Eagles Finish First Day of Meyo and Akron Invitationals

Akron Day One Results

Meyo Day One Results

AKRON, Ohio/SOUTH BEND, Ind. (EMUEagles.com)--Eastern Michigan University's men's track and field team wrapped up its first day of competition at both the Akron Invitational and Meyo Invitational, Feb. 5. The Eagles did not compete in a large amount of events on the first day of action, but the performances that were held showcased the progress that the team has been making in its first month of competition.

At the Akron Invitational, two members of the Green and White completed the first portion of the heptathlon. With the first four events in the books, redshirt-junior Solomon Ijah (Murrieta, Calif.-Murrieta Valley) sits in fourth with 3,046 points while senior Levi Selvig (Flushing, Mich.-Flushing Community) is in eighth after amassing 2,662 points. In the 60m dash, Ijah notched a personal best of 7.02 seconds to finish runner-up among the heptathletes, while Selvig clocked in at 7.34 seconds. The pair had identical marks in the high jump, clearing 1.85 meters/6 feet 0.75-inches to tie for ninth, but Ijah bounced back to score in the top-three in the remaining two events. In the shot put, the Murrieta, Calif. native threw for a distance of 13.32 meters/43 feet 8.50-inches for second, while his leap of 7.00 meters/22 feet 11.75-inches in the long jump put him in third. Selvig jumped 6.44 meters/21 feet 1.50-inches in the long jump had a launch of 10.95 meters/35 feet 11.25-inches in the shot put, good for eighth and ninth, respectively.

Three more events were contested on the field for the Eagles, with two divisions of a rare indoor discus competition making an appearance on the schedule. In the mixed discus throw, Quinn Levering (Caledonia, Ohio-River Valley) threw 42.94 meters/140 feet 10-inches to pace Anthony Jones (Sandusky, Ohio-Sandusky)'s mark of 40.90 meters/134 feet 2-inches to place sixth and eighth. In the gold division of the discus throw, freshman Mike Hierholzer (Medina, Ohio-Medina) finished 11^th with a distance of 40.91 meters/134 feet 3-inches, and Travis Harris (Walled Lake, Mich.-Walled Lake Central) took 12^th at 40.47 meters/132 feet 9-inches.

In the blue division of the pole vault, Dylan Stites (Huntsville, Ohio-Indian Lake) matched his career high of 4.75 meters/15 feet 7-inches, finishing fourth by attempts as the winner of the competition also cleared the same height. Brett Lara (Chesterton, Ind.-Chesterton) notched a mark of 4.30 meters/14 feet 1.25-inches, good for eighth.

In the Hoosier State, the Eagles competed in just five track events and one contest on the field in the opening day of the Meyo Invitational. The pair of Donald Scott (Apopka, Fla.-Apopka) and Tyler Brown (Findlay, Ohio-Findlay) had season bests in the long jump, with Scott recording a personal record of 7.41 meters/24 feet 3.75-inches to finish third while Brown leapt 7.16 meters/23 feet 6-inches.

On the track, Harry Dixon (Nelson, New Zealand-Nayland College) finished fourth in the 5000m run backed by a career performance in 14:23.14. Not far behind was Warren Witchell (Williamston, Mich.-Dansville) in 14:28.81 for eighth, while John Knox (Gloversville, N.Y.-Gloversville) ran a personal-best 14:41.77 for 20^th.

Kevin Snead (Richmond, Va.-George Wythe) made it through to the semifinals of the 60m dash, finishing 17^th in 6.93 seconds. Just missing out on qualifying out of the prelims were Pedro Delgado (Southfield, Mich.-Brother Rice) and Wayne Blanchard (Toledo, Ohio-St. Francis de Sales), who both posted a time of 6.96 seconds. The mark was a career best for Delgado, who also had a career time in the 200m dash after clocking in at 22.13 seconds for 27^th. In the 60m hurdles, Jeff Elam (Latrobe, Pa.-Greater Latrobe Senior) crossed the line in 8.40 seconds during the preliminary heat.

The Eagles also put in a team for the distance medley relay, in which the lineup of Mitch Lenneman (River Falls, Wis.-River Falls), Mark Cooke (Edison, N.J.-John P. Stevens), Stephen Sparks (Lancaster, Ohio-Lancaster), and Nick Raymond (Erie, Mich.-Mason) finished in 10:10.82, good for sixth.

Competition will resume tomorrow, Feb. 7, at both venues. Running events in Akron will start at 10 a.m., with field events kicking off at 11 a.m. In South Bend, the Meyo Invite will also begin with track events at 10 a.m., while field events will start at 10:30 a.m. Live results for the Akron Invitational can be accessed here, while Meyo Invitational live results can be found here.

EMU Individual Results (* signifies a personal best; ^ is a MAC qualifying mark)

*Akron Invitational*
	Mark	Points
Discus Throw Gold Division
11. Hierholzer, Mike	40.91m/134-03*
12. Harris, Travis	40.47m/132-09*

Heptathlon 60m
2. Ijah, Solomon	7.02*	875
10. Selvig, Levi	7.34	765

Heptathlon High Jump
9. Ijah, Solomon	1.85m/6-00.75	670
9. Selvig, Levi	1.85m/6-00.75	670

Heptathlon Long Jump
3. Ijah, Solomon	7.00m/22-11.75	814
8. Selvig, Levi	6.44m/21-01.50	684

Heptathlon Shot Put
2. Ijah, Solomon	13.32m/43-08.50	687
9. Selvig, Levi	10.95m/35-11.25	543

Heptathlon Day One
4. Ijah, Solomon		3046
8. Selvig, Levi		2662

Pole Vault Blue Division
4. Stites, Dylan	J4.75m/15-07.00
8. Lara, Brett	J4.30m/14-01.25

Mixed Discus Throw
6. Levering, Quinn	42.94m/140-10*
8. Jones, Anthony	40.90m/134-02*


*Meyo Invitational*

Long Jump
3. Scott, Donald	J7.41m/24-03.75*^
9. Brown, Tyler	7.16m/23-06.00^

	Semifinals (60H, 60m)	Prelims (60H, 60m)
60m Hurdles
26. Elam, Jeff		8.40

60m Dash
17. Snead, Kevin	6.93	6.94q
19. Delgado, Pedro		6.96*
20. Blanchard, Wayne		6.96

Distance Medley Relay
6. Lenneman, Cooke, Sparks, Raymond	10:10.82

200m Dash
27. Delgado, Pedro	22.13*

5000m Run
4. Dixon, Harry	14:23.14*^
8. Witchell, Warren	14:28.81^
20. Knox, John	14:41.77*^

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Wayne Blanchard

Tyler Brown

Mark Cooke

Pedro Delgado

Harry Dixon

Jeff Elam

Travis Harris

Mike Hierholzer

Anthony Jones

John Knox

Brett Lara

Mitch Lenneman

Quinn Levering

Nick Raymond

Donald Scott

Levi Selvig

Solomon Simmons

Kevin Snead

Stephen Sparks

Dylan Stites

Warren Witchell

Eastern Michigan Athletics