Mill Spring, NC -- The Lincoln Memorial men's and women's track and field teams turned in a complete team effort at the UNC Asheville Collegiate Opener, turning in standout performances across sprints, middle-distance, distance, jumps, and throwing events. Both squads demonstrated depth and balance, with multiple top finishes highlighting the Railsplitters' readiness.
The women's team was led by Sterling Webb, who captured first place in the 400 meters with a time of 58.44 and added a third-place finish in the 60-meter hurdles finals at 8.92 after qualifying at 9.09. Webb also won the high jump with a clearance of 1.57 meters (5 feet, 1¾ inches). Callie Wetzel made an immediate impact, finishing second in the 400 meters at 59.99 and advancing to the finals of the 60-meter hurdles, where she placed seventh in 9.45. Additional contributions in the hurdles came from Jersy Nelke and Maggie Sanderson, who both competed in the 60-meter hurdles. Sanderson also ran the 600 meters, finishing 11th in 1:51.74, and competed in the high jump. Emily McPherson tied for 10th in the high jump with a mark of 1.47 meters (4 feet, 10 inches).
Middle-distance performances included Reaghan Curde, who placed sixth in the 800 meters at 2:25.63. Katrien Sherwood and Allyssa Gent ran the mile, finishing 17th and 20th in 5:59.00 and 6:21.10, respectively. Olivia Truelove led the team in the 3000 meters, recording a 10th-place finish in 11:48.70. Sprint contributions included Nelke in the 60 meters, while Jewel Gamedah added a notable long jump of 4.13 meters (13 feet, 6½ inches).
In the women's throwing events, Ashley Parrish led Lincoln Memorial in the shot put with a mark of 11.51 meters (37 feet, 9¼ inches), followed by Kylee Alvis at 9.83 meters (32 feet, 3 inches) and Olivia Edenfield at 9.40 meters (30 feet, 10¼ inches). Parrish also posted a team-best in the weight throw with 15.09 meters (49 feet, 6¼ inches), with Alvis throwing 13.14 meters (43 feet, 1½ inches), Madeline Dalton reaching 9.11 meters (29 feet, 10¾ inches), and Edenfield adding 8.46 meters (27 feet, 9¼ inches).
On the men's side, the Railsplitters showcased depth and top-end talent across events. Lincoln Memorial's 4x400-meter relay team of Vincent Quilici, Nile McLymont, Orion Wright, and Guillaume Bogaert won the event in 3:25.38. Quilici also finished second in the 300 meters at 34.81, while McLymont posted 37.54. In the 400 meters, Bogaert placed eighth at 51.72, followed by Caleb Chittum in 52.73 and Wright in 53.82. Chittum also finished sixth in the 600 meters at 1:28.44. Luis Borkey captured an individual victory in the 600 meters at 1:20.72, and Joel Borkey placed second in the 800 meters at 2:00.96. Sam Fulton won the 1000 meters at 2:33.79, with Roman Borghetti-Metz finishing fourth in 2:38.92. Distance runners contributed with Jaxson Branham finishing fifth in the 3000 meters at 8:37.11, followed by Simon Fillers in 16th at 9:10.02, Conner Chandler in 19th at 9:22.14, and David Gober in 23rd at 9:31.36. Sprinters Justus Long and Trevyn Beam both competed in the 60 and 200 meters, posting times of 7.27/23.63 and 7.38/23.76, respectively.
The men's throwing events saw strong performances from Jackson Clonce, who led LMU in the shot put with 12.72 meters (41 feet, 8¾ inches), while Avery Hatfield added 11.04 meters (36 feet, 2¾ inches). Clonce also threw 15.11 meters (49 feet, 7 inches) in the weight throw, with Hatfield reaching 13.62 meters (44 feet, 8¼ inches) and Asher Hatfield posting 10.22 meters (33 feet, 6½ inches).
