Senior Olivia Moody (Plano, Ill.) also posted a Top 3 individual finish in the women's heptathlon. Moody tallied 4,076 points to take 3rd place in the event.
Freshman Jordan Davis (Atlanta, Ga.) qualified for finals of the women's 400 m dash with a time of 57.53 in prelims. The rookie runner raced to a time of 58.85 in finals, finishing in 5th place in the event.
In the women's 1500 m run, freshman Jenna Ford (Wasilla, Alaska) turned in a 6th place showing in Section 3, finishing her race with a time of 5:07.75.Sophomore Claire Cates (Hillsborough, N.C.) took 4th place in the women's 3000 m steeplechase with a time of 12:22.86.
Freshman Kayin Mujahid led the Runnin' Bulldogs in the women's high jump. The Philadelphia, Pennsylvania native cleared 1.55 m to tie for 5th place in the event. In the women's long jump, sophomore Merideth Byl (Tucson, Ariz.) recorded a distance of 4.71 m to place 13th (Flight 2).
Davis led off the Gardner-Webb women's 4th place (Section 2) 4x400 m relay, teaming with Nicole Saxton, Sarah Perkins, and Mujahid for a time of 3:58.79.
On the men's side, Gardner-Webb got an event-best performance from Bell (Greensboro, N.C.). The junior won the decathlon, posting an impressive 6,250 points in the ten-event format to top the field.
Freshman Malik Crawford (Rock Hill, S.C.) led the Runnin' Bulldogs in both the men's 100 m and 200 m dash. The sprint specialist finished at 11.24 in the 100 m dash and 22.62 in the 200 m dash.
In the men's 400 m dash, senior Josiah Stanton-Brooks (Seattle, Wash.) led GWU with a prelims time of 49.34. Sophomore Joseph Martin (Broadway, Va.) recorded a prelims time of 51.06 for the Runnin' Bulldogs.
Stanton-Brooks added a 2nd place showing in the men's 800 m run, finishing as the runner-up in a tight race with Lehigh's Christopher Watson (1:53.12) with a time of 1:53.92.
In the men's 1500 m run, senior Mike McClay (Lawrenceville, Ga.) took 5th place, racing to a time of 4:08.78 in the event. Fellow senior Drew Ford (Wasilla, Alaska) placed 12th in the men's 5000 m run, recording a time of 17:10.26.
Sophomore Josh Wembolua (Matthews, N.C.) registered his fastest 110 m hurdles time of the day during prelims to qualify for finals, finishing at 14.79. Wembolua finished in 5th place after crossing the finish line at 15.18 in finals.
In the men's 400 m hurdles, Wembolua timed in at 58.60 to lead the Runnin' Bulldog men in the event.
The quartet of Tavarus Ferguson, Martin, Richard Jules, and Crawford teamed up to win the men's 4x100 m relay, combining for a 1st place time of 43.67.
A 4th place showing from Terry Davis in the men's triple jump gave Gardner-Webb another impressive Top 5 performance. The senior from Wilson, N.C. leaped 13.98 m in the event.
Throwing out of Flight 3, Alex Young and A.J. White put up Top 10 performances in the men's shot put. Young (LaVergne, Tenn.) took 3rd with a distance of 15.47 m, and White (Hurricane, W.Va.) placed 7th thanks to a throw of 14.74 m.
Senior Carson Sears (Suwanee, Ga.) led the Runnin' Bulldogs in the men's discus throw, recording a team-best throw of 45.45 m.
In the men's hammer throw, Sears and Young finished a narrow 2nd and 3rd to Liberty's David Scouten (54.72 m). Sears took 2nd with a distance of 54.47 m, and Young placed 3rd in the event by tossing 54.53 m.
Gardner-Webb's track & field teams are set to return to competition April 4-5 at the VertKlasse Meeting (High Point, N.C.).
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