VU Track and Field off to hot start after EIU John Craft Invite

CHARLESTON, Ill. – The Vincennes University men's and women's Track and Field teams hit the track for the first time in the 2024 Indoor season Saturday, competing in the John Craft Invite hosted by Eastern Illinois University.

The Trailblazers were competing against several NCAA Division I programs and were able to come away with five event victories on the day.

The VU men's team was led by two, one-two finishes on the track, starting with freshmen Tumani Skinner and Olamipo Ladipo in the 200 meters with Skinner taking the top spot at 23 seconds and Ladipo crossing at 23.18 seconds.

Sophomores Desroy Jordan and Matthew Gray took the top two spots in the 600 meters, with Jordan finishing with a time of 1:24.17 and Gray ending at 1:29.15.

The VU men's runners continued their run of first place finishes with sophomore Isaac Stanford taking the top spot in the mile with a time of 4:23.07.

Stanford was joined in the top 10 in the mile by fellow Trailblazers Tanner Spence and Cody Noel, Spence placed ninth at 4:42.25 and Noel ended 10th with a time of 4:43.27.

Stanford, Spence and Gray joined Malik Ferdinand in the Distance Medley Relay, placing second overall with a time of 11:26.67.

Ferdinand then competed with Ladipo, Jordan and Skinner in the 4x400 meter relay, taking the top spot with a time of 3:40.40.

VU decathlete Olegs Kozjakovs also had a big day at EIU, placing second in the long jump with a distance of 6.52 meters, finishing third in the 60 meter hurdles at 8.98 seconds and placing fifth in the shot put with a throw of 14.51 meters.

The VU men's team top 10 finishes were rounded out by throwers Jacob Wickham, Jake Terrell and Jacob Smith each placing in the top 10 in the weight throw.

Wickham led the Blazers with a throw of 13.10 meters for sixth, while Terrell placed ninth at 12.08 meters and Smith placed 10th with a throw of 9.72 meters.

"Well, I'm not sure how to explain this meet," VU Head Track and Field Coach Marty Rogier said. "I may have undersold it a bit too much. I told our team that this was just a time trial and to focus more on the mental aspect than the performance itself and I believe they took me up on it."

"It was not a very competitive meet and the track was not conducive to fast times," Rogier added. "The one thing I came away with is that we have a really good group of young people on this team and it is going to be a lot of fun watching them compete and improve as the season progresses. We did not compete eight of our team members so we were not entered in a few events that we will normally compete in and had to juggle things just to put together relays."

The Vincennes women's team was led by a first place finish by Sophia Salvi in the pole vault, clearing a height of 3.49 meters.

Madison Davis placed third in the shot put with a throw of 11.65 meters and Natalie Wagler placed fifth in the weight throw with a longest throw of 7.74 meters.

The Trailblazer women's runners were led by the Distance Medley Relay team of Adi Fuller, Grayson Haynes, Jasmyn Self and Emilly Barbosa, who placed third with a time of 14:06.14.

Emilly Barbosa also took part in the mile, finishing with a time of 5:32.39 and placing ninth overall.

The VU day on the track was finished out by Gwen Weaver who placed sixth overall in the 200 meters with a final time of 33.05 seconds.

"We never really know what to expect coming into the first meet and don't have any big expectations," VU Assistant Track and Field and Distance Coach Tyler Steigenga said. "The main goal is to get back into the feel of racing, so we can set ourselves up well for the rest of the season. On the distance side we didn't do anything spectacular, but a lot of the team ran close to or faster than what they did in high school, so it gives them a lot to build on at this point in the season."

"It was great to see Isaac back to racing after he got spiked in his achilles during a cross country meet in September," Steigenga added. "He'll play a big role in our success when he's healthy. It was great to see him and many others running faster than they did at this meet a year ago."

While the Trailblazers Track and Field athletes have so much to hold their heads high about for the first meet of the season, there is still obviously plenty of room to improve.

VU will get their first opportunity to improve on Saturday's times next weekend when the Trailblazers take part in the Butler Invitational Saturday, Jan. 20, hosted at the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis, Ind.

"Times and marks aside, there is a lot to be excited about because we have a bunch of talent on this team," Rogier said. "There were bright spots even from athletes that did not get a mark or that ran times well below their best because I could see the potential in what they are capable of. We are going to get a pretty good idea of what that is during the next few weeks when we compete in some very nice facilities against some strong competition."

VINCENNES RESULTS

MEN'S RESULTS

200 meters

Tumani Skinner – 1, 23.00

Olamipo Ladipo – 2, 23.18

600 meters

Desroy Jordan – 1, 1:24.17

Matthew Gray – 2, 1:29.15

Mile

Isaac Stanford – 1, 4:23.07

Tanner Spence – 9, 4:42.25

Cody Noel – 10, 4:43.27

60 meter hurdles

Olegs Kozjakovs – 3, 8.98

4x400 Relay

VU (Ladipo, Jordan, Ferdinand, Skinner) – 1, 3:40.40

Distance Medley Relay

VU (Spence, Ferdinand, Gray, Stanford) – 2, 11:26.67

Long Jump

Olegs Kozjakovs – 2, 6.52m

Shot put

Olegs Kozjakovs – 5, 14.51m

Weight Throw

Jacob Wickham – 6, 13.10m

Jake Terrell – 9, 12.08m

Jacob Smith – 10, 9.72m

WOMEN'S RESULTS

200 meters

Gwen Weaver – 6, 33.05

Mile

Emilly Barbosa – 9, 5:32.39

Distance Medley Relay

VU (Fuller, Haynes, Self, Barbosa) – 3, 14:06.14

Pole Vault

Sophia Salvi – 1, 3.49m

Shot put

Madison Davis – 3, 11.65m

Weight Throw

Natalie Wagler – 5, 7.74m