Salisbury men claim first Mason-Dixon Indoor Championship in school history
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - There’s nothing like making history and Saturday, that’s just what the Salisbury University track & field team did. The men’s team became the first in program history to win the Mason-Dixon Indoor Track & Field Conference championship, edging out Gwynedd-Mercy College by just half a point, finishing with 106.5 points. The Salisbury women finished third out of 10 teams.
Salisbury senior Brandon Fugett (Randallstown, Md.) was named the Field Athlete of the Championship while Salisbury coach Jim Jones was named co-Coach of the Year on the men’s side.
The Sea Gulls went into the shot put, the final event of the day, trailing Gwynedd-Mercy by 17.5 points and got a huge effort from Fugett, freshman Dimitri Branford (Annapolis, Md.) and freshman Matt McMurdo (Chalfont, Pa.), who finished first, third and fifth, respectively in the event, to claim 18 points and the championship.
Fugett improved his NCAA season-best distance in the shot put, with a toss of 57 feet, 0.75 inches, which also broke the Mason-Dixon Conference record which stood for the last six years.
Although the men’s championship came down to the final event, to gain the 106.5 points necessary took a team effort. The Sea Gulls certainly got that, winning three events and claiming 11 All-Conference performances (top three finishers in an event are named All-Conference).
Along with Fugett’s shot put win, Salisbury saw senior Delannie Spriggs (Owings, Md.) win the 55-meter dash, with an NCAA automatic qualifying time of 6.34 seconds, and junior Brandon Lane (Hillsborough, N.J.) win the triple jump with a distance of 44 feet, 10.75 inches.
Senior Cory Beebe (Medina, Ohio) claimed a school record in the 400-meter dash, finishing second with a time of 50.17 seconds.
The women also had a very successful day, winning two events and claiming seven All-Conference performances. Freshman Chelsea Tavik (Glen Burnie, Md.) took home the women’s shot put with a distance of 38 feet, 11 inches. The put bettered her own school record and led the Sea Gulls to claim four of the top five spots in the event. The Salisbury women also took home a win in the weight throw with sophomore Jennifer Houghton (Mt. Laurel, N.J.) finishing with a distance of 45 feet, 10 inches.
Sophomore Amanda Zyzak (Damascus, Md.) broke the school record in the 55-meter dash, with a time of 7.55 seconds, placing third in the event on Saturday.
Salisbury will be back in action next Sunday when the Sea Gulls travel to Fairfax, Va., to take part in the George Mason Winter Games. It will be one of two remaining chances for the Salisbury athletes to qualify for the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships, which will be held March 12-13 in Greencastle, Ind.
Salisbury’s All-Mason-Dixon Conference performers
Men
Chris Barnard (dist. medley)
Cory Beebe (400m dash, 4x400)
Travis Boccher (dist. medley)
Dimitri Branford (shot put)
Quentin Briscoe (triple jump, 55m hurdles, 4x400)
Brandon Fugett (shot put, weight throw)
Brandon Lane (triple jump)
Michael Marfut (4x400)
T.J. McPhaul (dist. medley)
Matt Miller (dist. medley)
Paul Moore (4x400)
Delannie Spriggs (55m dash, 200m dash)
Women
Lauren Foreman (4x400)
Rachel Holtzman (weight throw)
Jennifer Houghton (shot put, weight throw)
Claire Lawrence (4x400)
Chelsea Tavik (shot put)
Amy Taylor (400m dash, 4x400)
Amanda Zyzak (55m dash, 4x400)
Mason-Dixon Conference Championship team scores
Men
(points)
1. Salisbury (106.5)
2. Gwynedd-Mercy (106)
3. Christopher Newport (75)
4. Mary Washington (57.5)
5. Methodist (50)
6. Virginia Wesleyan (35)
7. Wesley (18)
8. Frostburg State (16)
9. Shenandoah (1)
Women
(points)
1. Christopher Newport (147.5)
2. Gwynedd-Mercy (75)
3. Salisbury (69)
4. Methodist (54)
5. Frostburg State (42.5)
6. Mary Washington (38.5)
7. Catholic (13)
8. Shenandoah (12)
9. Wesley (7)
10. Virginia Wesleyan (5.5)
