Local athletes help power Redhawks to pair of seconds

The final team results weren't what Southeast Missouri State track and field coach Eric Crumpecker hoped for.

But Crumpecker had few complaints overall about Southeast's performances during the Ohio Valley Conference indoor meet that concluded Saturday in Charleston, Ill.

Southeast's men and women both finished second behind host Eastern Illinois.

EIU's men scored 199 points to 140 for the Redhawks, while EIU's women had 146 points to 108.5 for Southeast.

"It's not the result we were hoping for, naturally, but we had a lot of good performances," Crumpecker said. "Really, we couldn't have done a whole lot better than we did.

"Second place with our women, that's a big improvement from where we were at this time last year [fifth]. The men, like I said a couple of days ago, we're really shorthanded."

The Southeast men were without four of their top performers who are injured. All have won multiple OVC titles.

"If we'd have had those guys, we would have made more of a meet out of it," Crumpecker said. "We should have them back for the outdoor season, so hopefully we'll have a better shot [at the title]."

Southeast's men got a huge weekend from sophomore Tyler Terry, a Central High School graduate.

After winning the long jump Friday with a distance of 24 feet, 5 3/4 inches, Terry captured the triple jump at 48-4 1/2 on Saturday.

"Tyler had two huge personal bests," Crumpecker said. "He's having a really nice year and he's not far off the provisional [national qualifying] standard in the long jump.

"I'm sure we'll take him to a meet next weekend and maybe he can still make it."

A local product also had a big meet on the women's side.

Rachel Kahle, a sophomore from Jackson, was second in Friday's long jump, then placed in the top three in three events Saturday.

Kahle was second in the 200 meters, third in the 60 meters and ran a leg on Southeast's victorious 1,600 relay squad that also included Stymill Conley, Travon Beard and Jerica Hamm.

"Rachel had a really big weekend in a lot of events," Crumpecker said.

Southeast's other winners Saturday were sophomore Josh Uchtman in the men's shot put and freshman Shemeika Brewer in the women's triple jump.

Some other local products also placed.

On the men's side, senior Andy Glass from Jackson was second in the shot put after he finished third in Friday's weight throw, while freshman Max Wieser from Saxony Lutheran was eighth in the 800 after running a leg Friday on the distance medley relay that placed third.

For the women, sophomore Brianna Egbuka from Central was fifth in the shot put. She was eighth in Friday's weight throw.

Men

@z_agate_no tab_no indnt_bld ld:Team totals -- Eastern Illinois 199, Southeast 140, Eastern Kentucky 105, Tennessee State 39.

Southeast's top five

60 -- 5. Yemi Oduwele, 6.90.

200 -- Myron Pettigrew, 22.40; 5. Robert Delaria, 22.57.

400 -- 3. Pettigrew, 50.06; 5. Danny Stults, 50.38.

Mile -- 4. Paul Stemmerman, 4:14.18.

3,000 -- 4. Chris Loseman, 8:45.95; 5. Jason Lumpkin, 8:46.10.

1,600 relay -- 2. Ryan Criglar, Delaria, Stults, Pettigrew, 3:19.41.

Triple jump -- 1. Tyler Terry, 48-4 1/2.

Shot put -- 1. Josh Uchtman, 53-6 1/2; 2. Andy Glass, 50-9 1/2; 4. Richard Martin, 47-11 3/4.

Women

@z_agate_no tab_no indnt_bld ld:Team totals -- Eastern Illinois 146, Southeast 108.5, Murray State 86, Tennessee State 77.5, Eastern Kentucky 71, Austin Peay 55, Jacksonville State 42, Tennessee Tech 37.

Southeast's top five

60 hurdles -- 4. Whitney Thomas, 8.78.

60 -- 3. Rachel Kahle, 7.65.

200 -- 2. Kahle, 25.34.

400 -- 3. Jerica Hamm, 58.40.

Mile -- 3. Juli Koenegstein, 5:05.89.

1,600 relay -- 1. Stymill Conley, Kahle, Travon Beard, Jerica Hamm, 3:57.68.

Triple jump -- 1. Shemeika Brewer, 39-6 1/2.

Pole vault -- 4. Audrey Harwood, 11-5 3/4.

Shot put -- 5. Brianna Egbuka, 44-4.