Chants Post Strong Showing at USC Outdoor Open

Saturday, April 23

Columbia, S.C.

Coastal Carolina University

USC Open

David Ejumeta - 2022 Myrtle Beach Challenge

Photo by: CCU Photography

4/23/2022 11:33:00 PM | Track & Field/Cross Country

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The Coastal Carolina men's and women's track & field teams turned in a solid day at the University of South Carolina Outdoor Open on Saturday, as several names were etched into the program record book and a number of personal bests were set.

On the women's side, Melissa Jefferson crossed the line in 11.08 seconds to win the 100-meter dash, then set a new personal best, CCU school record, and Sun Belt Conference record in the 200-meters with a time of 22.46, finishing runner-up to 11-time Olympic medalist Allyson Felix by a mere .06 seconds. Shani'a Bellamy finished sixth with a new personal best and the second-fastest time in school history at 11.42, while Mekenze Kelley's 11.72 was also a new personal best and the seventh-fastest in CCU history.

Alexis Glasco's 13.59 in the 100-meter hurdles became a new personal best and the second-fastest time in CCU history, while Sydney Clemens' 13.73 was a new personal best and the fifth-fastest in school history. The duo placed sixth and seventh overall, respectively, on Saturday.

In the 800-meters, Amilia Wise-Sweat raced to a sixth-place finish with a new personal mark of 2:13.45, the ninth-best time in school history, while in the 1500-meter run a pair of freshmen in Molly Jones (4:35.12) and Meagan Moreno (4:42.85) finished in fourth and ninth overall, respectively.

Kynnedy Dennis finished second in the pole vault with a personal-best mark of 3.85 meters, the third-best mark in CCU history, while Zayna Fray-Samuel's toss of 52.58M in the hammer throw also set a new personal best and was the 10th-best mark in CCU history. She finished eighth overall for the event, while fellow first-year Chant Lauralyn Clifford placed 12th with her mark of 49.85 meters.

In the jumps, the Chants had three top-10 finishes, as Camryn Lorick (1.60 meters) and Keiran Martin (1.55 meters) placed seventh and ninth overall in the high jump event, while Martin also finished ninth in the long jump with a leap of 5.62 meters.

The 4x100 meter relay team of Kelley, Jermaisha Arnold, Shani'a Bellamy, and Amaryah White finished third in 44.20 seconds, which became the second-best time in CCU history, while the same four (Kelley, White, Bellamy, and Arnold) posted the eighth-best time in school history at 3:39.20 in the 4x400 relay team.

On the men's side, David Ejumeta notched a new personal best in the 100-meters with a time of 10.58, the 10th best time in program history, and also tallied a victory in the long jump with a distance of 7.72 meters. He also placed seventh in the triple jump with a mark of 14.18 meters.

In the 110-meter hurdles, the Chants placed three in the top 10, as Tyler Graves was runner-up with a finals time of 13.72, while Braydon Bennett and Jaquon Williams finished fifth and seventh overall with times of 13.84 and 14.20. Williams' time of 14.20 was a new personal best and the eighth-best time in CCU history for the 110-meter hurdles, while Keshon Sapp hit a new personal mark and the sixth-fastest time in school history at 21.37 in the 200-meters.

In the distance events, Garrett Bivens raced to a sixth-place finish with a personal-best time of 3:57.29 in the 1500-meters, while a trio of Chants in Ethan Blackwelder (9:56.15), Kaden Buchler (10:04.86), and Tomas Duncan (10:18.88) placed in the top 10 in the 3000-meter steeplechase with all turning in new personal best times.

The men's 4x100 meter relay team of Reggie Barlow, DeVonte Harris, Ty Floyd, and Sapp finished second and set a new school record with a time of 39.93 seconds, while the 4x400 team of Floyd, Graves, Harris, and Jeremiah Talbert earned the second-best time in CCU history with their second-place time of 3:08.82.

The Chants return to the track at the UNF Invitational next weekend, April 29-30, in Jacksonville, Florida.

