Eastern Michigan Athletics
Saturday, May 17
Athens, Ohio
12:30 p.m.
Eastern Michigan University
vs
MAC Outdoor Championships
Walkes Tabbed Most Valuable Performer, Men and Women Earn Top-Three Finishes at MAC Outdoor Championships
5/17/2025 11:53:00 PM | Men's Track & Field, Women's Track & Field
Walkes scored 38 points, becoming the 13th MVP in women's program history and first since 2018
Results | Photo Gallery
ATHENS, Ohio (EMUEagles.com) — Eastern Michigan University track & field senior sprinter Saraiah Walkes was named Most Valuable Performer after scoring 38 points at the 2025 Mid-American Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships, hosted by Ohio University, at the Goldsberry Track, in Athens, Thursday-Saturday, May 15-17. The Eagles concluded the three-day meet with the women placing second with 115 points and the men slotting third with 156.
Walkes became the 13th most valuable performer in program history and the first since Alsu Bogdanova garnered the accolade in 2018. She earned three event wins (100m, 200m, 4x400m) and one second-place finish (4x100m).
Bowling Green captured the title on the women's side with 130 points, followed by EMU in second with 115, and Kent State placed third with 113.5. Akron won the meet for the men with a 187-point total. Kent State's 167.25 slotted the Golden Flashes second while the Eagles rounded-out the top three with 156 points.
Eastern fought hard on the final day of competition, earning eight event championships across both teams, led by the men who won five gold medals while the women earned three. Moreover, the men secured their 13th consecutive year with a top three finish at the meet and the women's performance marked their 12th straight season doing so.
How it Happened – Women
Walkes' (Manatee County, Fla./The-Out-of-Door-Academy) performances spearheaded the Eagles scoring on the third and final day. After punching her ticket to the finals previously, she won both the 100m and 200m dashes, becoming the first Eastern woman to accomplish the feat since Aaliyah McKinney at the 2014 rendition of the meet. Her 23.19 200m serves as a personal best, the second fastest time in program history, and is the fastest time from an Eagle since 1995. She also crossed the line first in the 100m in 11.55, .05 faster than the runner-up.
Walkes' went on to aid in standout showings in the 4x400m and 4x100m relays. She anchored the championship 4x400m team of Mia Biehl (East Lansing, Mich./East Lansing), Josephine Oloye (Iwaro-Oka, Nigeria/Geomi Secondary School/Tayelolu Memorial), Demetria Henderson (Tampa, Fla./Freedom) and herself as they finished in 3:39.66, Eastern's 13th time winning the event.
Conversely, Walkes led off the 4x100m that placed second in a season-best 44.78, a time that stands second in program history. She was aided by Ajah Arscott (Plantation, Fla./Taravella), Alimot Alowonle (Lagos, Nigeria/Tindip College/New Orleans), and Jaeden Garraway.
After playing a role in the 4x400m performance, Oloye ran well in the 400m dash finals, placing second in 53.92, scoring eight points for the Eagles.
Graduate student jumper Kyra Buffen (Columbus, Ga./Buford/Benedict) earned silver in the triple jump with a season-best bound of 12.61m (41-04.50). Freshman Mariah Taylor (East Lake, Fla./East Lake) chipped-in with two points off a personal-best 12.28m (40-03.50) mark.
In the high jump, Micah Martin (Clinton Township, Mich./L'Anse Creuse) grabbed an outdoor personal best and moved up to fourth in the program ledgers, leaping 1.76m (05-09.25), a mark that placed her second.
How it Happened - Men
Junior Kian Wiles (Hull, England/St. Mary's College) finished strong in the 1500m run as he placed first with a time of 3:48.96, capturing the program's 18th MAC championship in the race. Adding in freshman Ronan Codyre's (Auckland, New Zealand/Macleans College) 3:50.36 fourth-place finish, Eastern earned 14 points in the event.
EMU's crew aimed high in the 4x100m relay, placing first and adding ten points to the Eagles' total. The team of Mill Coleman III (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Catholic Central), Solomon King (Toledo, Ohio/Central Catholic/Davenport), Shelton Bass (Warner Robbins, Ga./Houston County/Alderson Broaddus), and George Gage (Pontiac, Mich./Avondale) ran the distance in 41.05, marking a season best for the Eagles. The win went down as EMU's first in the event since the 2015 season.
