Reinhardt Finishes Visit to National Championships in South Dakota
BROOKINGS, S.D – The Eagles flew to South Dakota and went against some of the best athletes in the NAIA at the 55th Annual Men's Indoor Track & Field National Championships, which wrapped up on Saturday inside the Sanford Jackrabbit Athletic Complex in Brookings.
"Tough day for our group at the national meet," head coach Jordan Turner said. "With five rookies to the national meet you are proud to see them here with a chance to compete for a national title. Had a couple tough breaks that derailed the day but I'm confident that this experience will help them all get back to the outdoor national championship 2.5 months from now. Johnny and Carson had quality days throwing in their first national meet; they became the first throwers from the south region of the NAIA to throw weight at nationals in five years, so they should be proud to put our region back at nationals against the very best.
"Otis had a little stumble out of the blocks and that was enough to cause critical separation that's hard to overcome at a national meet. ZayQuan and Trisstan got valuable experience at a national meet as freshmen and will come back much stronger from this nationals experience."
Weight Throw
Jonathan Paolozzi – 19th of 33 competitors (16.66m – 54' 8"); second-best throw of his career
Carson Ivester – 23rd of 33 competitors (16.10m – 52' 9.75"); third-best throw of his career
Long Jump
ZayQuan Graham – 17th of 20 competitors (6.54m – 21' 5.5")
Tristian Weddington – 19th of 20 competitors (6.36m – 20' 10.5")
60m
Otis Odom – 30th of 31 competitors in preliminary round (7.12 seconds)
The focus for track and field now shifts to the outdoor season as information on Reinhardt's slate of events will be announced in the near future.
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For more information on Reinhardt Men's Indoor Track & Field, please click here.