MILL SPRING, N.C.— The Montreat College men's track & field team made its final trip of the regular season to Tryon International on Friday and Saturday to compete in the Tryon Mid-Winter Collegiate Invite. Totaling 20 entries across eight events, the Cavaliers delivered a historic weekend performance, highlighted by two event victories, two national qualifying standards, two school records and 11 personal-best marks.
Friday featured a strong showing in the 600m, where eight Cavaliers represented Montreat. Nathan Cremin led the charge with a first-place finish in a field of 17, clocking a school-record and personal-best time of 1:18.90. He shaved nearly three seconds off his previous mark and lowered the former school record by 0.64 seconds. The Limerick, Ireland native also secured an automatic berth to the NAIA Indoor Track & Field Championships by hitting the 'A' standard in the event. Entering the weekend, his time stands as the second-fastest 600m recorded in the NAIA this season.
Jordan Pippin also turned in an impressive effort in the 600m, earning a third-place finish with a time of 1:25.18. Senor Glenn followed closely behind in fourth, recording a personal-best 1:25.42, more than a half-second faster than his previous mark. Kaden Knight and Sam Duncan added to Montreat's stellar showing with top-10 finishes, as Knight placed eighth with a personal-best time of 1:29.08 and Duncan secured 10th (1:29.94). Yannick Kabera (11th; 1:30.15) and Ethan Bishop (13th; 1:34.93) capped the event with personal-best performances of their own, completing a dominant outing for the Cavaliers.
Saturday brought another wave of personal-best performances for the Cavaliers, beginning with Hunter Smathers in the morning 3,000m. Smathers turned in a strong race, trimming more than three seconds off his previous mark to finish 10th out of 21 competitors with a time of 9:26.02.
David Irabor made his debut in the 400m on Saturday, placing 20th in a competitive field of 51 athletes with a time of 51.57 seconds. Kabera added to Montreat's superb day on the track, turning in another career-best performance in the event. He crossed the line in 53.70 seconds, shaving more than a full second off his prior mark.
Cremin capped his dominant weekend with another historic performance in the 800m. He powered to a first-place finish in a 51-athlete field, posting a personal-best time by more than two seconds while shattering the previous school record by over six seconds. The 1:48.30 time easily hit the 'A' standard, and entering the weekend, it ranks as the fastest time in the NAIA this season and the second-fastest performance in NAIA men's indoor track & field history. Two more Cavaliers added personal-best efforts in the race, as Glenn placed ninth in 1:59.29, while Knight trimmed more than eight seconds off his previous best (30th; 2:06.42).
For full results from the Tryon Mid-Winter Collegiate Invite, click here.
Looking to carry their momentum into the postseason, the Cavaliers return to competition on Feb. 19-20 for the AAC Indoor Track & Field Championships in Winston-Salem, N.C.
