Men finish third, women come in 10th at MAC Outdoor Championships
The Central Michigan men’s track and field team finished third at the Mid-American Conference Outdoor Championships in Dekalb, Ill. from May 12 to 14, though the 10th-place women fared worse.
For the first time since 2006, CMU took third place with 119 points, trailing Kent State and Akron, with Akron winning the conference championship.
“A lot of the underclassmen did a great job and we were excited for them and the future of the program,” said track and field director Willie Randolph.
More than half of the team’s points came from underclassman athletes. None of the points came from nationally ranked sophomore Alex Rose in the discus.
Freshman Ross Parsons took fourth in both the 100- and 200-meter dash at 10.52 and 21.33 seconds, both personal bests.
He joined freshman Ryan Brooks and sophomores Renaldo Powell and Greg Knaus for another fourth-place finish and a personal-best time.
Brooks had a personal best in the 100-meter as well, with a time of 10.62, finishing sixth. Meanwhile, Knaus got a personal best of his own in the 200-meter, finishing seventh clocking in at 21.59.
“It was an awesome experience,” Parsons said. “I just competed to the best of my abilities and it was an awesome feeling to be a part of 23 points.”
Fellow freshman Tecumseh Adams got CMU’s only first-place finish with a personal best in the 1500-meter at 3:54.60. He also took second in the 5000-meter at 15:11.59.
Throwers were one of CMU’s strongest efforts in track and field coming into the championship and they did not disappoint with junior Ryan McCullough leading the way.
McCullough got a personal best in the discus, placing fifth with a throw of 170 feet and eight inches, and third in the hammer toss with a throw of 196-07 feet. Junior Kevin Mays achieved his own personal best, finishing seventh with 188-09 feet.
Senior George Flanner came in fourth in the shot put with a personal best of 54-06 3/4 feet, while Rose finished sixth in the event with 53-10 1/2 feet and senior John Calvert finished seventh with 53-5 3/4 feet.
Freshman Kyle Smith, who finished first in javelin at the Len Paddock invitational May 7 at the University of Michigan, continued with a personal best throw of 203-05 feet, earning another CMU record.
“Getting third place was a huge accomplishment, but we’re only going to get better,” Parsons said.
Women finish 10th
Two senior women’s track and field members set school records, as one of few bright spots for the women at the championships.
Senior Mykal Imbrock finished fourth in the hammer toss with 190 feet and seven inches, outdoing her CMU record-breaking previous best at Oklahoma.
“I knew it was good, but I really didn’t know it was that far,” Imbrock said. “They say your good ones don’t feel that far, but they are because of your technique.”
Senior Shanaye Carr broke alumna Tamera Thomas’ 14.24-second, 100-meter hurdle record from 2006. Carr finished third at 13.77.
Juniors Kirlene Roberts and Dierra Riley, along with seniors Jordan Dunn and Brittnee Shreve, took part in the 4×100-meter relays and took third place with a time of 46.25.
Kent State won the championships, beating runner-up Eastern Michigan by one point. Miami took third.
“We had a lot of women do some good things, but we graduated a lot of people last season and we knew we were lacking in some areas,” Randolph said.
