Salem, VA - Competing for the fifth weekend in a row, the Southern Virginia University men's and women's track and field teams went to battle at the Joe LaRocco Invitational hosted by Roanoke College. The meet served as a key tune-up for the USA South Indoor Championships, as several of their conference opponents were in attendance.
All events were contested Saturday, leaving athletes who would compete in multiple events with little time to recover. This was especially true in the distance events, but the Knights performed admirably. Bayleigh Redd opened the meet by storming to a win in the women's 5,000m in a converted time of 18:16.52. Redd nearly lapped her closest competitor and obliterated the previous program record by over twenty seconds which she was also the owner of.
Joseph Hughes almost made it a Southern Virginia sweep in the event with his performance in the men's 5,000m. A time of 15:27.19 helped him finish third while Tayson Farar also finished inside the top ten with a time of 16:06.01. While the track events were well underway, so were the field events with the high jump, long jump, and weight throw.
The 5,000m record was not the only one to fall. Freshman Marin Simons, who's been very steady in her rookie campaign, cleared a height of 1.58m (5' 2.25") on her second attempt in the women's high jump, setting a new personal best and program record. At the time of her clearance, her mark was one of the top 75 performances in the country and placed her second in the event only behind an athlete ranked inside the top 15 nationally.
The Knights triple jumpers grabbed a couple of top ten finishes courtesy of Isaac Armstrong and Damarion Bonds. Both made jumps of over forty feet led by Armstrong's mark of 12.60m (41' 4.25") followed by Bonds in 12.46m (40' 10.50"). Other notable performances in the field events were Surraiya Mahmud and her fourth place finish in the shot put and Alex Silvester finishing second in the pole vault.
Shifting back to the track, two long-tenured Southern Virginia stars made noise in the men's mile. Dylan May, who's building his way back into top fitness after a fall marred by injury, secured a top six finish along with Kedryn Chandler. Chandler's time of 4:29.11 marks his first time under the 4:30 barrier, an impressive accomplishment for the senior. In the women's 800m, Heidi Barton's time of 2:25.27 put her inside the top ten for the third straight meet in the event; she also still ranks second on the conference's performance list in the 800m.
Folole Torres helped the Knights sprinters leave Roanoke College on a high note in the women's 200m, capturing third place with a time just outside the personal best she set at the VMI Winter Relays. However, her converted time on the flat 200m oval at Roanoke is faster than her run at VMI and is the second fastest time in program history.
The Knights will be back to work next weekend in preparation for the conference championships two weekends from now. They are in pursuit of their fourth consecutive title for both men and women which would make for an unprecedented eight indoor team titles since 2022. For the most up-to-date information and details on the team, visit knightathletics.com and follow @knightxctf on Instagram.
Men's Top Ten Finishers - Joe LaRocco Invitational
Men's Indoor Top Ten Program Marks
Women's Top Ten Finishers - Joe LaRocco Invitational
Women's Indoor Top Ten Program Marks
