CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – The Eastern Illinois Track and Field team concluded the 2025 Ohio Valley Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships with a third place finish from each the men’s and women’ team. The men finished with 157 points as the women finished with 92.

Day One

The morning section featured the first portion of the heptathlon and decathlon. Sach Wolf and Zach Stout secured the fourth and sixth place spots in the decathlon as Anna Jones finished in eighth in the heptathlon.

Isabella Fabrizio continued Thursday’s effort for the Panthers, securing a bronze medal in the women’s hammer throw after recording a toss of 52.66m. This marks Fabrizio’s second medal of the calendar year, after earning a second place finish in the shot put at the OVC Indoor Championships in February.

Jacob Maxwell and Sam Bradbury also posted a strong performance in the hammer throw, as Maxwell finished fourth with a mark of 54.08m while Bradbury followed close behind in fifth with a distance of 50.06m.

The track featured more top finishes from EIU, beginning with Hallee Thomas in the 400m hurdles. Thomas finished in third place and moved on to the finals in the women’s 400m hurdles after posting a time of 1:03.24.

Daniel Lacy and Jahleel Perrin also advanced to the finals in the men’s 200m dash, as Lacy finished with the top time of 21.21. Perrin would cross the finish line in 21.85 to claim the final qualifying spot on Sunday. Kenyetietta Quinn qualified in the women’s 200m dash with a time of 24.50 to finish fifth in the prelims.

The women’s 10,000m run was the final event of the evening, where two Panthers recorded a strong finish. Mackenzie Aldridge pushed ahead late to earn a fourth place finish with a time of 37:27.87 while Kylie Haacke finished sixth after logging a time of 38:23.77.

Day Two

Nathan Kirby kicked off day two for the Panthers, securing the top time of 14.48 in the 110m hurdles prelims to move onto the finals on Saturday. Hallee Thomas followed suit in the women’s 100m hurdles, recording a time of 14:54 to slide into the final qualifying spot.

Sam Bradbury and Jacob Maxwell once again found themselves at the top of the leaderboard in another field event, this time being the discus. Bradbury earned a third-place finish with a toss of 52.85m while Maxwell finished close behind in fourth with a mark of 48.36m.

The men’s and women’s 3000m Steeplechase featured three different Panther athletes who finished in one of the top three spots on the podium. Rylea Borgic headlined the women’s section, securing a gold medal after crossing the finish line in 10:59.53. Cale Smith and Mason Stoeger manufactured success in the men’s division, earning the second and third place spots with times of 9:37.44 (Smith) and 9:39.81 (Stoeger).

Billy Bailey and Daniel Lacy got things started for the sprinters, each logging qualifying times for Sunday’s 400m dash finals. Bailey finished in seventh with a time of 48.47 as Lacy placed second after completing a lap in 47.85.

The 100m dash highlighted two panther athletes who moved on to the finals, one in the men’s division and one in the women’s. Tyler Dillion posted the third best preliminary time of 1:53.30 in the men’s section as Abby Venhaus finished fourth, crossing the finish line in 11.81.

The men’s 800m run featured two more EIU athletes who are advanced to the final heat. Tyler Dillon and Isai Morales both ran qualifying times as Dillon placed third (1:53.30) and Morales placed seventh (1:54.15) to move on to Sunday.

Friday evening’s action was interrupted by a thunderstorm beginning around 5:30pm CT before the decision was made to postpone the remaining events until Sunday morning. The remaining events from Saturday consist of the women’s discus, women’s long jump, men’s high jump finals.

Day Three

Saturday’s slate was filled with finals and championship events, beginning with the men’s high jump that was postponed from Friday evening. Elijah Skutt and Abraham Johnson found success in the event, as Johnson placed fourth reaching a height of 2.02m as Skutt finished third on the podium with a mark of 2.05m.

Abby Venhaus continued her long jump efforts from the night before, claiming the silver medal in the women’s division after jumping a distance of 5.96m. Taryn Tarquin also posted a strong performance in the sand pit, securing a silver medal in the triple jump with a distance of 12.08m.

The EIU men’s 4x100m relay team consisting of Israel Jackson, Shawn Lacy, Jahleel Perrin, and Daniel Lacy posted a strong second place finish after crossing the finish line in 40.88. The men’s 4x400m relay team also found success on the track, as Billy Bailey, Spencer Wilson, Tyler Miller, and Daniel Lacy combined for a time of 3:11.36 to claim the bronze medal.

Four additional Panther athletes finished Saturday’s action with a first place finish in their respective event.

Daniel Lacy once again found the podium, but this time in a solo event in the 400m dash. Lacy proved why his season long OVC record stood strong, earning a gold medal and a first-place finish after recording a time of 47.02. Nathan Kirby was the other Panther sprinter to earn gold in their event, logging a time of 14.30 in the men’s 110m hurdles.