Continuing with relay success, the 4x400m team of Olawole Olanrewaju (Akoko North-West, Nigeria/Wallas Universal Secondary School/Lenoir-Rhyne), Bamidele Ajayi (Eikiti State, Nigeria/Metropolitan International College/Lenoir-Rhyne), Tajay Roberts (Sunrise, Fla./Dillard), and Bass followed suit with the 4x100m team, also placing first as they crossed the line in a season-best 41.05, topping the conference field for the first time since 2018. Additionally, the EMU men won both relays for the first time since the 2014 season as the occasion went down as the first time the same team won both relays at the meet since Akron did so in 2019.
In the 800m finals, sophomore Lachlan Cornelius (Queensland, Brisbane, Australia/Anglican Church Grammar School) ran to an individual championship with a time of 1:50.13. Finishing closely behind Cornelius, junior Carson McCoy (Pittsburgh, Pa./Deer Lakes) placed third in 1:51.77 and EMU came away with 16 points in the event.
Senior Gabe Singh (Toledo, Ohio/Sylvania Northview/Oakland) had a strong performance in 400m hurdles. The Eagle student-athlete finished first with a time of 51.18. He became just the seventh individual champion in the event in program history and the second of the century. The other is former Olympian (London 2012) Eric Alejandro. Michael Hawkins (Detroit, Mich./Cass Technical/Michigan State) and Matt McKnight (Miami, Fla./Miami Norland Senior) supplemented a combined 10 points with respective third and fourth-place outings. McKnight's performance marked a personal best with a time of 54.20.
McKnight kept the ball rolling as he finished third in 14.45 in the 110m hurdles, leading the EMU scorers in the event. Hawkins and Leo Ignacio (Saline, Mich./Saline) chipped in, combining for six points as the Eagles notched 12 all-together.
Eastern jumpers had strong performances in the field. In the high jump, senior Brendan Hill (Huber Heights, Ohio/Wayne) finished second with a 2.11m (6-11) jump. Freshman Lucky Fiaku (Nimo, Nigeria/Busy International Secondary) finished third right behind Hill, bouncing 2.03m (6-8). Eastern raked-in 14 points in the event.
The triple jump also featured an Eagle earning silver. Formula Thompson (St. Catherine, Jamaica/Jamaica College/Nebraska) placed second with a season-best 15.15m (49-08.50) bound. Eric Haddock Jr. (Raleigh, N.C./Southeast Raleigh/Appalachian State) slotted fifth with a 14.41m (47-03.50) mark as EMU came away with ten points in the event.
EMU Individual Results
Denotes Personal-Best*
Denotes Season-Best^
Bold Denotes Program Top 10
DNF Denotes Did Not Finish
Women's Results
Women's Final Team Results
1. Bowling Green – 130 points
2. Eastern Michigan – 115
3. Kent State – 113.5
4. Akron – 85
5. Miami – 79
6. Western Michigan – 74
7. Central Michigan – 49
8. Ball State – 47
9. Toledo – 41
10. Buffalo – 32
11. Ohio – 27
12. Northern Illinois – 25.5
Triple Jump
2. Kyra Buffen - 12.61m (41-04.50)^
7. Mariah Taylor - 12.28m (40-03.50)*
11. Mariia Yelanska - 11.83m (38-09.75)
12. Alimont Alowonle - 11.82m (38-09.50)^
4x100m Relay
2. EMU (S. Walkes, A. Arscott, A. Alowonle, J. Garraway) - 44.78^ EMU #2
100m Hurdles Finals
4. Shamoya Clemeston - 13.84
400m Dash Finals
2. Josephine Oloye - 53.92
100m Dash Finals
1. Saraiah Walkes - 11.55
4. Ajah Arscott - 11.84
800m Run Finals
6. Chloie Musta - 2:13.95
Discus Throw
19. Aleah Johnson - 38.44m (126-01)
High Jump
2. Micah Martin - 1.76m (05-09.25)^ EMU #4
13. Natalie Buratczuk - 1.66m (05-05.25)
200m Dash Finals
1. Saraiah Walkes - 23.19* EMU#2
8. Ajah Arscott - 3:21.42
5000m Run
4. Marta Moreno - 17:08.52
9. Sofia Ivanko - 17:30.22^
4x400m Relay
1. EMU (M. Biehl, J. Oloye, D. Henderson, S. Walkes) – 3:39.66
