WINSTON-SALEM, N.C.— The Montreat men's track & field team participated in the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) Men's Indoor Track & Field Championships on Thursday and Friday at JDL Fast Track in Winston-Salem, N.C. Familiar with their surroundings, the Cavaliers impressed against their fellow conference members, notching six event titles and 14 All-AAC performances en route to their third consecutive runner-up team finish.
 
Milligan won the meet with 184.5 points, which surpassed the Cavs' mark by 27.5 points (157). Twelve teams ultimately vied for the conference crown during the 2-day meet. For finishing as the highest-scoring individual across all 20 events, Dustin Blevins was named AAC Most Outstanding Athlete.
 
Thursday featured plenty of fireworks for Montreat, highlighted by Blevins' conference title in the triple jump. The King, N.C. native bounded 14.77m to his top mark, easily meeting the NAIA "A" standard while besting his competition. Blevins claimed the Cavaliers' lone event championship on day one, beating out his fellow jumpers by more than a full meter. Along with his triple jump crown, Blevins also took home all-conference honors.
 
Montreat collected a pair of All-AAC nods in the 1000m thanks to the work of Ruchen Blaauw and Dylan Branch. Blaauw placed as runner-up in the event with his time of 2:28.35, while Branch (2:29.65) finished right behind him in third. Both times qualified as "A" standards.
 
Caleb Wright secured the Cavs' fourth and final national standard from Thursday in the 5000m. The Chatham, Va. native concluded his race in 14:58.82, an NAIA "B" standard and personal-best time that proved good for second overall and an all-conference accolade.
 
Gregory Curry II seized All-AAC recognition in the high jump by clearing 1.88m, a mark that garnered third place. With the five all-conference performances and 10 point-producing finishes, the Cavaliers totaled 55 team points and wrapped up the initial day of action in second place.
 
Montreat captured a pair of event titles early in the day on Friday. After winning the 60m dash prelims on Thursday, Blevins replicated his effort to claim his second conference championship and all-conference nod of the meet. The fifth-year track & field star ended his sprint in 6.94 seconds and was the only runner to complete his race in under seven seconds.
 
Wyatt Wilson snagged the Cavs' other AAC crown on Friday morning. For the third straight year, the junior from Shelby, N.C. marched his way to a first-place finish and an All-AAC nod in the 3000m race walk. Wilson's time of 15:07.03 also met the national "B" standard.
 
Branch, who earned an all-conference honor the day prior, did so again in a stellar 3000m race. A native of Avon Park, Fla., Branch obliterated his school record and set the meet record to take the 3000m title as the afternoon session began to heat up. The upperclassman utilized an "A" standard showing (8:19.55) to beat out his competitors and win Montreat's fourth event championship of the meet. Nathan Stamey (sixth; 8:40.77) met the "B" standard in the 3000m.
 
Blaauw, who also garnered All-AAC recognition with Branch in the 1000m, grabbed the squad's fifth event win. The junior from Cape Town, South Africa proved to be the lone runner who didn't need two minutes to finish the 800m. Blaauw won his race and collected the all-conference accolade with a time of 1:58.25.
 
Not satisfied with a pair of wins, Blevins went out and completed the trifecta with his third AAC crown and all-conference award of the meet. Blevins leaped 6.96m in the long jump, taking first place just ahead of his teammate Curry II. A native of Auburn, Ala. Curry II also captured a spot on the All-AAC Team with his personal-best mark of 6.91m, a performance that hauled in runner-up honors.
 
The Cavaliers corralled a few other all-conference selections on Friday. In the pole vault, Edward McClellan and Davis Nicol tied for third when they both cleared 3.90m. On the track, Branch picked up his third All-AAC honor with a third-place time of 4:22.36 in the one mile.
 
For a complete list of results from the 2024 AAC Men's Indoor Track & Field Championships, click here.
 
Select qualifiers from the Montreat men's track & field team now turn their attention to the NAIA Men's Indoor Track & Field Championships, which are slated for Feb. 29-March 2 in Brookings, S.D.