LEXINGTON, KY. -- Competing in wet and rainy conditions at the Kentucky Open on Saturday, the Southern Illinois University track and field program answered adversity's call and responded with 18 top-three finishes, which included five wins.
"Today was certainly about training our 'will to win," Director of Track and Field/Cross Country Rosalind Joseph said. "We acknowledged the weather beforehand and talked about using this as an opportunity to train physically and mentally in adverse conditions. Sometimes conditions will not be perfect and you just have to compete. I thought everyone handled themselves really well. I was proud of the results today and what we gained from the weekend."
The Saluki throwers swept the hammer throw competitions and Southern went 1-2 in both. Shauniece O'Neal won the hammer throw for the first time this season with her mark of 199'-8" (60.86m) and Alexis Roberson took second with a season-best toss of 185'-2" (56.45m).
On the men's side, Nate Dyer won the hammer after he set a PR at 206'-10" (63.05m). It was a seven-inch improvement for Dyer, who placed ahead of Ricky Hurley. Hurley threw 195'-3" (59.51m) to help SIU take the top two spots in the event.
Southern added two more wins in distance events. Josh Maier won the 1500m with a time of 3:49.21 to earn his second career win in the event.
Megan Krolak, meanwhile, won the 3000m Steeplechase with a more than seven-second PR. Krolak ran a personal-best 10:38.84 to post her first win in the 3K Steeplechase in over a year (April 6, 2018). It also helped the Peru, Ill. native move up to No. 3 on SIU's all-time list in the event.
Krolak had company at the front of the pack in the 3K steeplechase, as Kayla Schiera finished less than a half second behind her. Schiera ran with Krolak to cut almost half a minute off her previous-best time Saturday, as she clocked a time of 10:39.12 to place second. In doing so, the Sandwich, Ill. native moved up to fourth on SIU's all-time list in the event.
SIU's fifth win of the day came in the sprints. Tyjuana Eason, who had not competed in nearly a month, showed little signs of rust as she won the 200-meter dash Saturday with a season-best time of 24.34.
Southern's women's 4x100 relay team of Madison Meyer, Tyjuana Eason, Genesis Ewell and Bri'Anna Branch posted their second top-five school mark of the season with their runner-up performance Saturday. The foursome clocked the fifth-best time in school history at 45.68 to finish second to Kentucky.
Willie Rodgers notched a pair of top-3 finishes in the jumps. Rodgers claimed second in the long jump after he tied a personal-best at 22-5.25 (6.84m). He followed with a third place showing in the high jump with a clearance of 6'-6" (1.98m).
The Salukis are back in action at the Lenny Lyles Invite, hosted by the University of Louisville, beginning Friday, April 26.
