LEXINGTON, Va. – Spring has sprung, and that means outdoor season has begun for the athletes of EMU Track & Field. The Royals made their annual trip to the Washington & Lee Carnival to open up their spring campaign on Friday and Saturday.
 
Koran Rucker, a first-year from Philadelphia, headlined the weekend for the Royals, winning both the hammer throw and the discus, setting the EMU school record in the latter event. The sprints group also stood out, led by a runner-up finish for the 4x400m relay as well as outstanding individual effort from Nick Arnold and Ahsan Abul-Qasim.
 
Overall, the Royal men set seven EMU Top 10 all-time performances in a strong outdoor season opener.

Highlights

• DISTANCE/MID-DISTANCE
  • 800m Run: Alex Belisle was the top Royal in this event at a time of 2:07.09, while Ethan Kanagy ran a new personal record of 2:07.52.
  • 1500m Run: Kanagy and Ben Huyard both scored top-10 finishes, placing eighth and ninth, respectively. Additionally, Huyard set a new personal best time of 4:30.10.
  • 5,000m Run: Belisle ran a PR time, completing 12.5 laps of the track in 18:58.07.
• SPRINTS
  • 100m Dash: Abul-Qasim broke the tape in 10.91 to finish fourth and claim fifth in EMU history in the 100m.
  • 200m Dash: Abul-Qasim also set a EMU all-time top 10 mark in this event, finishing ninth in a time of 22.35, which is tied for the eighth-best in school history.
  • 400m Dash: Josh Joseph was the top Royal, sprinting one lap in 52.19.
  • 110m Hurdles: Shaddai Bailey finished eighth overall in a time of 15.63, moving up to fifth in EMU history for this event.
  • 400m Hurdles: Nick Arnold made the podium in third place, clocking in at a time of 54.81.
• RELAYS
  • 4x400m Relay: The relay team of Joseph, Abul-Qasim, Da'Shawn Winters and Arnold teamed up for second-place finish and a fast time of 3:19.46, vaulting all the way up to third in EMU history.
• JUMPS
  • Long Jump: Winters came home 10th with a best jump of the day of 6.32m (20'9").
• THROWS
  • Discus: Rucker's meet-winning, school record-setting throw came on his sixth and final attempt, heaving the disc 45.38m (148'11"). That surpasses the previous EMU record of 45.01m (147'8"), set by Nathan Turner in 2007. Silas Bates set a personal record of 34.74m to placed 15th.
  • Hammer:  Rucker claimed gold with a mark of 47.49m, ascending to third on the EMU all-time list in the hammer. Bates set a new PR in this event as well with mark of 30.19m (99'0").
  • Shot Put: Rucker came just one spot short of sweeping all three of his throwing events, placing second in the shot put with a mark of 14.75m (48'4.75"), good for third in EMU history.

What's Next
The EMU Track & Field team will send athletes to two different meets next weekend. The majority of the team will head to the Doc Jopson Invitational at Bridgewater on Saturday, March 28, while some athletes will compete at the Dr. Jack M. Toms Alumni Invitational on Friday and Saturday, March 27-28.