ECU Athletic Media Relations

CHAPEL HILL – The East Carolina track and field program got the outdoor season off to a solid start, as the Pirates tallied 10 first-place finishes at the Carolina Relays, while the women’s 4×100-meter relay team set a new school record.

“For the first meet of the outdoor season things went pretty well,” Head coach Curt Kraft said. “Both teams have to understand that when you go from the indoor season to the outdoor season there is transition involved. The big difference is weather conditions.”

The Pirate relay squads all turned in excellent performances, as the women’s 4×100-meter relay squad, the women’s 4×400-meter relay team, and the men’s 4×100-meter relay crew all earned first-place finishes in their respective events. The women’s 4×100-meter relay team tallied a time of 45.23, which was just .18 seconds off of the current ECU school record. Meanwhile, the women’s 4×400-meter relay squad recorded a time of 3:52.38 to win the event. The Pirates’ time was more than two seconds faster than the second-place finisher. Finally, the men’s 4×100-meter relay team also registered a first-place finish, as they notched a time of 40.56 which was almost two seconds better than the second-place squad.

In addition to the three first-place relay performances, the Pirates were led by sophomore Avion Jones, who won the men’s high jump and finished second in the triple jump. Jones registered a clearance of 2.11-meters (6-11.00) in the high jump. His mark is also good for third in the ECU all-time record book. Jones came back and tallied a mark of 14.48-meters (47-06.25) to place second in the triple jump.

The Pirate men claimed the top three spots in the long jump as Cameron Hudson, Alexander Mobley-Hollie and Austin Lewis came in first, second and third respectively. Hudson won the event with a mark of 7.31-meters (23-11.75), while Mobley-Hollie followed with a tally of 7.00-meters (22-11.75), and Lewis recorded a ledger of 6.95-meters (22-09.75).

Hudson also earned a first-place finish on the track as he won the men’s 200-meter dash with a time of 21.42. He paced Hunter Furr, who came in third with a time of 21.70, Michael Neal, who placed fourth with a tally of 21.92, and Joe Wilson, who finished sixth with a time of 22.15.

Also on the track, Joseph Samuels won the men’s 110-meter hurdles with a time of 14.66. Samuels set the tone for teammates Tashaun Hill, Demonte Wilson and Mobley-Hollie. Hill placed third with a time of 14.88, while Wilson finished fourth with a time of 15.01, and Mobley-Hollie came in fifth with a time of 15.67.

Rodney Johnson rounded out the Pirate men who recorded first-place finishes at the Carolina Relays, as he claimed first in the 400-meter hurdles. His time of 53.02 was .2 seconds faster than the second-place finisher and is good for ninth in the East Carolina record book. Following Johnson was Chandler Chase who placed seventh in the event with a time of 55.82.

In the women’s 400-meter hurdles, Janieyah Collins won the event with a time of 1:03.72. Behind Collins was Aminah Ghaffar with a time of 1:04.70 for a second-place finish and Amber Holloway with a time of 1:05.88 to place third.

In the field, redshirt senior Tynita Butts won the high jump with a mark of 1.71-meters (5-07.25), which was more than two-feet better than the second-place finisher. Butts paced teammates Jasmine Thompson and Shakara Greaves, who placed sixth and eighth respectively. Thompson earned a tally of 1.53-meters (5-00.25), while Greaves recorded a mark of 1.50-meters (4-11.00).

Dana Keister turned in a career-best performance in the hammer throw as she came in second with a heave of 53.33-meters (174-11.00). Her mark ranks her ninth in the ECU all-time record book. Keister set the tone for teammates Kaylee Redon and Chloe Early as Redon placed fourth and Early finished sixth in the event. Redon earned a mark of 50.41-meters (165-04.00), while Early registered a mark of 46.54-meters (152-08.00).

“We had a lot of good performances on both sides,” Kraft said. “But we also have a lot of work to do before we can get to the point of being really competitive.”

East Carolina will continue the outdoor season at the Mountains vs. Beaches meet in Wilmington, N.C., beginning Friday, March 28 and concluding Saturday, March 29.