West Liberty, W. Va. – The throwers got the Tim Weaver Invitational started on Friday, and Saturday it was the young stars time to shine. The Wheeling University Men's Track & Field team would pick up four top five finishes on the second day of competition, splitting the success between the track and field events. Of the four top five finishes, three came from freshman as the young talent of the future led the Cardinals throughout the day.
In the field, both top five finishes would come from freshmen with Jacob Legg and Alexander Rodriguez each taking home honors. It would start with Legg in the Men's High Jump, After no heighting in the event during his outdoor debut, Legg would record his first official height of the season, clearing 1.80 meters to finish fourth in the field. Legg started the night at 1.70 meters and it was smooth sailing over the first two bars, with the freshman clearing them on his first jump. He would come back at 1.80 meters, and once again cleared the bar on the first try, before falling at 1.85 meters to round out the day. The other top five finish came from Alexander Rodriguez, who took on the Men's Pole Vault. He would end up clearing a height of 3.20 meters to take fourth overall in the event. He would need two tries each time to get over the bar, with his second vault over the 3.20 meter mark enough to earn him fourth overall.
On the track, Reddick Moore would lead the way in the 5000 Meter run, taking fifth overall. After running the 1500 meter and setting a PR at the Marty Pushkin Invitational, Moore was back for his first try at the 5000 and did not disappoint. He would end up taking fifth in the field with a time of 17:59.44 as he ran his first distance of over 3000 meters on the track. He would finish second among MEC competitors on the field. The final top five finish would come from a veteran with Hunter Tomich taking on the 3000-Meter Steeplechase. He would take fifth overall in the field, running a time of 10:50.00 in his first run of the event across his four year Cardinal career. He would end up taking third among the MEC runners in the field, finishing behind Glenville State's Nick Pitchford and West Liberty's Michael Nigglemeyer in the field.
The track events would start with the sprint events as Taven Mayo and Abenezer Yirdaw competed in the 100-Meter Dash. Mayo would lead the way, taking 33rd in the field with a time of 12.57 seconds while Yirdaw finished 37th at 12.91 seconds. It was the first of two events for Mayo on the day, with his top finish also coming in the Pole Vault. He would take seventh overall with a height of 2.90 meters, needing two tries to clear the bar. Kris Vigars would add the final top 10 finish of the day comparing in the Men's 400-Merer Hurdles. He would set a PR with a time of 59.73 seconds as he continues his growth on the hurdles and rounding out the day for the Cardinals.
The Wheeling University Men's Track & Field team returns to action on Friday, April 3rd, when they take on the Cherry Blossom Invitational.
