Liberty University
ASUN Outdoor Track Championships
Liberty Wins 8 of 12 Events on Banner Opening Day at ASUN
5/14/2021 12:00:00 AM | Track and Field
Liberty won eight of 12 events contested on the opening day of the 2021 ASUN Outdoor Track & Field Championships, Friday at Visit Jax Track at Hodges Stadium. As a result, both the Flames and Lady Flames own early leads of 60 points or more as they attempt to defend their conference titles.
The Lady Flames racked up 104.5 points in six events on the day, putting them 73 points clear of ASUN indoor champion Kennesaw State at this juncture of the meet. Four Liberty women's athletes were victorious, including Calli Doan (steeplechase – 10:53.42), Chelsea Igberaese (hammer – 195-4), Taylen Langin (pole vault – 13-2.5) and Naomi Mojica (shot put – 52-5.5).
Through six men's events, the Flames own a 99-36 advantage over host North Florida, which currently sits in second place. The Liberty men's squad got first-place finishes from Quinten Clay (long jump – 24-11), John Hicks (hammer – 204-10), Felix Kandie (steeplechase – 9:05.46) and Kyle Mitchell (shot put – 64-9.75).
By the numbers, Liberty set three meet records (Igberaese in the women's hammer, Mojica in the women's shot put and Mitchell in the men's shot put), one program record (Mitchell in the men's shot put) and one Liberty freshman record (Hicks in the men's hammer). The Flames also tied Liberty freshman records in the men's long jump (Clay) and women's 100 (Abby Pantlitz's 11.72 in the prelims).
Mitchell provided arguably the Flames' most impressive individual performance of the day with his winning shot put heave. He added 6.75 inches to his own school record and shattered his own meet record from 2019 by more than six feet. Mitchell now ranks No. 14 nationally in the event, including No. 6 in the East Region.
The Flames went 1-2-3 in three of the day's four throwing events, including the men's shot put (Mitchell-Jose Ballivian-Warren Barrett) and both hammer throws. Hicks was joined on the men's hammer podium by Sam Mastro and Lane Hluch, in that order. Meanwhile, Igberaese was flanked by runner-up Grace Artis and third-place Mojica in the women's event.
The hammer throw provided Liberty's largest point totals of the day, as Liberty tallied 27 points in the women's hammer and 26 in the men's hammer.
Liberty also finished first and second in the women's steeplechase (Doan-Brittany Carnathan) and men's long jump (Clay-Jeremy Davis), with Davis making a dramatic move from fifth to second place with his lifetime-best 24-9.75 leap in round six.
Igberaese, Mojica, Kandie and Mitchell were all able to successfully defend their event titles from the 2019 ASUN Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Mojica is now seven-for-seven in winning conference women's shot put titles, indoors and outdoors, dating back to the 2018 Big South Indoor Track & Field Championships.
Igberaese and Mojica each tallied a team-high 16 points on Friday. Igberaese also qualified for the NCAA Division I East Preliminary Round in a third event, thanks to her 51-5.75 shot put mark which eclipsed her previous best by 20 inches and briefly made her the meet record holder.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, Hicks captured Liberty's first conference title in the men's hammer since 2008 (Jon Hart – Big South), Doan raced to the Lady flames' first steeplechase conference crown since 2010 (Hailey Neal – Big South) and Clay won the Flames' first outdoor conference title in the men's long jump since 2015 (Kyle Wheeler – Big South). Clay has now won all four of his long jump competitions in his collegiate career, including a sweep of the ASUN indoor and outdoor crowns.
Women's Team Scores (Through 6 of 21 Events)
1) Liberty – 104.5
2) Kennesaw State – 31.5
3) Jacksonville – 24
4) North Florida – 12
5) Lipscomb – 10
6) Bellarmine – 4
Men's Team Scores (Through 6 of 21 Events)
1) Liberty – 99
2) North Florida – 36
3) Kennesaw State – 35
4) Bellarmine – 9
5) Lipscomb – 6
Women's ASUN Champions
Calli Doan – Steeplechase – 10:53.42
Chelsea Igberaese – Hammer – 195-4
Taylen Langin – Pole Vault – 13-2.5
Naomi Mojica – Shot Put – 52-5.5
Men's ASUN Champions
Quinten Clay – Long Jump – 24-11
John Hicks – Hammer – 204-10
Felix Kandie – Steeplechase – 9:05.46
Kyle Mitchell – Shot Put – 64-9.75
Other Women's Top 3 Finishers
2nd – Grace Artis – Hammer – 174-7
2nd – Brittany Carnathan – Steeplechase – 10:56.46
2nd – Makenzy Mizera – Long Jump – 19-4.75
3rd – Ayanna Johnson – Long Jump – 19-2.75
3rd – Priscillah Kiplagat – 10K – 36:52.60
3rd – Chelsea Igberaese – Shot Put – 51-5.75
3rd – Rachel Milnes – Pole Vault – 12-2.5
3rd – Naomi Mojica – Hammer – 172-4
Other Men's Top 3 Finishers
2nd – Jose Ballivian – Shot Put – 60-10.75
2nd – Jeremy Davis – Long Jump – 24-9.75
2nd – Sam Mastro – Hammer – 192-0
2nd – Ryan McCann – Pole Vault – 16-1.75
3rd – Warren Barrett – Shot Put – 59-11.75
3rd – Lane Hluch – Hammer – 188-6
Women's Record Breakers
Meet Record – Hammer – Chelsea Igberaese – 195-4
Previous Record: 189-2 by Jacksonville's Samantha Turner in 2017
Meet Record – Shot Put – Naomi Mojica – 52-5.5
Previous Record: 50-5.25 by Mojica in 2019
Tied Liberty Freshman Record – 100 – Abby Pantlitz – 11.72
Shared Record: 11.72 by Ty'Asia Dansbury at the 2018 Big South Championship
Men's Record Breakers
Meet Record – Shot Put – Kyle Mitchell – 64-9.75
Previous Record: 58-6.5 by Mitchell in 2019
Liberty Record – Shot Put – Kyle Mitchell – 64-9.75
Previous Record: 64-3 by Mitchell at the UNF Invitational on April 29
Liberty Freshman Record – Hammer – John Hicks – 204-10
Previous Record: 204-1 by Hicks at the Virginia Challenge on April 16
Tied Liberty Freshman Record – Long Jump – Quinten Clay – 24-11
Shared Record: 24-11 by Clay at the Virginia Grand Prix on May 1
Women's NCAA Division I East Preliminary Round Qualifiers
Chelsea Igberaese – Shot Put – 51-5.75
Updates to Liberty's All-Time Women's Top 10 List
Shot Put – No. 2 – Chelsea Igberaese – 51-5.75
Steeplechase – No. 3 – Brittany Carnathan – 10:56.46
100 – No. 4 – Abby Pantlitz – 11.72
Heptathlon Shot Put – No. 4 – Meredith Engle – 38-6.75
Long Jump – No. 6 – Ayanna Johnson – 19-2.75
10K – No. 9 – Priscillah Kiplagat – 36:52.60
Updates to Liberty's All-Time Men's Top 10 List
Shot Put – No. 1 – Kyle Mitchell – 64-9.75
Hammer – No. 2 – John Hicks – 204-10
Long Jump – Tie for No. 8 – Jeremy Davis – 24-9.75
Hammer – No. 9 – Sam Mastro – 192-0
10K – No. 10 – Caleb Olson – 30:08.10
Up Next
The second and final day of the 2021 ASUN Outdoor Track & Field Championships will begin Saturday at 9 a.m. with the decathlon 110 hurdles.