Cale Smith and Isai Morales formulated the success in the distance events for EIU, as they also each earned a first-place finish in their events. Smith would go on to earn his second medal of the weekend, this time being a gold, after crossing the finish line in 3:49.95 in the men’s 1500m. Morales then posted a strong 800m time of 1:54.71 shortly after to claim the final first-place finish for the Panthers.

Final Scores

Men:

SEMO – 216.50

LR – 164.50

EIU – 157

TSU -78.50

SIUE – 59.50

UTM – 52

Women:

SEMO – 191

LR – 123

EIU – 92

SIUE – 72

TSU – 72

LU – 63

Up Next

The Panthers are set to participate in the NCAA West Regionals hosted at E.B. Cushing Stadium in College Station, Texas on May 28-31.

What started as a small grass volleyball tournament nearly two decades ago has grown into a two-weekend summer event supporting The Little Light House.

The Sandfest Volleyball Tournament is now in its 18th year, raising money for The Little Light House, a nonprofit that provides free education and therapy to children with special needs.

Creator Tracy Weldon says he came up with the idea as a way to give back to his school after his son, who has Down Syndrome, received services at the school.

With no funding from the government or United Way, The Little Light House relies entirely on private donations.

How it Started

Weldon said he originally thought the tournament would be a small event. The first year, only five teams signed up. In 2025, there are 40 teams signed up just for the Junior tournament.

“What started out as a small tournament grew into something that covers two weekends in the summer,” said Weldon.

Juniors Division Tournament in May

The juniors tournament is taking place May 17 and 18 at the Helmerich Park sand volleyball courts near 71st and Riverside. With 40 teams, the matches are spread across two days to avoid long evenings.

Weldon said the juniors competition also helps out the athletes by bridging the gap between indoor and sand volleyball seasons.

Adult Tournament Returns in August

The adult division of Sandfest takes place at the beginning of August. Weldon said teams will play quads and sixes on Saturday, and the doubles competition will be on Sunday.

Weldon said organizers will hand out and post flyers at local courts with information on how to register.

Proceeds Benefit The Little Light House

There is an entry fee for teams, but Weldon said all funds go directly to the cause. The money raised covers court rentals, supplies, and the Little Light House programs. He said organizers do not make any profit.

“As far as support for The Little Light House, I knew that the volleyball community would embrace it somewhat, but I didn’t know that it would be to this extent,” said Weldon.

Mission of the Matches

The Little Light House provides services many families would not otherwise have access to, including speech therapy and early education for children with physical and developmental disabilities.

Weldon said more players have learned about the nonprofit through Sandfest and go on to volunteer.

“Talking to some of them, I found out that it’s the most gratifying hours that they achieved,” he said.

You can find more information on how to volunteer on The Little Lighthouse website.

COLUMBIA, S.C. – Junior right-hander Anthony Eyanson limited South Carolina to two runs through seven innings on Sunday, as top-ranked LSU defeated the Gamecocks, 7-3, at Founders Park.

LSU concluded the regular season with a 42-13 overall record, 19-11 in the SEC, while South Carolina dropped to 28-28 overall and 6-24 in conference play.

LSU is the No. 3 seed in the 2025 SEC Tournament and will play at approximately 6:30 p.m. CT Friday in Hoover, Ala., against an opponent to be determined.

“I’m very proud of the team, we won seven of our 10 SEC series, and that’s a tremendous accomplishment,” said LSU coach Jay Johnson. “Our league is very difficult, and to be consistent is vital to having success. I thought we dealt with adversity well, we dealt with success well, and it was great to get this win today.

“As we go forward into the postseason, we’re going to have to be able to close weekends out, so this was a good exercise. As I always tell the players, everything we do is training for something that we’re going to face in the future.”

Eyanson (9-2) allowed just two runs on five hits in 7.0 innings on Sunday with three walks and five strikeouts.

LSU’s offense was highlighted by a two-run homer by second baseman Daniel Dickinson, and solo homers by first baseman Jared Jones and rightfielder Jake Brown.

Brown and leftfielder Derek Curiel each produced three hits and one RBI on the day.

South Carolina starting pitcher Dylan Eskew (0-4) was charged with the loss after he surrendered four runs on six hits in 4.2 innings with two walks and four strikeouts.

An RBI double by third baseman KJ Scobey gave South Carolina a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning.

A lead-off home run by Jones – his 19^th of the season and 61^st of his career – tied the game at 1-1 in the fourth.

South Carolina regained the lead in the fourth when first baseman Beau Hollins launched a solo homer, his sixth dinger of the season.

The Tigers, however, struck for three runs in the fifth in an outburst highlighted by Dickinson’s two-run homer, his 10^th blast of the year.

