Morehead State University had 14 athletes compete on May 15 during the first day of the Ohio Valley Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships at the Coleman Sports Complex in Little Rock, Arkansas. Six Eagles either scored or qualified for Saturday’s final events.
The opening day focused on advancing to finals rather than achieving season-best times. “People don’t care about running fast in championship races; it’s about advancing or scoring,” Morehead State coach Clay Dixon said. “Survive and advance as they say.” Dixon also noted, “Five people (are) on to finals in (the) 200m and 1,500m, so that’s a positive. We got on the board with Meredith’s 10K. (I’m) looking forward to Day 2.”
Three of five Eagle entries in the men’s 1,500-meter run advanced to Saturday’s finals despite only one being expected based on entry times. Freshman Josh Arnett finished seventh in his heat but qualified by placing eleventh overall with a time of 4:00.63. Arnett said, “My goal for this was to just to qualify for finals. I knew it was gonna be a battle, but I knew I could compete with these guys.” In women’s competition, senior Kaylyn Holman led her heat from start to finish and won with a time of 4:44.26, qualifying seventh overall for the final.
Freshman Kennedi Alford won her heat in the women’s 200-meter dash with a time of 24.29 seconds and posted the second-fastest overall time going into Saturday’s final round. Dixon said about Alford’s performance: “Kennedi looked good… she definitely looked like a threat for the finals on Saturday.” Freshman Sam Afari also earned a spot in the men’s 200-meter final by finishing third in his heat and sixth overall.
In Thursday’s only event that awarded points—the women’s 10,000-meter run—sophomore Meredith Campbell placed eighth after running much of the race among leaders before recovering late laps to secure her position.
Competition continues Friday beginning at 10 a.m., featuring several track and field events where more Morehead State athletes will attempt qualification or score points toward team standings.
