COLUMBIA, S.C.— The Montreat track and field teams competed at the Gamecock Invitational in Columbia, S.C. on Saturday, sending a solid contingent of athletes to continue their preparation for next weekend's Appalachian Athletic Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Despite going up against a field chock-full of NCAA Division I and NCAA Division II schools, the Cavaliers pieced together plenty of top-15 results and a trio of standards.
 
JaJa Davis was one of two Cavaliers to hit an NAIA "A" standard on Saturday. Participating in the men's shot put, Davis recorded a throw of 16.58m. The Virginia Beach, Va. native's distance cleared the "A" standard by 0.73m and bagged a fifth-place finish. Davis also competed in the men's discus, finishing 11^th on a 40.19m mark.
 
Dustin Blevins joined Davis in registering an NAIA "A" standard at the Gamecock Invitational. The man who currently owns the best long jump mark of the 2022 outdoor season once against soared farther than many of his counterparts. Blevins placed second in the men's long jump with a leap of 7.37m, clearing the "A" standard by 0.12m. Lamont McNeil joined Blevins with a top-15 bound in Saturday's long jump, finishing 12^th at 6.58m.
 
Montreat's third and final standard from Saturday came on the track. Dylan Branch, who owns the Cavalier record in the 800m, recorded the fifth-best time in the men's 800m invite at the Gamecock Invitational. Branch's time of 1:53.65 surpassed the NAIA "B" standard and currently ranks in the top 20 of official times by NAIA runners this season.
 
The Montreat men's 4x100m relay team almost joined their fellow teammates in hitting a national mark. Darrian Bonilla, Blevins, Gregory Curry II and Travion Smith combined to run their race in 42.49 seconds, missing the NAIA "B" standard by just 0.59 seconds.
 
Among the top women's competitors from Saturday was Adrianna Gullette. The freshman from Winston-Salem, N.C. registered a 200m time of 26.96 seconds, just 0.80 seconds shy of tying the Montreat women's track and field record in the event. Gullette also competed in the women's 400m dash, placing 21^st with a time of 1:08.02.
 
Five other Montreat men finished inside the top 10 in their respective events this weekend, with four coming in field events. In the men's javelin throw, Joel Simpson impressed with his sixth-place mark of 42.43m. Meanwhile, in the men's hammer throw, Brady Roth delivered on an eighth-place distance of 44.27m. Micah Matheson and Gabriel Ray each finished ninth on Saturday, with Matheson eclipsing 4.55m in the men's pole vault, and Ray soaring 13.80m in the men's triple jump.
 
Caleb Silver rounded out Montreat's top-10 performances as the Smithfield, N.C. native ran the men's 800m in 1:56.77.
 
For a full list of results from the Gamecock Invitational, click here.
 
The Montreat track and field teams now head to Johnson City, Tenn. on Friday and Saturday for the AAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Competition is slated to begin on Friday at 12:00 p.m.