Men's Results
Men's Final Team Scores
1. Akron – 187 Points
2. Kent State – 167.25
3. Eastern Michigan – 156
4. Buffalo – 73.5
5. Miami – 58.25
Discus Throw
10. Jake McEachern - 43.04m (141-02)
High Jump
2. Brendan Hill - 2.11m (6-11)
3. Lucky Fiaku - 2.03m (6-8)
4x100m Relay
1. EMU (M. Coleman III, S. King, S. Bass, G. Gage) - 41.05^
1500m Run
1. Kian Wiles - 3:48.96
4. Ronan Codyre - 3:50.36
9. Jimmy Geller - 3:55.78
110m Hurdles Finals
3. Matt McKnight - 14.45
4. Michael Hawkins - 14.46
5. Leo Ignacio - 14.74
400m Dash Finals
3. Olawole Olanrewaju - 47.22
6. Bamidele Ajayi - 47.88
8. Tajay Roberts - 49.06
Triple Jump
2. Formula Thompson - 15.15m (49-08.50)^
5. Eric Haddock Jr. - 14.41m (47-03.50)
800m Run Finals
1. Lachlan Cornelius - 1:50.13
3. Carson McCoy - 1:51.77
6. Drew Graves - 1:54.81
400m Hurdles Finals
1. Gabe Singh - 51.18
3. Michael Hawkins - 53.17
4. Matt McKnight - 54.20
200m Dash Finals
5. Bamidele Ajayi - 21.40
7. Solomon King - 22.10
5000m Run
9. Joey Furlong - 15:29.52
Kian Wiles - DNF
Ronan Codyre - DNF
4x400m Relay
1. EMU (O. Olanrewaju, B. Ajayi, T. Roberts, S. Bass) - 3:08.53
Up Next
Qualifying Eagles will compete at the 2025 NCAA East Prelims hosted by the University of North Florida, in Jacksonville, Wednesday-Saturday, May 28-31.
Follow Us
For updates on all things EMU cross country/track & field, continue to check EMUEagles.com or follow the team on Instagram, X, and Facebook at @EMUXC_TF.
ATHENS, Ohio (EMUEagles.com) — Eastern Michigan University track & field senior sprinter Saraiah Walkes was named Most Valuable Performer after scoring 38 points at the 2025 Mid-American Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships, hosted by Ohio University, at the Goldsberry Track, in Athens, Thursday-Saturday, May 15-17. The Eagles concluded the three-day meet with the women placing second with 115 points and the men slotting third with 156.
Walkes became the 13th most valuable performer in program history and the first since Alsu Bogdanova garnered the accolade in 2018. She earned three event wins (100m, 200m, 4x400m) and one second-place finish (4x100m).
Bowling Green captured the title on the women's side with 130 points, followed by EMU in second with 115, and Kent State placed third with 113.5. Akron won the meet for the men with a 187-point total. Kent State's 167.25 slotted the Golden Flashes second while the Eagles rounded-out the top three with 156 points.
Eastern fought hard on the final day of competition, earning eight event championships across both teams, led by the men who won five gold medals while the women earned three. Moreover, the men secured their 13th consecutive year with a top three finish at the meet and the women's performance marked their 12th straight season doing so.
How it Happened – Women
Walkes' (Manatee County, Fla./The-Out-of-Door-Academy) performances spearheaded the Eagles scoring on the third and final day. After punching her ticket to the finals previously, she won both the 100m and 200m dashes, becoming the first Eastern woman to accomplish the feat since Aaliyah McKinney at the 2014 rendition of the meet. Her 23.19 200m serves as a personal best, the second fastest time in program history, and is the fastest time from an Eagle since 1995. She also crossed the line first in the 100m in 11.55, .05 faster than the runner-up.
Walkes' went on to aid in standout showings in the 4x400m and 4x100m relays. She anchored the championship 4x400m team of Mia Biehl (East Lansing, Mich./East Lansing), Josephine Oloye (Iwaro-Oka, Nigeria/Geomi Secondary School/Tayelolu Memorial), Demetria Henderson (Tampa, Fla./Freedom) and herself as they finished in 3:39.66, Eastern's 13th time winning the event.
