FLORENCE, SC – Competing at its home meet on Friday (April 10), the Francis Marion University track & field programs shattered four school records and set 21 Conference Carolinas marks at the FMU Invitational hosted at the Florence Sports Complex.
The Patriots reached one NCAA Provisional standard and set 19 personal-best marks in their final preparation ahead of the league championships. As a team, the men's squad claimed first place with 142 points while the women's program placed second overall with 132 points.
Francis Marion is idle for nearly two weeks before making the short trip to Myrtle Beach, S.C., for the Conference Carolinas Outdoor Championships scheduled for Apr. 23-25 at the Doug Shaw Memorial Stadium.
Sophomore
Davin Staley broke one of the longest-held records in program history after placing first overall in the men's 400 meters with a personal-best time of 48.60 seconds. The previous mark of 48.74 was held by Victor Baptiste, who achieved the feat over 44 years ago in 1982. Staley improved his conference mark in the event, moving up to seventh in the rankings.
Sophomore
Aukeyonna Sims, a local product of Darlington High School, established a new school record in the women's 200 meters with a blistering pace of 25.88 seconds to finish fourth overall. She broke the previous mark, set by Christina Geddis in 1998, of 26.04, which had stood for nearly three decades.
Graduate student
Ryan Hunter competed in the men's javelin and set a new program record with an impressive toss of 67.04 meters to claim first place. His mark reached the NCAA Provo mark and moved him up to 12th nationally in NCAA Division II in the event.
Sophomore
Jazmine McDonald-Craft reclaimed her school record in the women's discus on Friday and captured the individual title with a mark of 43.06 meters. She achieved a Conference Carolinas qualifying mark and holds the second-best distance in the league this year.
Hunter also reached the league standard in the men's 100 meters and won the event with a time of 10.80 seconds.
In the men's 200 meters, a trio of athletes managed to eclipse the Conference Carolinas qualifying mark. Sophomore
Jalen Keller finished third overall after crossing the line in 21.93 seconds. Staley set a new personal-best and placed fourth with a time of 21.98 seconds, while Hunter followed behind in fifth with a mark of 21.99 seconds.
Additionally, in the men's 400 meters, sophomore
Alex Lance finished second overall with a personal-best time of 48.73 seconds, which reached the league qualifying mark and ranks ninth this year.
Sophomore
Rashawn Byrd delivered a season-best mark in the men's triple jump with a leap of 14.24 meters, which ranks fourth in Conference Carolinas.
In the women's discus, junior
Catherine Green recorded a second-place finish with a toss of 41.19 meters, and freshman
Skyy Ruben finished fifth with a mark of 36.46 meters; both distances reached a league qualifying mark.
Sims and sophomore
Meya McKinney both hit a Conference Carolinas mark in the women's long jump. Sims finished as the runner-up with a leap of 5.54 meters, while McKinney placed fourth with a mark of 5.30 meters.
Senior
Rileigh Lacy finished second overall in the women's pole vault after clearing a season-best mark of 3.36 meters. She holds the top mark in the Conference Carolinas this season.
Ruben also earned a first-place finish in the women's javelin with a personal-best mark of 30.72 meters. Sophomore
Katelynn Roberts finished fourth in the event while achieving a personal-best of 26.15 meters.
In the women's shot put, Ruben once again led the way for the Patriots, placing second with a toss of 11.07 meters. Green finished on the podium in third following a mark of 11.02 meters.
Sims also earned a first-place finish in the women's high jump after clearing 1.50 meters, which hit the league qualifying mark.
