ANDERSON, S.C. --- The Tusculum University men's and women's track and field teams completed competition Friday at the South Atlantic Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championship, hosted by Anderson University.
Tusculum had four medal-winning performances on Friday and set three school records on the closing day of the meet. David Saruni placed second in the men's 400 hurdles, Zackary Nelson was third in the men's 400 meters and Kenisha Stubbs took third in the women's 400 hurdles. Also medaling was the Pioneers' 4x400-meter relay team, which set a school record along with Nelson and Saruni.
The Pioneer men finished eighth out of 12 teams while the women took 11th place in the team standings.
MEN'S RECAP
Saruni finished fifth in prelimaries, then ran 53.25 seconds in the final to finish runner-up to Mark Schlittenhelm of Queens who won gold in 53.09 seconds. Saruni's time broke the program record of 53.64 seconds set by Althiery Leontes in winning the event at last year's SAC Championship.
Nelson was seeded third in the 400 meters after running 48.15 seconds in Thursday's preliminaries, and backed up his seed with a third-place finish in the finals. His time of 47.14 seconds broke his own school record of 47.46 seconds set at the Catamount Classic on April 16, and moved him inside the top 15 on the NCAA Division II performance list.
The 4x400-meter relay team of Jarvis Barber Jr., Marquel Pittman, Stephen Brewer and Nelson was third overall in 3:14.20, which broke the record of 3:14.36 set by the same group at the Catamount Classic on April 16.
Pittman finished eighth in the 100 meters at 10.71 seconds, Barber was seventh in the 200 meters as he crossed the line in 21.94 seconds, and Antonio Aparicio took sixth in the 800 meters with a time of 1:55.61.
Also earning points for the Pioneers was Joshua Stephens, who was sixth in the triple jump with a season-best mark of 14.35 meters (47 feet, 1 inch), which is the sixth-best jump in program history.
In the 5000 meters, Ray Richardson finished with a season-best time of 15:41.30, more than 23 seconds ahead of his previous season best set at the LR Outdoor Open on April 23.
Queens won its seventh consecutive SAC Outdoor championship with 171 points, trailed by Wingate in second with 148.5 points and Lenoir-Rhyne third with 131 points. Carson-Newman placed fourth with 101.5 points, with Limestone in fifth at 95 points. Catawba (52 points) was sixth, followed by Newberry in seventh at 46 points and Tusculum eighth at 38 points. Rounding out the field were Lincoln Memorial in ninth (18 points), Anderso in tenth with 16 points and Coker in 11th with five points. Mars Hill did not score.
WOMEN'S RECAP
Stubbs, the defending SAC champion in the 400 hurdles, qualified eighth for Friday's final but ran 1:05.84 to take home the bronze medal. Her time was her second-fastest of the season and fifth-best of her career.
Javiera Ortiz was Tusculum's top finisher in the 5000 meters with a time of 19:26.90. In the shot put, Amber Hogan had a season-best throw of 10.23 meters (33 feet, 6 3/4 inches).
Lenoir-Rhyne held off Queens to win its second SAC Outdoor championship and first since 2019. The Bears had 181.5 points, followed by Queens with 177.5 and Wingate in third with 97. Anderson was fourth with 74 points, followed by Catawba in fifth with 54 points and Limestone in sixth with 50 points. Seventh place went to Newberry (48 points), followed by Coker (47 points) in eighth, Carson-Newman ninth with 45 points, Lincoln Memorial (25 points) in 10th and Tusculum in 11th with 17 points. Mars Hill was 12th overall with one point.
South Atlantic Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championship
at Anderson, S.C. - Day 2 of 2
Tusculum results
MEN
100: 8. Marquel Pittman, 10.71.
200: 7. Jarvis Barber Jr., 21.94.
400: 3. Zackary Nelson, 47.14 (school record).
800: 6. Antonio Aparicio, 1:55.61.
5000: 24. Ray Richardson, 15:41.30.
400 hurdles: 2. David Saruni, 53.25 (school record).
4x400: 3. Tusculum (Barber, Pittman, Brewer, Nelson), 3:14.20 (school record).
Triple jump: 6. Joshua Stephens, 14.35m (47-1).
Team scores: 1. Queens 171; 2. Wingate 148.5; 3. Lenoir-Rhyne 131; 4. Carson-Newman 101.5; 5. Limestone 95; 6. Catawba 52; 7. Newberry 46; 8. Tusculum 38; 9. Lincoln Memorial 18; 10. Anderson 16; 11. Coker 5; 12. Mars Hill 0.
WOMEN
5000: 23. Javiera Ortiz, 19:26.90; 29. Erin Bruce, 20:05.07.
400 hurdles: 3. Kenisha Stubbs, 1:05.84.
4x400: 11. Tusculum (Lottie, Chellah, Bah, Jones), 4:17.37.
Shot put: 16. Amber Hogan, 10.23m (33-6 3/4); 18. Shanee Angol, 9.80m (32-2); 24. Faith Robinette, 7.39m (24-3).
Team scores: 1. Lenoir-Rhyne 181.5; 2. Queens 177.5; 3. Wingate 97; 4. Anderson 74; 5. Catawba 54; 6. Limestone 50; 7. Newberry 48; 8. Coker 47; 9. Carson-Newman 45; 10. Lincoln Memorial 25; 11. Tusculum 17; 12. Mars Hill 1.