Conversely, Walkes led off the 4x100m that placed second in a season-best 44.78, a time that stands second in program history. She was aided by Ajah Arscott (Plantation, Fla./Taravella), Alimot Alowonle (Lagos, Nigeria/Tindip College/New Orleans), and Jaeden Garraway.
After playing a role in the 4x400m performance, Oloye ran well in the 400m dash finals, placing second in 53.92, scoring eight points for the Eagles.
Graduate student jumper Kyra Buffen (Columbus, Ga./Buford/Benedict) earned silver in the triple jump with a season-best bound of 12.61m (41-04.50). Freshman Mariah Taylor (East Lake, Fla./East Lake) chipped-in with two points off a personal-best 12.28m (40-03.50) mark.
In the high jump, Micah Martin (Clinton Township, Mich./L'Anse Creuse) grabbed an outdoor personal best and moved up to fourth in the program ledgers, leaping 1.76m (05-09.25), a mark that placed her second.
How it Happened - Men
Junior Kian Wiles (Hull, England/St. Mary's College) finished strong in the 1500m run as he placed first with a time of 3:48.96, capturing the program's 18th MAC championship in the race. Adding in freshman Ronan Codyre's (Auckland, New Zealand/Macleans College) 3:50.36 fourth-place finish, Eastern earned 14 points in the event.
EMU's crew aimed high in the 4x100m relay, placing first and adding ten points to the Eagles' total. The team of Mill Coleman III (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Catholic Central), Solomon King (Toledo, Ohio/Central Catholic/Davenport), Shelton Bass (Warner Robbins, Ga./Houston County/Alderson Broaddus), and George Gage (Pontiac, Mich./Avondale) ran the distance in 41.05, marking a season best for the Eagles. The win went down as EMU's first in the event since the 2015 season.
Continuing with relay success, the 4x400m team of Olawole Olanrewaju (Akoko North-West, Nigeria/Wallas Universal Secondary School/Lenoir-Rhyne), Bamidele Ajayi (Eikiti State, Nigeria/Metropolitan International College/Lenoir-Rhyne), Tajay Roberts (Sunrise, Fla./Dillard), and Bass followed suit with the 4x100m team, also placing first as they crossed the line in a season-best 41.05, topping the conference field for the first time since 2018. Additionally, the EMU men won both relays for the first time since the 2014 season as the occasion went down as the first time the same team won both relays at the meet since Akron did so in 2019.
In the 800m finals, sophomore Lachlan Cornelius (Queensland, Brisbane, Australia/Anglican Church Grammar School) ran to an individual championship with a time of 1:50.13. Finishing closely behind Cornelius, junior Carson McCoy (Pittsburgh, Pa./Deer Lakes) placed third in 1:51.77 and EMU came away with 16 points in the event.
Senior Gabe Singh (Toledo, Ohio/Sylvania Northview/Oakland) had a strong performance in 400m hurdles. The Eagle student-athlete finished first with a time of 51.18. He became just the seventh individual champion in the event in program history and the second of the century. The other is former Olympian (London 2012) Eric Alejandro. Michael Hawkins (Detroit, Mich./Cass Technical/Michigan State) and Matt McKnight (Miami, Fla./Miami Norland Senior) supplemented a combined 10 points with respective third and fourth-place outings. McKnight's performance marked a personal best with a time of 54.20.
McKnight kept the ball rolling as he finished third in 14.45 in the 110m hurdles, leading the EMU scorers in the event. Hawkins and Leo Ignacio (Saline, Mich./Saline) chipped in, combining for six points as the Eagles notched 12 all-together.
Eastern jumpers had strong performances in the field. In the high jump, senior Brendan Hill (Huber Heights, Ohio/Wayne) finished second with a 2.11m (6-11) jump. Freshman Lucky Fiaku (Nimo, Nigeria/Busy International Secondary) finished third right behind Hill, bouncing 2.03m (6-8). Eastern raked-in 14 points in the event.
