Relay Sweep Concludes Jesse Owens Classic

Day Two Results

COLUMBUS, Ohio (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University men's track and field team wrapped up the Jesse Owens Classic today, April 23, down in Columbus, Ohio. The highlight of the day came in the relays, with the team winning both events.

Sophomore Brandon Bolden (Solon, Ohio – Solon) led the Eagles in the 100m dash, placing 13^th after crossing the finish line in 10.73. Behind him, both freshman Aitor Ekobo (Madrid, Spain - Jose Luis Lopez Aranguren Secondary School) and redshirt junior Nick James (Troy, Ohio – Troy) set career-best times of 10.80 and 10.82, respectively. In the 400m dash, senior Mason Waynes (Kenosha, Wis. - Bradford) brought home a top-10 finish, nabbing sixth in 48.58.

Eastern then had a total of eight runners take part in the 800m, with senior Scott Bradley (Battle Creek, Mich. – Lakeview) leading the pack by taking fifth in 1:51.29. Hot on his tail, redshirt junior Willy Fink (Maumee, Ohio – Maumee) placed 13^th with a time of 1:53.25, while sophomore Csaba Matko (Racalmas, Hungary - Szechenyi Istvan Gimnazium) posted a time of 1:53.26. Rounding out the top-five EMU runners were redshirt sophomores Nick Raymond (Erie, Mich. – Mason) and Hlynur Andresson (Vestmannaeyjar, Iceland – Mountain Ridge) with personal-best times of 1:55.29 and 1:55.32, respectively.

The Green and White swept the field in both relays on the day, taking home the gold in both the 4x100m and the 4x400m relay races. The group of Bolden, Ekobo, senior Jeff Elam (Latrobe, Pa. – Greater Latrobe Senior), and junior Tyler Brown (Findlay, Ohio – Findlay) crossed the finish line in 40.76 to take the 4x100 title, while Elam, senior Matthew Williams (Moreno Valley, Calif. – Vista Del Lago), Waynes, and Brown won the 4x400m in 3:09.33.

The Eagles also had a duo take part in the 400m hurdles, with sophomore Mark Cooke (Edison, N.J. – John P. Stevens) finishing 11^th in 55.08. Freshman Elijah Barber (Columbus, Ohio – Eastmoor Academy) also ran in the race, where he posted a career-best time of 56.10.

A trio of freshmen represented EMU in the jumps, as Nicholas Herbert (Portage, Mich. – Portage Northern), Cameron Hart (Columbus, Ohio – Bishop Hartley), and Micah Peters (York, Ontario – Vaughn Road Academy) rounded out all three events. Herbert participated in both the long jump and the triple jump, with his top finish coming in the long jump after placing seventh with a career-best mark of 7.03 meters/ 23 feet 1-inch. Hart was the lone EMU competitor in the high jump, taking eighth with a jump of 1.98 meters/ 6 feet 6-inches. Finally, Peters finished sixth in the triple jump after posting a jump of 14.35 meters/ 47 feet 1-inch, which was a personal-best.

Finally, the team had two finish within the top-10 in the hammer throw. Redshirt senior Keith Williams (Sherman, Ill – Williamsville) paced the group, finishing fourth with a throw of 61.62 meters/ 202 feet 2-inches. Also placing within the top-10 was redshirt junior Anthony Jones (Sandusky, Ohio – Sandusky), who nabbed seventh with a mark of 57.91 meters/ 190 feet.

Next week, the team will take part in the Drake Relays out in Des Moines, Iowa. The three-day meet will begin Thursday, April 28, and conclude Saturday, April 30.

EMU Individual Results (* denotes a personal best)
Event                                                 Mark
100m Dash
13. Brandon Bolden                          10.73
16. Aitor Ekobo                                 10.80*
19. Nick James                                 10.82*

200m Dash
Nick James                                        DQ

400m Dash
6. Mason Waynes                            48.58
Tyler Brown                                      DNS

800m Run
5. Scott Bradley                               1:51.29
13. Willy Fink                                    1:53.25*
14. Csaba Matko                             1:53.26*
21. Nick Raymond                           1:55.29*
22. Hlynur Andresson                      1:55.32*
24. Tom Jozwiak                              1:55.66*
27. Kieran Reilly                               1:56.85*
29. Mitch Lenneman                        1:59.73*

4x100m Relay
1. Bolden, Ekobo                             40.76
Elam, Brown

4x400m Relay
1. Elam, Williams                             3:09.33
Waynes, Brown

400m Hurdles
11. Mark Cooke                                55.08
19. Elijah Barber                               56.10*
Jeff Elam                                           DNS

Long Jump
7. Nicholas Herbert                          7.03m/ 23-01.00*

High Jump
8. Cameron Hart                              1.98m/ 6-06.00

Triple Jump
6. Micah Peters                                14.35m/ 47-01.00*
14. Nicholas Herbert                        12.87m/ 42-02.75

Hammer Throw
4. Keith Williams                              61.62m/ 202-02.00
7. Anthony Jones                             57.91m/ 190-00.00
12. Andrew Wentz                           54.13m/ 177-07.25

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Hlynur Andresson

Elijah Barber

Brandon Bolden

Scott Bradley

Tyler Brown

Mark Cooke

Aitor Ekobo

Jeff Elam

Willy Fink

Cameron Hart

Nick Herbert

Nick James

Anthony Jones

Tom Jozwiak

Mitch Lenneman

Csaba Matko

Micah Peters

Nick Raymond

Kieran Reilly

Mason Waynes

Andrew Wentz

Keith Williams

Matthew Williams

Eastern Michigan Athletics