LAFAYETTE, La.– App State senior
Ryan Brown, juniors
Taylor Smith and
Eric Haddock Jr., sophomore
Calbert Guest, and freshman
Karsyn Kane landed on the podium to highlight the second day of action at the Sun Belt Championships in Lafayette, La. on Friday. At the close of day two and after a two-hour lightning delay, the Mountaineer men are fourth in the team standings with 29 points and the women's team is 10th with 14 points.
Smith and Brown earned silver medals for their performances in the women's long jump and men's 3000-meter steeplechase, respectively. Smith posted a personal-best leap of 6.11m (20' 0.5") to secure second in the women's long jump and is now tied for fifth all-time at App State. Brown led the Mountaineers in the men's 3000-meter steeplechase, stopping the clock at 9:06.55 for his own second-place finish. At the close of the day, both Smith and Brown are projected to advance to the NCAA East Regional, as Smith's jump places her 42nd in the region in the women's long jump category and Brown remains 28th in the men's 3000-meter steeplechase category from his school record time (8:51.28), set on April 7. The top-48 regional qualifiers will be finalized after all NCAA conference meets conclude this weekend.
Haddock Jr., Guest, and Kane earned bronze medals for their third-place finishes in the men's long jump, men's 3000-meter steeplechase, and women's 3000-meter steeplechase, respectively. In the men's long jump, Haddock Jr. recorded a personal best leap of 7.52m (24' 7.25"), which lands him fourth all-time in the App State record book. On the track, Guest stopped the clock at 9:11.71 for a personal best in the men's 3000-meter steeplechase and Kane led the Mountaineers in the women's 3000-meter steeplechase, clocking a personal best of 10:56.39. Kane's time also places her ninth in the App State all-time list in the women's 3000-meter steeplechase.
Junior
Mariah Atwater qualified for the women's 400-meter final after clocking a time of 55.29 to place sixth overall in the prelims and sophomore
Cole Krehnbrink will represent the Mountaineers in the men's 400-meter final after qualifying with a time of 48.18 to place eighth overall in the preliminary heats. The women's 400 meters is scheduled for 4:55 p.m. CT (5:55 p.m. ET) with the men's 400 meters to follow at 5 p.m. CT (6 p.m. ET). Senior
De'Shawn Ballard advanced to the men's 100-meter final after clocking a time of 10.60 to win his preliminary heat and place fifth overall. The men's 100 meters is scheduled to start at 5:15 p.m. CT (6:15 p.m. ET).
On Thursday, five Mountaineers earned spots in the final races for the women's 1500 meters, men's 1500 meters, and men's 400-meter hurdles. Sophomore
Jasmine Donohue finished first (4:33.44) and graduate student
Macki Walsh took fifth (4:40.44) to qualify for the women's 1500-meter final, which is scheduled for 4:15 p.m. CT (5:15 p.m. ET). Senior
Isaac Benz took sixth in his heat and overall with a time of 3:57.42 to advance to Saturday's 4:25 p.m. CT (5:25 p.m. ET) men's 1500-meter final. The men's 400-meter hurdles championship race at 5:45 p.m. CT (6:45 p.m. ET) will feature sophomore
Jabari Dalton and senior
Dylan Blankenship, who placed seventh (53.97) and eighth (54.30), respectively, in the preliminary races.
UP NEXT
The Sun Belt Outdoor Championships will continue at 11:30 a.m. CT (12:30 p.m. ET) on Saturday with the men's triple jump. The first event on the track will be the women's 4x100-meter relay at 4 p.m. CT (5 p.m. ET). The meet will be broadcasted on ESPN+.