The triple jump also featured an Eagle earning silver. Formula Thompson (St. Catherine, Jamaica/Jamaica College/Nebraska) placed second with a season-best 15.15m (49-08.50) bound. Eric Haddock Jr. (Raleigh, N.C./Southeast Raleigh/Appalachian State) slotted fifth with a 14.41m (47-03.50) mark as EMU came away with ten points in the event.
EMU Individual Results
Denotes Personal-Best*
Denotes Season-Best^
Bold Denotes Program Top 10
DNF Denotes Did Not Finish
Women's Results
Women's Final Team Results
1. Bowling Green – 130 points
2. Eastern Michigan – 115
3. Kent State – 113.5
4. Akron – 85
5. Miami – 79
6. Western Michigan – 74
7. Central Michigan – 49
8. Ball State – 47
9. Toledo – 41
10. Buffalo – 32
11. Ohio – 27
12. Northern Illinois – 25.5
Triple Jump
2. Kyra Buffen - 12.61m (41-04.50)^
7. Mariah Taylor - 12.28m (40-03.50)*
11. Mariia Yelanska - 11.83m (38-09.75)
12. Alimont Alowonle - 11.82m (38-09.50)^
4x100m Relay
2. EMU (S. Walkes, A. Arscott, A. Alowonle, J. Garraway) - 44.78^ EMU #2
100m Hurdles Finals
4. Shamoya Clemeston - 13.84
400m Dash Finals
2. Josephine Oloye - 53.92
100m Dash Finals
1. Saraiah Walkes - 11.55
4. Ajah Arscott - 11.84
800m Run Finals
6. Chloie Musta - 2:13.95
Discus Throw
19. Aleah Johnson - 38.44m (126-01)
High Jump
2. Micah Martin - 1.76m (05-09.25)^ EMU #4
13. Natalie Buratczuk - 1.66m (05-05.25)
200m Dash Finals
1. Saraiah Walkes - 23.19* EMU#2
8. Ajah Arscott - 3:21.42
5000m Run
4. Marta Moreno - 17:08.52
9. Sofia Ivanko - 17:30.22^
4x400m Relay
1. EMU (M. Biehl, J. Oloye, D. Henderson, S. Walkes) – 3:39.66
Men's Results
Men's Final Team Scores
1. Akron – 187 Points
2. Kent State – 167.25
3. Eastern Michigan – 156
4. Buffalo – 73.5
5. Miami – 58.25
Discus Throw
10. Jake McEachern - 43.04m (141-02)
High Jump
2. Brendan Hill - 2.11m (6-11)
3. Lucky Fiaku - 2.03m (6-8)
4x100m Relay
1. EMU (M. Coleman III, S. King, S. Bass, G. Gage) - 41.05^
1500m Run
1. Kian Wiles - 3:48.96
4. Ronan Codyre - 3:50.36
9. Jimmy Geller - 3:55.78
110m Hurdles Finals
3. Matt McKnight - 14.45
4. Michael Hawkins - 14.46
5. Leo Ignacio - 14.74
400m Dash Finals
3. Olawole Olanrewaju - 47.22
6. Bamidele Ajayi - 47.88
8. Tajay Roberts - 49.06
Triple Jump
2. Formula Thompson - 15.15m (49-08.50)^
5. Eric Haddock Jr. - 14.41m (47-03.50)
800m Run Finals
1. Lachlan Cornelius - 1:50.13
3. Carson McCoy - 1:51.77
6. Drew Graves - 1:54.81
400m Hurdles Finals
1. Gabe Singh - 51.18
3. Michael Hawkins - 53.17
4. Matt McKnight - 54.20
200m Dash Finals
5. Bamidele Ajayi - 21.40
7. Solomon King - 22.10
5000m Run
9. Joey Furlong - 15:29.52
Kian Wiles - DNF
Ronan Codyre - DNF
4x400m Relay
1. EMU (O. Olanrewaju, B. Ajayi, T. Roberts, S. Bass) - 3:08.53
Up Next
Qualifying Eagles will compete at the 2025 NCAA East Prelims hosted by the University of North Florida, in Jacksonville, Wednesday-Saturday, May 28-31.
Follow Us
For updates on all things EMU cross country/track & field, continue to check EMUEagles.com or follow the team on Instagram, X, and Facebook at @EMUXC_TF.
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