WAC Indoor Championship: Day 1

2/29/2020 9:19:00 AM | Track and Field

Xydona, DMR’s win big

By: Makenna Pellerin

NAMPA, Idaho — Grand Canyon started the WAC Indoor Track and Field Championships well Friday with Lopes senior multi-athlete Niki Xydona repeating as the pentathlon champion to help put the GCU women in first place entering the final events Saturday.

Xydona scored 3,650 points with teammates Symone Wright-Flowers and Rees Young taking second and third places to give GCU 24 points in the event.

Lopes junior jumpers Chynna Simmons and Nicole Cristobal had strong showings in the triple jump. Simmons placed second (11.83 meters) and Cristobal took fourth (11.65 meters). Sophomore thrower Samaria McDonald threw a personal-record 16.77 meters in the weight throw.

The GCU women's success wrapped up Friday with the distance medley relay taking second place with Paige Hildebrandt, Olivia Thorsgaard, Yarithza Soto and Julia Schumacher. The women's team wlll start Saturday's final day of competition in first place with 55 points, ahead of UT Rio Grande Valley with 36 points.

The Lopes men's team had an impressive win in the distance medley relay with Landon Rast, Alex Thomas, Kyle Charbonneau and Rylan Stubbs setting a new school record in the process. Their time of 10 minutes 13.59 seconds broke the previous GCU record of 10:19.27, which was set at last year's WAC Indoor Championships.

Lopes senior multi-athlete Grant Carpenter sits in first place by 253 points after four events in the heptathlon with 3,062 points. The heptathlon concludes Saturday morning.

Also, four GCU male pole vaulters landed points. Aleksandris Eglitis placed second with Carpenter, Austin Moeller and Daniel McJunkin close behind him. Then Paxton Henry triple-jumped his way to fourth place with a mark of 14.66 meters.

The men's team has positioned itself well in second place, only 16 points behind Utah Valley.

Stay updated through Twitter (@GCU_TrackXC) or online at WAC Indoor Track and Field Championships for Day 2 results.