EMU - Relay Sweep Concludes Jesse Owens Classic
COLUMBUS, Ohio (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University men's track and field team wrapped up the Jesse Owens Classic today, April 23, down in Columbus, Ohio. The highlight of the day came in the relays, with the team winning both events.
Sophomore Brandon Bolden (Solon, Ohio – Solon) led the Eagles in the 100m dash, placing 13th after crossing the finish line in 10.73. Behind him, both freshman Aitor Ekobo (Madrid, Spain - Jose Luis Lopez Aranguren Secondary School) and redshirt junior Nick James (Troy, Ohio – Troy) set career-best times of 10.80 and 10.82, respectively. In the 400m dash, senior Mason Waynes (Kenosha, Wis. - Bradford) brought home a top-10 finish, nabbing sixth in 48.58.
Eastern then had a total of eight runners take part in the 800m, with senior Scott Bradley (Battle Creek, Mich. – Lakeview) leading the pack by taking fifth in 1:51.29. Hot on his tail, redshirt junior Willy Fink (Maumee, Ohio – Maumee) placed 13th with a time of 1:53.25, while sophomore Csaba Matko (Racalmas, Hungary - Szechenyi Istvan Gimnazium) posted a time of 1:53.26. Rounding out the top-five EMU runners were redshirt sophomores Nick Raymond (Erie, Mich. – Mason) and Hlynur Andresson (Vestmannaeyjar, Iceland – Mountain Ridge) with personal-best times of 1:55.29 and 1:55.32, respectively.
The Green and White swept the field in both relays on the day, taking home the gold in both the 4x100m and the 4x400m relay races. The group of Bolden, Ekobo, senior Jeff Elam (Latrobe, Pa. – Greater Latrobe Senior), and junior Tyler Brown (Findlay, Ohio – Findlay) crossed the finish line in 40.76 to take the 4x100 title, while Elam, senior Matthew Williams (Moreno Valley, Calif. – Vista Del Lago), Waynes, and Brown won the 4x400m in 3:09.33.
The Eagles also had a duo take part in the 400m hurdles, with sophomore Mark Cooke (Edison, N.J. – John P. Stevens) finishing 11th in 55.08. Freshman Elijah Barber (Columbus, Ohio – Eastmoor Academy) also ran in the race, where he posted a career-best time of 56.10.
A trio of freshmen represented EMU in the jumps, as Nicholas Herbert (Portage, Mich. – Portage Northern), Cameron Hart (Columbus, Ohio – Bishop Hartley), and Micah Peters (York, Ontario – Vaughn Road Academy) rounded out all three events. Herbert participated in both the long jump and the triple jump, with his top finish coming in the long jump after placing seventh with a career-best mark of 7.03 meters/ 23 feet 1-inch. Hart was the lone EMU competitor in the high jump, taking eighth with a jump of 1.98 meters/ 6 feet 6-inches. Finally, Peters finished sixth in the triple jump after posting a jump of 14.35 meters/ 47 feet 1-inch, which was a personal-best.
Finally, the team had two finish within the top-10 in the hammer throw. Redshirt senior Keith Williams (Sherman, Ill – Williamsville) paced the group, finishing fourth with a throw of 61.62 meters/ 202 feet 2-inches. Also placing within the top-10 was redshirt junior Anthony Jones (Sandusky, Ohio – Sandusky), who nabbed seventh with a mark of 57.91 meters/ 190 feet.
Next week, the team will take part in the Drake Relays out in Des Moines, Iowa. The three-day meet will begin Thursday, April 28, and conclude Saturday, April 30.
13. Brandon Bolden 10.73
16. Aitor Ekobo 10.80*
19. Nick James 10.82*
Nick James DQ
6. Mason Waynes 48.58
Tyler Brown DNS
5. Scott Bradley 1:51.29
13. Willy Fink 1:53.25*
14. Csaba Matko 1:53.26*
21. Nick Raymond 1:55.29*
22. Hlynur Andresson 1:55.32*
24. Tom Jozwiak 1:55.66*
27. Kieran Reilly 1:56.85*
29. Mitch Lenneman 1:59.73*
1. Bolden, Ekobo 40.76
Elam, Brown
1. Elam, Williams 3:09.33
Waynes, Brown
11. Mark Cooke 55.08
19. Elijah Barber 56.10*
Jeff Elam DNS
7. Nicholas Herbert 7.03m/ 23-01.00*
8. Cameron Hart 1.98m/ 6-06.00
6. Micah Peters 14.35m/ 47-01.00*
14. Nicholas Herbert 12.87m/ 42-02.75
4. Keith Williams 61.62m/ 202-02.00
7. Anthony Jones 57.91m/ 190-00.00
12. Andrew Wentz 54.13m/ 177-07.25