Redhawks win 2023 OVC Championship

Photo courtesy of SEMO Athletics

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (KBSI) – Southeast Missouri women’s track and field won the 2023 Ohio Valley Conference Championship on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023 as day two of the Indoor Championships concluded in Birmingham.

The Redhawks tallied five first place finishes and 18 top three finishes.

The Women’s team made this their eighth indoor title with 183.50 total points, 80 points ahead of Little Rock who finished second. The last time the SEMO women won came in 2013.

The Men’s team finished in third place with 128 total points, Little Rock finished in second with 160 points, and Eastern Illinois placed first with 177.5 points.

Awards Achieved 
Sophomore Taylor Fox stole the show by winning two awards. Fox won the Female Athlete of the Championship and took home the Female Track Athlete of the Year.

Junior Luke Hatfield-Jackson won Field Athlete of the Year.

Tanner Koontz won Male Freshman of the Year.

Head coach Eric Crumpecker was selected as the OVC Women’s Coach of the Year.

Podium Finishes
Luke Hatfield-Jackson finishes with the Gold Medal in the men’s high jump with a height of 6′ 11.5″ (2.12m).

Taylor Fox took the top spot on the podium in the mile, she crossed the finish line in 4:55.14. Fox also took home the gold in the 800-meter with a time of 2:12.99.

In the men’s heptathlon Isaac Readnour placed third with a total score of 4696 points. He finished first in the long jump (6.78m),  second in the high jump (1.86m), and third in the pole vault (4.20m).

Madalyn Gray recorded a new personal best and placed third in the women’s mile with a time of 4:56.95. She recorded another third place finish in the 800-meter with a time of 2:16.46.

Marshall Swadley took home the gold in the shot put while fellow Redhawk Dylan Clark took home the bronze medal. Swadley finished with a mark of 57′ 0.75″ (17.39m) and Clark 54′ 8.75″ (16.68m).

During the finals of the women’s 400-meter Laila Hardin placed second with a run of 56.58.

Kaitlyn McGinnitey finished with the silver medal in the pentathlon with a score of 3291 total points. She recorded two third place finishes in the shot put (9.99m) and in the 800-meter (2:33.83).

The men’s 800-meter saw Terrico Garrett record a second place finish. He finished with a time of 1:52.12.

Breanna Miles took home a silver with a time of 24.27 in the women’s 200-meter.

Clara Billing took home the gold medal in the women’s pole vault, she finished with a height of 12′ 9.5″ (3.90m).

Katie Wegmann finished with a time of 9:45.79 in the women’s 3000-meter which earned her a first place finish.

Megan Deimeke placed third with a throw of 44′ 0.75″ (13.43m) in the women’s shot put.

Serena Williams took home a bronze medal in the women’s triple jump, her jump was 38′ 11″ (11.87m).

The 4×400 team of Breanna Miles, Erika Mello, Madalyn Gray, and Laila Hardin took third place with a time of 3:52.31.

The men’s 4×400 team of Michael Weaver, Mark Crawford, Brenden Parham, and Terrico Garrett finished in second place with a time of 3:17.50

Notable Performances
Hannah Eastman recorded a fifth place finish in the mile with a run of 5:03.34. She also recorded an eighth place finish in the 3000 with a run of 10:13.27.

The men’s mile saw Justin Splitt finish in 4:14.47 and place sixth.

Clara Billing ran a time of 8.90 for a fifth place finish in the women’s 60-meter hurdle finals.

Breanna Miles placed fifth in the 400-meter, her time was 56.90.

Luke Busateri placed ninth in the triple jump with a jump of 47′ 2.25″ (14.38m) and Luke Hatfiled Jackson took tenth with a jump of 46′ 7.5″ (14.21m).

In the women’s 60-meter dash Daja Gordon finished in fifth place crossing the line at 7.74.

Mason Clough reached a height of 6′ 2″ (1.88m) for a tenth place finish in the men’s high jump.

Redhawks Skylar Prescott and Nicole Silverlake placed fifth and sixth in the pole vault. Prescott and Silverlake both got to the height of 11′ 0″ (3.35m).

Nick Cimmarusti placed seventh in the 3000-meter with a time of 8:29.46 and fellow redhawk Noah Little finished right behind him with a time of 8:29.77 picking up an eighth place finish.

Looking Ahead
The Redhawks that qualified for the NCAA indoor championship will head to Albuquerque, New Mexico, March 10th – 11th.