Mars Hill competes at Vertklasse Meeting

HIGH POINT, N.C. - The Mars Hill men's and women's track & field teams travelled to High Point University to compete in the VertKlasse Meeting. The meet boasted competitors of all levels – NCAA DI, DII, DIII, NAIA, JUCO, and several unattached professional athletes seeking to meet qualifying marks for upcoming Olympic trails.

Highlights from the meet:

Day 1 Recap

Braxton Taft Cummings set a new personal best in the men's 1500m run with a time of 4:09.68. Cummings placed 40^th out of 103 competitors.

Tarus Kipsang set a new personal best in the men's 5000m run with a time of 15:47.08. Kipsang placed 26^th out of 69 competitors.

Gabriel Hunt set a new personal best in the men's 5000m run with a time of 16:15.92. Hunt placed 41^st overall.

Brandon Wright placed 64^th in the men's 1500m run with a time of 4:19.78.

Jesse Shelton and Antonio Lorenzo competed in men's Hammer throw. Shelton placed 26^th with a throw of 41.35m. Lorenzo placed 32^nd with a throw of 32.76m.

Lindsey Jenkins ran a season best in the women's 1500m run with a time of 5:06.08. Jenkins placed 45^th out of 91 competitors.

Emma Bridges established a collegiate best in women's Javelin with a throw of 25.40m.

Day 2 Recap

Jared Benain competed in men's triple jump, breaking his own school record with a jump of 14.99m (49' 2.25"). Benain placed 2^nd overall in the event and currently ranks 10^th nationally in NCAA Division II.

Jesse Shelton broke his own school record in the men's Discus with a throw of 49.94m (163' 10"). Shelton placed 8^th overall. Shelton competed in shot put as well, placing 3^rd overall with a throw of 16.15m (53').

Ashtin Gainey set a new personal best in men's shot put with a throw of 12.88m. Gainey placed 23^rd overall.

Antonio Lorenzo placed 17^th in shot put with a throw of 13.53m. Justus Shelton placed 24^th with a throw of 12.88m. Shelton competed in men's discus as well, placing 30^th overall with a throw of 37.55m.

Jackson McClain and Ethan Lee competed in the men's 100m. McClain placed 31^st overall with a time of 11.15s. Lee placed 39^th with a time of 11.25s. Lee competed in the 200m as well, placing 40^th with a time of 22.71s.

Simone Giggetts placed 13^th of 34 in the 100m Hurdles with a time of 15.64s.

Next up, the Lions travel a short distance down the road to compete in the Bulldog Invitational hosted by UNCA. Competition takes place Friday, April 12^th and Saturday, April 13^th.