Lincoln Reed | Echo
The Taylor men's and women's track and field team blazed through the Indiana Wesleyan Midwest Classic on Saturday.
Freshman hurdle master Caleb Anthony broke Brandon Wilchcombe's school record in the 60-meter hurdle event with a time of 8.09. Anthony's record is just .02 seconds behind Taylor Killings-the current NAIA indoor national champion.
"Caleb is a hungry young man," head coach David Neville said. "He really has a desire to go out there and be the best. Even though he ran at a really fast time and broke the school record, he still went to win the race. That's something I like in him. I like that fight and that fire. He's not one to just settle for running well."
Senior Matt Hall continued his stellar collegiate career with a first place finish in the 5,000-meter run and clinched the NAIA A standard with a time of 15:04.98. Other standouts include the distance medley team composed of sophomore Benjamin Byrd, sophomore Sam Lacher, senior Tanner Dye and junior Wes Noyes. Their combined efforts earned a victory and qualified for the NAIA B standard with a time of 10:25.87. Senior Harry Dantona also qualified for the NAIA B standard in pole vault with a height of 4.60 meters.
The women's 4x800 meter relay team reserved a spot in the NAIA Indoor National Championships. Freshman Naomi Noyes and sophomores Rachel Blagg, Margie Crosby and Anna Souzis earned an A standard time of 9:38.34.
The women's team also dominated the 60-meter hurdles with a 9.06 NAIA B standard finish by sophomore Plenseh-Tay Sakeuh.
Other standouts include sophomore Miriam Wood's victory in the triple jump at 10.74 meters and sophomore Michelle Franch's third place finish in the 5,000-meter run with a time of 19:20.91.
"Our whole team did really well," Anthony said. "There's a whole lot of people that I can see a lot (of) great things coming from in the future. I'm excited to be alongside them as we all grow and continue to get better."
The Taylor track machine looks to continue its success at the Trojan Invite tomorrow.
"Photograph provided by TU Sports Information Department"
