Jan. 9, 2016

Results

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The South Carolina track and field program began its 2016 indoor season Saturday, hosting the USC Open #1. The Gamecocks looked anything but rusty in their first meet of the year, tallying wins in 13 events and posting three marks that rank in the program’s all-time top 10.

The tone would be set early in the field events, when Alexis Murphy and Michael Wamer swept the long jump event. Murphy (5.68 meters) would go 1-2-3 with teammates Milan Parks and Makyla Stanley, and Wamer went for 7.03 meters, which is his best indoor mark in the event while with the Gamecocks. In the vertical jumps, Nakita Gray placed second overall with a mark of 1.72 meters, but was the top collegiate finisher. The win was claimed by three-time Olympian Chaunte Lowe, who was competing unattached at the meet.

The men’s team, which entered the weekend ranked 19th in the USTFCCCA Top 25 national poll, proved why they are a team to watch this season. The squad swept all the field events for the day, with Tye Williams taking the high jump (2.03 meters), Simon Gyllensten winning the pole vault (5.00 meters) and Josh Awotunde and Clarence Gallop dominating the throws.

Gallop won the weight throw by over ten feet, but Awotunde would provide the biggest fireworks on the day with a top shot put mark of 61 feet, 2 ¾ inches. It set a new personal best that spans the indoor and outdoor seasons, and moved him all the way up to fourth in the program record book. His throw is the best by any Gamecock since Jason Cook in 2009 (61-11). Kierstin Williams added to the throws dominance on the women’s side, winning the women’s weight throw (15.39 meters).

The Gamecock men and women would be equally strong on the track, with more historic marks set in the sprints. David Winters and Ncincilili Titi provided a thrilling showdown in the prelims and finals of the 55-meter dash as the highlight of the day. In the qualifying round, Winters won out by .03 seconds, and in the finals the margin would be even closer. Titi closed strong but came just .01 off Winters’ winning time of 6.29. Both runners finished with top-10 all-time marks, with Winters now ninth and Titi 10th.

The women’s runners would dominate the distance events, starting with freshman Allie Mueller’s win in the 800. First-year runners would also show well in the mile, with freshmen Alexis Malmberg (1st) and Julia Nardone (3rd) placing for Carolina. In the 3,000-meter race, Kaylee Wessel held the top spot over teammate Allie Sprague, who came second.

Next up for the Gamecocks will be the Texas A&M Invitational. Hosted by the Aggies, the meet will feature top programs like Oklahoma, TCU and Baylor. Competition in College Station begins Friday, Jan 15.