SALISBURY, Md. - - A number of new marks were set on Saturday as the Wilmington University track & field teams competed at the Eastern Shore Challenge on the campus of Salisbury University.
The track & field program first ran in 2019 and didn't not compete in any events in 2020 before the season was shut down, but Saturday provided a lot to look forward to with the Wildcats on the track and in the field events.
The men produced six new school records, three on the track and three in field events at the Eastern Shore Challenge. Tafadziswa Bunu bested his own mark from Wednesday in the 100-meter while also setting a new 200-meter time. A new record was set by the 4x100-meter relay team, while winning the event, as well. In the field, Joshua Varghese set new marks in the shot put and discus while Mitchell Coll now has the javelin record.
Bunu raced to a third-place finish in the 100-meter, crossing the line in 11.02 seconds, improving by .17 seconds from Wednesday. Matt Hibbert also improved his time from Wednesday by .09 seconds, finishing sixth of 20 runners with a time of 11.19. James Keenan finished 15th overall with a time of 11.60, .08 seconds faster than his time on Wednesday.
In the 200-meter event, Bunu set a new record with a 22.52 second race, finishing third overall. Hibbert was also sub-23 seconds, finishing fifth overall with a 22.85 time. Tyler Levons finished 13th of 22 runners, crossing the line in 23.58 seconds. All times are fast event to qualify for the CACC Championships.
The combination of Keenan, Hibbert, Levons, and Bunu won the 4x100-meter relay event, besting four other teams with a school record time of 43.03 seconds.
In the field, Joshua Varghese set a school record in the discus, and finished second overall with a toss of 43.68 meters (143 feet, 4 inches). He placed fourth out of 11 throwers in the shot put with a school record distance of 13.01 meters (42 feet, 8.25 inches). Mitchell Coll launched the javelin a school record 39.11 meters (128 feet, 4 inches) to finish fourth. Varghese also finished second in the hammer throw, slinging it 44.54 meters (146 feet, 1 inch).
On the women's side, Kayla Crawford placed sixth out of 21 runners in the 800-meter event, running in 2:33.20. She did not run the event on Wednesday at Delaware State. That time qualifies her for the CACC Championships. Yailynn Ramirez finished fourth out of 13 runners in the 1,500-meter event, crossing the line in 5:41.36.
Viviana Caamano improved her distance in the hammer throw from Wednesday, finishing sixth overall with a toss of 26.09 meters (85 feet, seven inches), four and a half feet better than her best toss on Wednesday.
