RESULTS
COLUMBIA, S.C. - The USCB men's track and field 4x800m relay team and Mel Obadiah Jr. (800m) broke school records in the second meet of the outdoor year - CIU Rams Invitational - on Saturday at Ben Lippen Field in Columbia.
Field Highlights
In the highly-competitive women's shot put, Jana Barden paced the Sand Sharks with her 12th-place finish. Barden made a heave of 9.93m and was 0.07m away from moving into the top 10. Bianca Simpson also competed, as she finished 31st with a 8.64m mark.
Andrew Smith was the lone Sand Shark in the men's pole vault. The senior finished seventh overall, as he cleared the height of 3.65m.
Iyana McKeever shined in the women's long jump, as the senior finished third in the 37-athlete field. She made a jump of 5.58m, which was 0.02m off from her personal best.
Track Highlights
In Friday's portion of the two-day meet, USCB started the CIU Rams Invitational with a stellar results, as it broke the school record in the men's 4x800m relay. The four Sand Sharks combined for a 7:56.32, which shattered the school record by over four seconds. The record has been standing since the 2009 Sun Conference Championships.
In the 71-athlete field in the women's 1500m, Jenitza Trinidad was strong. The junior finished 12th overall with a time of 5:06.28, and that mark set a new personal best by over six seconds. Alexa Lashley finished in 24th place with a mark of 5:20.86.
On the men's side of the 1500m, Sam Williams (31st place) paced USCB in the 98-athlete field. He posted a time of 4:21.68.
Shamar Deacon collected a medal on Saturday, as he finished third in the men's 400m. The junior clocked a 48.91 and was just over a second-and-a-half from matching the first-place finisher.
McKeever collected her second medal of the day, as she finished with a silver medal in the women's 100m. She posted a stellar time of 12.21, which was 0.17 seconds off from the gold medalist. The time was also just 0.01 seconds off from matching a personal record.
In the 62-athlete field of the men's 100m, Kadari Mitchell posted a fast time, as he clocked an 11.04. The time placed him fifth overall and was 0.13 seconds from the third-place finisher.
Trinidad turned in another strong mark, as she competed in the women's 800m. The junior from Cidra, Puerto Rico clocked a 2:27.74, which slotted her fifth in the 69-athlete field. She was just over four seconds away from moving into the top 3.
Obadiah and Williams turned heads in the men's 800m. Obadiah clocked a 1:54.26, which placed him second in the 87-athlete field. The time also broke the school record in the outdoor record book by nearly a second (previous record - 1:55.07). Williams clocked a 1:58.77 en route to his strong 14th-place finish.
Oriana Hernandez nearly collected a medal as well, as she finished fourth in the women's 400mH. She posted a 1:08.91 in the event.
On the men's side of the 400mH, Christian Austin finished 11th with a mark of 1:00.57.
Deacon and Mitchell finished fifth and sixth, respectively, in the men's 200m. Deacon edged his teammate by just 0.06 seconds. Deacon ran a 22.40, while Mitchell clocked a 22.46.
Consisting of Austin, Deacon, Williams and Obadiah, the four Sand Sharks collected another relay gold medal - this time in the men's 4x400m relay. The foursome combined for a 3:21.11, which bested the runner-up by just under two seconds.
Heptathlon Highlights
USCB sent two Sand Sharks - Algeria Scott and Mariya Martino - to compete in the women's heptathlon. Scott finished fourth with 2,253 points, and Martino finished behind her teammate with 1,869. Of the seven competitors, they competed in the 100m hurdles, high jump, shot put, 200m, long jump, javelin and 800m.
Decathlon Highlights
Carter Freeman and Zach Markow were the two Sand Shark reps in the men's decathlon. Freeman led the duo with a fourth-place finish with 3,943 points, and Markow finished right behind his teammate with 3,713 points. The six-person field competed in the 100m, long jump, shot put, high jump, 400m, 110mH, discus, pole vault, javelin and 1500m.
What's Next?
After competing in back-to-back weekends, USCB outdoor track and field will take two weeks off from competition. The next meet will be on April 3, as the Sand Sharks will travel to Daytona Beach, Fla. for the Spikes Classic. The one-day meet is hosted by Embry-Riddle.
