Milligan Men Lead, Women in Third Following Day One at AAC Indoor T&F Championships

Milligan's women's Distance Medley Relay squad won their race by more than a minute to earn 10 points to their total after one day of competition at the AAC Indoor T&F Championships
Milligan's women's Distance Medley Relay squad won their race by more than a minute to earn 10 points to their total after one day of competition at the AAC Indoor T&F Championships
February 10, 2025

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – On Monday, Milligan University's men's and women's indoor track & field squads began their two-day quest to win conference titles at the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) Indoor Track & Field Championships in Winston-Salem, N.C. After day one, the Buffaloes' men sit with a comfortable 40+ point lead, while the MU women are in third with 43 points, trailing the leader by 28.

Chronologically, after the preliminaries for women's 60m Hurdles and the 60m Dashes, the women's 1000m took place. Ellen-Mary Kearney posted a new personal-best time of 2:52.74 in that race, finishing ahead of the previous meet record time. She placed second overall to add eight points to Milligan's team score. McKenzie Fitzgerald also scored for the Buffs, clocking in at 3:04.30, which was also her personal-best time in the 1000m. She came in fith place to add four points.

Bryn Woodall had an outlandish day on the track, starting with his 1000m performance. He sped to a 2:23.74 clip, as that time was a new facility, meet and personal record. It was also good enough to become the NAIA's new No. 1 time of the 2024-25 campaign, while earning Woodall the AAC title. Sylas Chambers placed second with a 2:29.87 mark, while Carter Windham and Douglas Cornfield came in fourth and fifth, respectively. The squad combined to score 29 points in the event.

The men's 400m saw three Buffs runners in the top four, as Luis Peralta held off his teammate Romario Taylor by just three hundredths of a second. Peralta clocked in at 49.63 and Taylor scored a 49.66. Kaleb Spears managed a 51.00 to place fourth and the three harriers earned 23 combined points for the squad.

In the men's 5000m, five of Milligan's participants scored points. Bryson Lewis was the squad's top finisher in second with a 15:14.02. Then, Zimri Kuhn finished behind him in third with a 15:22.36. San Kyker placed fifth and clocked in at 15:43.94, while Dillon Craig (6th, 15:45.72) and Alex Brittain (7th, 15:48.43) rounded out the list of point-getters.

All five of Milligan's participants in the women's 5000m scored points. Alyssa Bearzi came in third with a 17:30.17, and was followed by Hannah Brown in fourth with her 18:14.72 mark. Natalie Fellers provided a 18:46.20 time to place fifth, as Anna Jones came in sixth and Cameron Walker posted an eight-place finish.

On the field, Conner Mowell placed third in the men's High Jump, reaching 1.79m on his first attempt. Philip Lotivio came in fourth, also notching the 1.79m jump, but on his second try. They picked up 11 team points.

Autumn Stanley came away with a seventh-place showing in the women's Triple Jump, reaching 9.96m.

In the men's Weight Throw, Corey Greeson had a personal-best distance of 14.15m, placing seventh overall and earning a pair of points for the Milligan men.

The women's Distance Medley Relay demolished their competition, finishing a full minute and 10 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher. Their 12:24.25 time was a season-best mark for the group made up of Ashlyn Haas, Hope Krell, Fitzgerald and Kearney.

For the men, it was another Buffaloes win, as they came across the line wth a 10:23.55 mark, which was over 25 seconds faster than the second-place team. Chambers, Peralta, Carter Windham and Woodall teamed up for the 10-point effort.

The search for the AAC title continues tomorrow for both sides, as the first events of the day begin at 10 a.m. at JDL Fast Track in Winston-Salem.