The Eastern Michigan University track and field programs participated in two separate meets during the weekend of Feb. 13-14. Athletes traveled to the GVSU Big Meet at the Kelly Family Sports Center in Allendale, Michigan, and the Heartland Invitational at the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis, Indiana. Over the two days, the Eagles recorded four event wins and 17 personal best performances.
The weekend was highlighted by Kian Wiles and Gabe Oliveira, who both recorded marks that now lead the Mid-American Conference (MAC) in their respective events. Distance athletes and thrower Aleah Johnson represented Eastern Michigan at the GVSU Big Meet, while the remainder of the roster competed at the Heartland Invitational.
GVSU Big Meet
At Grand Valley State, the men’s team focused on distance events. Kian Wiles finished third in the 800m invitational with a personal best time of 1:48.85. This time sits him at the fourth-fastest 800m in Eastern Michigan history and ranks first in the MAC. In the 800m open, Ty Dailey took second place with a personal best of 1:52.54, followed by Nicholas Kline, who ran a personal best of 1:54.29.
In the mile invitational, Jimmy Geller placed in the top five with a time of 4:03.19 and moved him to second in the MAC rankings, trailing only teammate Wiles. This mark was a seven-second improvement over his previous best. Other men's results at GVSU included Sam Peterson, who finished the 3,000m invitational in 8:16.01, and Carson Vanderschaaf, who completed the 5,000m in 15:13.34.
The women’s distance group also recorded personal bests in Allendale. Sophie Emin finished the 800m invitational in 2:10.96, marking her third consecutive meet with a personal best time. Erika Van Loton finished the mile in 5:13.74, an improvement of two seconds from her performance at the Michigan Invitational earlier in February. Aleah Johnson finished seventh in the open weight throw with a mark of 16.97m.
Heartland Invitational
All four event wins for the Eagles occurred at the Heartland Invitational in Indianapolis. The men’s team secured two of these victories in field events. Gabe Oliveira won the triple jump with a leap of 15.37m. This score leads the MAC and ties Anthony McClendon for the seventh-best mark in the EMU record books. Andrew Azunque won the open long jump with a personal best of 7.20m.
In other men's field events, Nathan Gaspersic and Sam Vesperman tied for third place in the open pole vault, both clearing 4.39m. Lukas Ray took third in the open shot put with a toss of 16.21m.
The Eastern women also earned two event wins in Indianapolis. Megan Rybitski placed first in the open pole vault by clearing a personal best of 3.81m. The 4x400m relay team, consisting of Liusmar Rivas Velasquez, Alba Viñals Calixto, Josephine Oloye, and Demetria Henderson, won their event with a time of 3:42.73.
Additional top finishes for the women included Mariah Taylor, who took second in the triple jump at 12.55m, and Ashtan Winfrey, who placed third in the long jump with a 5.71m leap. In throwing events, Nicolette Lewis finished fourth in the open weight throw at 17.29m. Tatyana Green recorded personal bests in two events: the weight throw, throwing 14.57m, and the shot put, 12.80m. In the 60m finals, Jordynn Young finished fifth with a time of 7.52.
Upcoming competition
The Eagles return to Ann Arbor, Michigan, on Feb. 20 for the Silverston Invitational. This meet, hosted by the University of Michigan, will start at 4 p.m. This marks the fourth time this season the program will compete in Ann Arbor. Fans can find updates and results on the Eastern Athletics website.
