Final Results

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – Jessica McClelland and Samuel Martin each posted victories in the mile, while Lydia Cromwell recorded the top time in the 5000 as the Christopher Newport track & field teams kicked off the 2013-14 campaign with a solid showing in the season opener at the CNU Holiday Open on Saturday at the Freeman Center.

During the daylong competition, McClelland posted Christopher Newport's top performance of the meet as the senior speedster completed the mile in 5:12.32. Not only was that clocking nine seconds faster than the next closest competitor, but it also marked the third-fastest time in CNU history. Logan Harrington, Graciela Slyer, and Briana Stewart also notched top-10 efforts in the event to round out a well-balanced performance by the Captains.

In other distance events, Cromwell nabbed the top spot in the 5000 after clocking in at 19:14.53, which placed her ninth on the program's all-time list. Julie Machamer also came in second after crossing the line four seconds later, while freshman Emmie Schmitt made her indoor debut with a third-place effort in the event.

On the men's side, Martin claimed the Captains' lone victory after finishing the mile in 4:24.21, which moved him into ninth on CNU's all-time list. Not to be overlooked, Zachary Campbell finished second in the event, while William Rabil came in fifth.

Among other all-time performances, Kendrick McMinn moved to fifth on Christopher Newport's weight throw list with a toss of 14.24 meters, which also placed him fifth overall on Saturday. Teammate Anthony Melton excelled as well, notching a fifth-place performance in the shot put with a 12.72-meter heave.

In other events on the men's side, Nick Hedrick finished seventh in the 800 with a time of 2:06.90, Craig Danner and Daniel Richard placed eighth in the 600 and 5000, respectively, and Troy Newcomer cleared 1.80 meters in the high jump, which was good enough for ninth on Saturday. Christopher Comeau and Alexander Hurd also tied for 10th in the pole vault with a height of 3.60 meters.

Along with the distance runners, Jenna Elliott headlined the women's half of the meet after clearing 1.57 meters in the high jump, which placed her fifth overall. Jennifer Westerholm, Stephanie Taylor, Noel Bartley, and Enuma Ezenwa all notched top-10 performances as well after they eclipsed 1.52 meters.

Later in the meet, Westerholm and Ezenwa teamed up with Harrington and Taylor McCord to place ninth in the 4x400 relay with a time of 4:06.59. Danielle Crowley also led the Captains with a 10th-place effort in the triple jump and a 17th-place showing in the long jump. Leah Richardson pieced together a solid effort as well, finishing 18th in the long jump after leading the team in the 60-meters with a time of 8.30.

Christopher Newport will take the next month off before returning to action with the Maryland Invitational and Ramapo College Indoor Meet on January 18.

---CNU---