Championship Central
Day 1 Results
AKRON, Ohio - With five events complete on both the men and women's side, Eastern Michigan and Northern Illinois respectively stand on top of the 2020 Mid-American Conference Indoor Track & Field Championship leader board.
Akron’s Sara Foster defended home turf to win the women’s pentathlon. The sophomore collected 3,645 points across five-events becoming the ninth Zip to earn gold in the event. Ball State's Karlie Zumbro took second with 3,577 points and Miami’s Sarah Bruns finished third with 3,538 points.
The first title of the day went to Eastern Michigan’s Baboucar Sallah-Mohammed in the men's long jump. The junior posted a mark of 7.58m (24’ 10 ½”). Buffalo’s Shevaugh Allen claimed second at 7.41m (24’ 3¾”) and Akron’s Hesham Eldesouky took third at 7.37m (24’ 2¼”).
In the men's weight throw, Central Michigan's Logan Targgart took the top spot with a throw of 21.52m. Eastern Michigan rounded out the top-three with Zach Harkey’s loft of 21.11m and Taige Bryant notching a 20.60m.
Christian Champen clinched the men’s pole vault title with a clearance of 5.28m (17’ 3 ¾“), becoming the first Golden Flash in 13 seasons to win the event. Akron finished 2-3, respectively on attempts, with Tyler Fraker and Matthew Keim both clearing 5.18m (17’0”).
Central Michigan's Nadia Williams picked up her third consecutive women's long jump title with a leap of 6.28m (20’ 7¼“). Toledo’s Raynesha Lewis took second with a jump of 6.10m (20’ ¼”) and NIU’s Jazmyn Smith posted a 6.03m (19’ 9½”) leap to finish third.
The women’s weight throw title is heading back to Bowling Green for the second-straight season. Kaila Butler took gold with a throw of 20.51m. Ohio junior Abby Moore claimed second at 19.86m and Central Michigan’s Quiara Wheeler finished third by throwing 19.75m
History was made in the women’s 5000m, as Ashley Tutt became NIU’s first MAC champion in the event. Coming off the 2019 Cross Country individual title, the sophomore crossed first in 16:41.43. Ball State’s Maritza Rodriguez claimed second in 16:53.30 and Eastern Michigan’s Emily Smith took third in 16:56.44.
Eastern Michigan’s Baldvin Magnusson took the men's 5000m title with a time of 14:25.25. Akron’s Andre Bollam-Godbott grabbed silver at 14:25.93 and EMU’s Chris Devaney took bronze in 14:28.12.
The women's distance medley relay (DMR) provided another historic performance at day one of the championships, as the Toledo Rockets won the program’s first title in the event. The team of Petronela Simiuc, Meltem Yashar, Semra Karaslan and Rayna Horner finished in 11:38.11. NIU took second in 11:42.21 and Miami crossed third in 11:43.90.
Cal Puskar, Leon Atkins, Gyasi Morris, and Christopher Nowak led Buffalo to their first men's DMR title in five years. The quad posted a time of 9:55.90 in their gold-medal race. Kent State crossed .08 seconds later to take silver and Buffalo followed in third at 9:58.53.
Through four events in the men’s heptathlon, Kent State’s TJ Lawson leads the field with 3,298 points. His teammate Jacob Mally follows in second with 2,883 and Akron’s Malik Hudson rounds out the top three with 2,794 points.
Action continues tomorrow at
10:00 a.m. with the men's heptathlon 60m hurdles. Field events are set to start at
1:00 p.m. Running events begin at 1:25 p.m and will be broadcast on
ESPN3.
Men's Standings (Through Day 1)
1. Eastern Michigan – 46
2. Akron – 39
3. Kent State – 26
4. Buffalo – 24
5. Central Michigan – 19
Women's Standings (Through Day 1)
1. Northern Illinois - 35
2. Eastern Michigan - 27
3. Toledo - 26
4. Akron - 23
Central Michigan - 23
6. Ball State - 18
Bowling Green - 18
8. Miami - 14
9. Ohio - 8
10. Buffalo - 2
11. Kent State - 1
- Western Michigan
