COLUMBIA, S.C. — The University of South Carolina track & field team celebrated its seniors and built momentum for the postseason on Saturday as it closed the 2019 home schedule with the USC Outdoor Open. Carolina earned 14 event victories at Sheila & Morris Cregger Track in the season’s final competition in Columbia.

In addition to the action on the track and in the field, South Carolina celebrated its 23 graduating student-athletes on Saturday. Aliyah Abrams, Ben Bonhurst, Arinze Chance, Breanna Cole, Nick Couchell, Maiya Dendy, Eric Favors, Otis Jones, Lissa Labiche, Tatyana Mills, Isaiah Moore, Allie Mueller, Colleen Openshaw, Milan Parks, Yann Randrianasolo, Ty Jaye Robbins, Bryce Simpson, Makyla Stanley, Carson Strom, Yohance Thomas, Benjamin Thoms, Simone Wark and Armand Woodley competed at Cregger Track for the final time Saturday as were honored for their achievements on and off the track as Gamecocks.

Saturday’s Gamecock winners included Adele Blalock (women’s pole vault), Isaiah Davenport (men’s discus) Stephanie Davis (women’s 400m), Jordan Fields (women’s high jump), Carisma Holland (women’s discus and shot put), Amanda Murphy (women’s hammer throw), Maryah Nasir (women’s 800m), Stanley (women’s long jump), Heather Stone (women’s 3000m), Strom (men’s 3000m), both the men’s and women’s 4x100m relays and the women’s 4x400m relay.

The Gamecocks won both sections of the 3000m to start the day. In the women’s race, Stone led wire-to-wire, posting the fifth-best time in Carolina history, 9:49.83. Openshaw finished second in her final race at Cregger Track, and Morgan Lee came in third.

In the men’s 3K, Strom trailed until the final lap, when he turned on the jets for the victory. The senior ran 8:53.08 in his final Cregger Track appearance.

In the women’s 4x100m relay, it was all Carolina right from the gun. Stephanie Davis, Stanley, Amecia Pennamon and Parks posted a time of 44.67, battling chilly conditions for the win. On the men’s side of the 4×1, Randrianasolo, Evan Miller, Ronald Fuller and Carlos Wilson ran a season-best 40.33 for the victory.

Carolina’s first field win of the day came from Murphy. The redshirt sophomore won the women’s hammer throw for the second week in a row at Cregger Track; her top attempt measured in at 53.31m (174-11).

Davis battled windy and chilly conditions to win the 400m. It was her first individual victory of the season, and her time was 54.55.

Stanley was in second place when she walked to the runway for her final career long jump attempt at Cregger Track. The senior came up clutch, with a mark of 5.89m (19-4) to surpass Hampton’s Jaelan Leonard for the win. The victory is Stanley’s fourth of the outdoor season.

Blalock kept the field success going with her first-career outdoor win in the pole vault. It was her second win overall this year, and she cleared 3.70m (12-1 ½).

Nasir was locked in a tight battle with teammate Sierra Biber and was able to edge her fellow Gamecock for her first-career win. Nasir’s time was 2:14.26, and Biber came in second at 2:14.66.

Fields earned her second Cregger Track victory of the season in the women’s high jump, and Dymier Jeffery came in second. Fields cleared 1.70m, and Jeffery went over 1.65m to grab the top two spots.

Holland continued Carolina’s field event dominance with the best discus performance of her career. Her winning throw of 48.01m (157-6) is the 10th-best mark in Carolina history, and Nina Gambacorta took silver with a throw of 40.30m.

The Seneca, S.C., native wasn’t satisfied with her discus effort. Holland recorded another career best in the shot put, moving up to ninth in Gamecock history with a throw of 15.68m (51-5 ½). That ranks 26th in the NCAA East Region this season.

Carolina’s final track victory came in the 4x400m relay. Mathilde Coquillaud-Salomon, Macie Kavanaugh, Jhari Williams and Simone Wark held off a late charge by Shaw University to win with a time of 3:49.50.

The last win of the day came from Davenport, who earned his first-career collegiate win in the discus. The freshman’s best throw measured in at 49.84m (163-6), a big personal best on his fourth attempt.

NOTABLE

• Mueller finished second in the women’s 1500m and ran the fifth-best time in school history, 4:29.74

FROM THE COACH