Women's Results
100-Meters
1. Melissa Jefferson – 11.08
6. Shani'a Bellamy – 11.42 (PB) (2nd fastest time in CCU history)
15. Mekenze Kelley – 11.72 (PB) (7th fastest time in CCU history)
18. Jermaisha Arnold – 11.77
26. Zahria Jones – 12.05 (PB)
27. Mariah McCord – 12.09
36. Camryn Lorick – 12.22
40. Kamryn White – 12.30

100-Meter Hurdles
6. Alexis Glasco – 13.59 (PB) (2nd best time in CCU history)
7. Sydney Clemens – 13.73 (PR) (5th best time in CCU history)

200-meters
2. Melissa Jefferson – 22.46 (PB) (SCHOOL RECORD)
40. Zahria Jones – 24.82 (PB)
51. Sydney Clemens – 25.11
52. Amelia Canetto – 25.15 (PB)

400-Meters
16. Amaryah White – 56.04
25. Amelia Canetto – 57.84
38. Nya McGowan – 59.60
42. Tariney Pepper – 59.99

400-Meter Hurdles
17. Lauren Gordon – 1:05.67

800-meters
6. Amilia Wise-Sweat – 2:13.45 (PB) (9th best time in school history)

1500-meters
4. Molly Jones – 4:35.12 (PB)
9. Meagan Moreno – 4:42.85
35. Ashley Rulison – 5:02.30

Hammer Throw
8. Zayna Fray-Samuel – 52.58M (PB) (10th best time in CCU history)
12. Lauralyn Clifford – 49.85M (PB)

High Jump
7. Camryn Lorick – 1.60M
9. Keiran Martin – 1.55M
14. Kadasia Evans – 1.55M

Long Jump
9. Keiran Martin – 5.62M (PB)
30. Zaria Stephens – 4.81M

Pole Vault
2. Kynnedy Dennis – 3.85M (PB) (3rd best place in CCU history)
22. Ashley Dalleske – 2.95M

Shot Put
9. Alexis Estep – 13.54M
14. Zayna Fray-Samuel – 12.08M
17. Lauralyn Clifford – 11.70M

Triple Jump
11. Kelsia Moore – 11.31M
15. Kayla Ulmer – 11.17M

4x100 Meter relay
3. Mekenze Kelley/Jermaisha Arnold/Shani'a Bellamy/Amaryah White – 44.20 (2nd best time in CCU history)
8. Lauren Gordon/Amilia Wise-Sweat/Kayla Sweeney/Zahria Jones – 46.04

4x400 Meter relay
3. Mekenze Kelley/Amaryah White/Shani'a Bellamy/Jermaisha Arnold – 3:39.20 (8th best time in CCU history)
8. Tariney Pepper/Amilia Wise-Sweat/Lauren Gordon/Nya McGowan – 3:56.48

Men's Results
100-meters
15. David Ejumeta – 10.58 (PB) (10th best time in CCU history)
17. Jeremiah Talbert – 10.60 (PB)
19. Keshon Sapp – 10.66
39. Braydon Bennett – 10.93 (PB)
43. Ashlund Dixon – 10.97

100-Meter hurdles
2. Tyler Graves – 13.72
5. Braydon Bennett – 13.84
7. Jaquon Williams – 14.20 (PB) (8th fastest time in CCU history)

200-Meters
12. Keshon Sapp – 21.37 (PB) (6th fastest time in CCU history)
22. Robert Johnson – 21.79 (PB)

400-Meters
11. Robert Johnson – 48.57 (PB)
16. Ty Floyd – 49.74
29. DeShon Harris – 51.10
30. Isaiah Thomas – 51.15

800-Meters
32. Jack Benoit – 2:01.24
33. Gage Nielsen – 2:01.80
36. Jerardo Perez – 2:02.90

1500-Meters
6. Garrett Bivens – 3:57.29 (PB)
25. Kaden Buchler – 4:11.26 (PB)

3000-Meter Steeplechase
5. Ethan Blackwelder – 9:56.15 (PB)
7. Kaden Buchler – 10:04.86
8. Tomas Duncan – 10:18.88 (PB)

Discus
15. Major Chestnut – 43.63M
17. Michael Martello – 41.61M

Javelin Throw
8. Aaron Pierce – 54.81M

Long Jump
1. David Ejumeta – 7.72M

Shot Put
14. Aaron Pierce – 13.57M
18. Stephen Kirkwood – 12.70M

Triple Jump
7. David Ejumeta – 14.18M

4x100 Meter relay
2. Reggie Barlow/DeVonte Harris/Ty Floyd/Keshon Sapp – 39.93 (SCHOOL RECORD)

4x400 Meter relay
4. Ty Floyd/Tyler Graves/DeVonte Harris/Jeremiah Talbert – 3:08.82 (2nd best time in CCU history)
13. Jack Benoit/Jerardo Perez/Gage Nielsen/DeShon Harris – 3:31.26

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