HICKORY, N.C. --- Tusculum University's Nicole McMillen won three gold medals, while Widchard Guervil recorded a pair of first place finishes to lead the Pioneers to a fifth place showing in both the men's and women's meets at the 2019 South Atlantic Conference Outdoor Championships Saturday at the Irwin Belk Track on the campus of Lenoir-Rhyne University.
The Tusculum men finished with 81 total points and improved by five places from their 2018 SAC Championship showing. The TU women accounted for 59 points and improved by four spots from last season's ninth place finish at the league championship.
McMillen won gold on Thursday in the 3,000 meter steeplechase and followed with SAC titles in both the 1500 meters and the 5000 meters on Saturday. For her performance this week, she was named the SAC Women's Track Athlete of the Meet.
McMillen won the 1,500 meters with a time of 4:40.84 and later finished the 5,000 meters with her time of 17:55.64.
Guervil swept both the 100 and 200 meter races and was also a part of TU's 4x100 meter relay team which recorded runner-up honors. In the 100 meters, Guervil won with a time of 10.32 seconds which is the second-fastest in program history and just one hundredth of a second off his career-best time of 10.31 seconds he posted at the Gamecock Invitational this month. In the 200 meters, he won with a time of 21.40 seconds.
In the 4x100 relay, the quartet of Guervil, Gibran Williams, Xavier Billups and Kedar Ashford crossed the line at 40.89 seconds to finish second.
TU's Guillaume Devries was the SAC Champion in the men's high jump as he won on his third attempt at 2.00 meters (6-6 ¾).
Tusculum 4x400 meter women's relay team of I'Keriah Day, Kesia Griffith, Ke'Lah McMiller and Earthaiza Watkins captured gold with their school-record time of 3:53.18.
Tusculum's Malek Folston medaled in the 400 meter hurdles, breaking the tape at 56.05 seconds which was a new season-best.
Members of the Tusculum team will be competing at the Penn Relays this weekend (Apr. 25-27) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
South Atlantic Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships
at Irwin Belk Track, Hickory, N.C.
Tusculum Results
MEN
100 – 1. Widchard Guervil, 10.32
200 – 1. Widchard Guervil, 21.40
400 – 3. Malek Folston, 56.05; 4. Jaydon Johnson 56.82
1500 – 10. Kyler Hodges, 4:05.53
3000 Steeplechase – 3. Kyler Hodges 9:46.96; 7. Alejandro Perez, 10:14.55; 11. Carson Walls, 10:33.14
5000 – 4. Will Cronin, 15:13.81
10000 – 4. Will Cronin, 31:17.77
4x100 Relay – 2. Tusculum, 40.89
4x400 Relay – 9. Tusculum, 3:28.31
High Jump – 1. Gullaume Devries, 2.00m (6-6 ¾); 5. Nick Jackson 1.90m (6-2 ¾)
Pole Vault – 3. Luis Morris, 4.30m (14-1 ¼)
Long Jump – 9. Guillaume Devries, 6.68m (21-11); 23. Nick Jackson, 5.73m (18-9 ¾); 4.58m (15-0 ½)
Triple Jump – 13. Jamire Thompson, 11.85 (38-10 ½)
Shot Put – 7. Christian Sisto, 13.64m (44-9); 17. Zach Lane, 12.42m (40-9); 19 Michael Peppin, 12.14m (39-10); 21. Luis Morris, 11.87m (38-11 ½); 23. Evan Grooms, 11.55m (37-10 ¾);
Discus – 7. Michael Peppin, 40.35m (132-4); 21. Joseph Schwarz, 34.86m (114-4); 22. Luis Morris 34.67m (113-9); 24. Zach Lane, 32.28m (105-11)
Hammer – 14. Evan Grooms, 40.78m (133-9); Joseph Schwarz, 33.16m (108-9)
Javelin – 14. Nicholas Sisto, 42.49m (139-5)
Men's Team Scores: 1. Queens 205; 2. Lenoir-Rhyne 156; 3. Carson-Newman 124; 4. Wingate 85; 5. TUSCULUM 81; 6. Catawba 47; 7. Coker 45; 8. Lincoln Memorial 31; 9. Anderson 24; 10. Newberry 11; 11. Mars Hill 5.
WOMEN
200 – 5. I'Keriah Day, 25.73
400 – 6. Earthaiza Watkins, 58.47; I'Keriah Day, 59.59
1500 – 1. Nicole McMillen, 4:40.84
5000 – 1. Nicole McMillen, 17:55.64; 9. Alissa Furches, 18:43.39;
10000 – 8. Alissa Furches, 40:07.01; 19. Brooklyn Smith, 45:55.80
3000 Steeplechase – 1. Nicole McMillen, 10:49.93
4x100 Relay – 4. Tusculum, 48.67
4x400 Relay – 1. Tusculum, 3:53.18
High Jump – 5. Destini Wilson, 1.57m (5-1 ¾);
Long Jump – 11. Destini Wilson, 4.97m (16-3 ¾)
Shot Put – 8. Alyssa Farmer, 11.54m (37-10 ½); Dynah Dunn, 10.76m (35-3 ¾); 26. Tynaja Stewart, 8.88m (29-1 ¾)
Discus – 10. Alyssa Farmer, 33.65m (110-5); 23. Dynah Dunn, 28.33m (92-11)
Hammer – 12. Alyssa Farmer, 34.69m (113-10); 18. Dynah Dunn, 29.24m (95-11)
Javelin – 20. Tynaja Stewart, 21.06m (69-1)
Women's Team Scores: 1. Lenoir-Rhyne 212.5; 2. Queens 180; 3. Wingate 98.5; 4. Carson-Newman 85; 5. TUSCULUM 59; 6. Anderson 44; 7. Mars Hill 34.5; 8. Catawba 34; 9. Coker 28; 10. Lincoln Memorial 26; 11. Newberry 14.5.
