KENNESAW, Ga.- The Life University Track and Field team started its outdoor season with a bang. The Running Eagles competed at the Don McGarey Invitational this past weekend against stiff competition. Life U left with 4 single-A standards, and 5 single-B standard marks. 

Day 1 

Junior sprinter Sammy Samuel got things started for the Running Eagles on the track side, running a single-B standard time of 21.82 in the 200-meter dash and coming away with a seventh-place finish. Teammate senior Sean Hewitt also competed on day one of the invitational and ran his way to a top eight finish in the 400-meter hurdles race with a time of 52.03. 

On the women's field side, senior Tara Koonce competed for the second time this season, finishing sixth overall in the women's hammer throw event with a mark of 50.49 meters. In the women's javelin event, freshman Essence Sands placed fifth with a throw of 32.44 meters while sophomore Annalise Leitner placed ninth with a throw of 25.49. In the discus event, junior Katelyn Mendoza got herself a top-ten finish, placing ninth with a personal best mark of 39.01. Finally, in the sand for the Running Eagles, junior Zaria Bonafede finished eighth overall in the long jump event with a mark of 5.39 to wrap up the women's day one. 

On men's side, sophomore Darius Barge and junior Winston Sanders both got top-ten finishes in the men's hammer throw event with marks of 54.39 and 51.48 respectively. In the men's discus throw, the Running Eagles had all four competitors finish inside the top ten. Sanders placed fourth with a mark of 50.97, Barge placed sixth with a mark of 49.65, juniors Akinwale Dare and Christian Dixon placed seventh and eighth respectively with marks of 48.12 and 47.87. Finally, in the sand for the Running Eagles, freshman Jacoby Puckett finished fifth overall in the long jump event with a mark of 6.88 to wrap up day one for the men. 

Day 2 

On day two of the Don McGarey invitational, the Life University track and field picked up right where they left off. On the track for the women, the relay team of Bonafede, Najah Gibson, Cameron Kelperis and Payton Knowles placed third overall in the 4x100 meter relay event with a time of 46.80. That same relay team, except for Knowles who was replaced by Laisha Hernandez, also placed second in the 4x400 meter relay event with a time of 3:57.67, earning themselves a single-B standard time. Bonafede also competed in the 100-meter dash, placing seventh overall with a time of 12.33. In the women's 800 senior Kyja Williams ran her way to a single-B standard time of 2:18.57 for a fourth-place finish, while teammate Sky Jones was right behind her, finishing fifth with a time of 2:19.36. 

In the field events, Kelperis set herself up for a spot at nationals after a second-place finish in the pole vault with a single-A standard mark of 3.75 meters. Teammate Katelyn Mendoza finished eighth overall in the women's shot put event with a mark of 12.49 meters.  

On the men's side, the relay team of Liam Naicker, Samuel Piquant, Drew Pochylko and Jamario Russell got themselves a third-place finish in the 4x100 meter relay with a time of 42.52. Senior Abedelemejid Kerebo paced himself to a top-five finish in the 1500-meter event after running a time of 4:04.80. In the 400-meter dash, freshman Justin Ducote continued his outstanding freshman campaign by coming away with a top-eight finish, running a time of 51.51. The 100-meter dash saw Piquant blaze to a top-five finish with a time of 10.84. 

Life U had all three competitors place inside the top-ten in the 800-meter competition, headlined by senior Gray McIntyre who won the event and set a single-B standard time of 1:53.78. Freshman teammates Abedeleselam Kerebo finished third overall with a time of 1:58.13, while Julien Jansen finished ninth with a time of 2:00.84. In the final track event, Life U ran two separate teams in the men's 4x400 meter relay. The relay team of Khalil Carr, Sean Hewitt, Abedelemejid Kerebo and McIntyre ran a single-A standard time of 3:16.34 and finished second overall in the event. The relay team of Ducote, Piquant, Pochylko and Sammy Samuel ran a single-B standard time of 3:20.42 and finished third overall in the event.  

In the field for the men, Keondre Glover started his outdoor season with a single-A standard mark of 2.09 meters and placing second overall in the high jump event, while teammate Braden Deal finished fifth overall with a mark of 1.94 meters. Sophomore Darius Barge also set a single-A standard mark in the men's shot put event with a mark of 17.46 meters, which also earned him a second overall finish. Teammate Christian Dixon placed ninth overall in the event with a mark of 15.28 meters. Finally, in the men's pole vault competition freshman Greyson Myers earned himself a top-five finish with a mark of 4.46 meters. 

Up Next: 

The Running Eagles will be back on the track April 4th when they compete at the Emory Dooley Elite track meet in Atlanta, Ga.