LSU increased the lead to 5-2 in the seventh when Brown unloaded a solo shot, his seventh homer of the season.

Curiel’s two-out RBI single in the eighth increased the Tigers’ advantage to 6-2, but a solo homer by South Caroline shortstop Henry Kaczmar narrowed the margin to 6-3 in the bottom of the inning.

Shortstop Steven Milam lined a run-scoring single in the top of the ninth, extending LSU’s lead to 7-3.

NORFOLK, Va. – The North Carolina Central women’s and men’s track & field teams concluded competition at the 2025 MEAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships on May 15-17 at William Price Stadium, with both teams finishing fourth. This is the highest finish in the Division I era for the Eagles in the outdoor championships.

The podium for the women’s teams included Howard (292 points), claiming its fourth consecutive conference title. Norfolk State (189) and Morgan State (74) finished in front of the Eagles. NCCU was one point shy of third with 73 points. Delaware State (72), South Carolina State (50), Coppin State (25) and Maryland Eastern Shore (25) completed the standings.

For the fourth straight year, Norfolk State (227 points) won the men’s conference championship. Coppin State and Howard trailed behind in a tie as both teams collected 111.5 points. NC Central (93), South Carolina State (81), Delaware State (71), Morgan State (67) and Maryland Eastern Shore (52) rounded out the championships.  

Two Eagles won individual gold as Tia Lucas and Gabriel Urraca topped the podium. Lucas won her second career gold in the women’s high jump clearing 1.77m for a new personal record and the top mark in the MEAC. Urraca took home his first medal as an Eagle after throwing 17.61m in the men’s shot put for a season best.  

Two silver medals were placed on the shoulders of Jonathan Raijon-Koger and Nelson Anderson. Raijon-Koger leaped for a season-best 2.09m in the men’s high jump. He also won silver at last year’s outdoor championship and gold indoors this season. Anderson finished second in the men’s hammer throw with 51.10m as his best distance.

Sa’Niya Fowler left Norfolk with two bronze medals in women’s discus (42.92m) and hammer (51.72m). On the track, Nyree Bacchus added to NCCU’s point total after a third-place finish in the women’s 400m (54.62). Laila Jackson ran for her third straight medal in the 800m, this time crossing the finish line in third (2:09.63).

The final two bronze medals went to Matthew Swepson in men’s hammer and javelin throw. In the hammer, Swepson had a season-best 46.95m throw, finishing right behind his teammate Anderson. On the final day, he threw 52.17m, placing third in the javelin event. Swepson also competed in the discus and shot put, finishing sixth in both events. He collected 18 points for the Eagles, earning Outstanding Co-Field Athlete Performer at the championships. This is the third time that Swepson has won this honor throughout his career at NCCU.   

Gold

Tia Lucas – women’s high jump (1.77m) *All-MEAC First Team – HJ

Gabriel Urraca – men’s shot put (17.61m) *All-MEAC First Team – SP

Silver

Jonathan Raijon-Koger – men’s high jump (2.09m) *All-MEAC Second Team – HJ

Nelson Anderson – men’s hammer (51.10m) *All-MEAC Second Team – HT

Bronze

Sa’Niya Fowler – women’s discus (42.92m) *All-MEAC Third Team – DT

Sa’Niya Fowler – women’s hammer (51.72m) *All-MEAC Third Team – HT

Matthew Swepson – men’s hammer (46.95m) *All-MEAC Third Team – HT

Nyree Bacchus – women’s 400m (54.62) *All-MEAC Third Team – 400m

Laila Jackson – women’s 800m (2:09.63) *All-MEAC Third Team – 800m

Matthew Swepson – men’s javelin throw (52.17m) *All-MEAC Third Team – JT

Outstanding Co-Field Athlete: Matthew Swepson

Women’s MEAC Outdoor T&F Championships (Division I)

2025 – 4th (73 points)

2024 – 6th (63)

2023 – 6th (56.5)

2022 – 7th (42)

2021 – 7th (4)

2019 – 6th (50.5)

2018 – 8th (28)

2017 – 11th (20)

2016 – 10th tie (22)

2015 – 11th tie (20)

2014 – 6th (54)

2013 – 9th (41)

2012 – 9th (35)

Men’s MEAC Outdoor T&F Championships (Division I)

2025 – 4th (93 points)

2024 – 6th (76)

2023 – 5th (80)

2022 – 5th (75)

2021 – 6th (32)

2019 – 9th (29)

2018 – 12th (18)

2017 – 9th (40)

2016 – 9th (38)

2015 – 10th (14)

2014 – 12th (3)

2013 – 13th (19)

2012 – 10th (30)

*2020 – No outdoor championships due to Covid-19

For more information on NCCU Athletics, visit NCCUEaglePride.com, or download the NCCU Eagles Athletics app.