JONESBORO, Ark. – The first day of action is in the books at the A-State Invitational hosted by Arkansas State University and several Southern Arkansas athletes logged quality showings amidst a tough field in a limited number of events on Friday evening inside the Convocation Center.
Doug Palmer recorded the highest finish of any Southern Arkansas athlete on Friday by placing sixth in the men's 3000 meter with a time of 8:56.05.
Sinclair Pitts began the afternoon for the Muleriders with an 11
th-place finish in the weight throw at a distance of 45' 7" (13.89 meters). A trio of Lady Muleriders competed in the women's weight throw led by
Erica Fuller's 11
th-place showing at a distance of 41' 2 ¼'' (12.55 meters). Behind Fuller was T'Keyah Crocket in 13
th-place (33' 6 ¾'') and Quentisha Coats in 14
th-place (31' 9 ½'').
Torrie Whetsell paced SAU in the men's long jump with a 14
th-place lunge of 19' 11 ¾''. Arthur Jeffrey followed in 15
th place (19' 11''), while
Aaron Linnear (19' 9'') and
Tyler Shelton (18 '6'') placed 17
th and 19
th respectively.
In the women's long jump,
Justice Reliford led the Lady Muleriders with an 11
th-place finish at 17' 5 ¼''.
Qua'Dajia O'Neil placed 12
th; just two inches behind Reliford at 17' 3 ¼''.
On the track,
Quincy Flowers and
Michelle Donohue logged the second highest finishes of any SAU athletes on Friday behind Palmer. Flowers did so with a 7
th-place performance in the 200 meter in a career-best indoor time of 22.36. Donohue placed 7
th in the women's 5000 meter in a time of 20:02.48.
Also competing in the men's 200 meter was
Xavier Cooper who finished in 22.80 and in 13
th-place, while
Tyrenzo Banks (23.44) and Shonquill Atkins (23.80) recorded sub-24.00 second times in the event.
Sonia Morales joined Donohue in the women's 5000 meter run and finished in 8
th with a time of 20:44.45.
Cody Fox was the lone competitor for SAU in the men's 5000 meter run and placed fourth in 16:54.08.
Eight Lady Muleriders competed in the women's 200 meter with
Breanna Byrd recording the best time at 26:32, while
Kenisha Bryant finished just behind Byrd at 26:35.
Erin Goree (26.86) and
Abby Lentz (26.98) each finished in less than 27 seconds in 26
th and 28
th places, respectively.
Kirby Roy (27.05),
Victoria Bridges (27.43),
Aliyah Mixon (27.81) and Bailey Yocum (27.99) also competed in the event.
In Friday's final event, the men's 3000 meter, a de facto SAU Cross Country team represented with six runners led by Palmer and followed by
Jose Guevara who recorded a ninth place finish in 9:03.88.
Bradyn Gower finished 12
th in 9:34.29, while
Nathan Poovey (9:50.86),
Austin Morgan (9:52.19), and
Ismael Gonzalez (10:02.89) placed 14
th through 16
th, respectively.
Both the Muleriders and Lady Muleriders will be back in action tomorrow morning beginning at 11 a.m. Saturday's action will conclude the A-State Invitational and a complete listing of events with start times can be found here:
https://admin.xosn.com/pdf9/5209718.pdf. Live results of the meet will available through Halfmile Timing:
http://halfmiletiming.com/event/a-state-invitational/.
Be sure to check www.MuleriderAthletics.com or follow us on Twitter @MuleriderSports for the most up-to-date news on Mulerider Track and Field including recaps of all the action on the final day of the A-State Invitational.
