The Rhodes Track & Field team hosted the Rhodes College Invitational this weekend, celebrating Senior Day while welcoming a competitive field that included teams from across all divisions as well as several unattached professional athletes. The Lynx delivered a strong showing across events, highlighted by numerous personal bests, collegiate debuts, and multiple podium finishes.
Sprints & Hurdles
Rhodes saw solid performances across the sprint and hurdle events. Freshman David Kienast led the way in the short sprints, running 11.15 in the 100m and 23.36 in the 200m, while sophomore Clayton Wentworth followed closely with an 11.23 in the 100m.
In the 400 meters, sophomore Sumay Frueh placed 6th overall with a time of 51.92. Junior Mark Hanson finished 14th. Senior Bryce Tuchner turned in a strong showing in both hurdle events, placing as the top collegian in the 110m hurdles with a time of 15.80 and finishing 4th in the 400m hurdles.
Distance Highlights
The Lynx distance squad produced several standout efforts, including personal bests and strong finishes across middle- and long-distance events. In the 800 meters, freshman Collin Dillingham led Rhodes with a 4th-place finish in 1:58.97, while Mercer Murphy followed in 2:01.28 to place 6th. Senior Jack Sullivan competed in the mile, finishing in 4:37.23, while sophomore Wright McManus made his debut at the distance, running 4:41.72.
The 5000 meters saw a number of strong performances, highlighted by junior Diego Donald's 6th-place finish in 15:29.15. Freshman Anderson Frank impressed in his first collegiate 5k, finishing in 15:58.06. Additional efforts came from Jack Hinds (16:12.19), Owen Foster (16:34.06), and Ian McCormack (17:06.49). In the steeplechase, junior Daze Evans delivered a standout performance, placing 2nd overall in 10:37.07.
Field Events
Rhodes had a strong presence in the field events, highlighted by multiple top finishes and personal bests.
Junior Devin Caddle recorded a personal best in the high jump, clearing 1.78m to place 3rd overall. Senior Liam Conroy delivered an impressive series of performances, finishing 3rd in the javelin with a throw of 52.58m and 7th in the hammer with a mark of 43.39m, while also competing in the pole vault (3.35m).
In the horizontal jumps, Sumay Frueh posted a 6.09m mark in the long jump and a 12.62m jump in the triple jump, placing 6th in the latter. Freshman Nathan Copeland added a 12.48m mark in the triple jump and 5.86m in the long jump. Mark Hanson also jumped a collegiate best mark of
6.06m in the long jump. Sophomore Will Crimm opened his outdoor season in the throws, recording marks of 9.13m in the shot put and 24.79m in the discus.
Relays
Rhodes relay teams also turned in strong performances. The 4x100 relay team of Clayton Wentworth, David Kienast, Sumay Frueh, and Mark Hanson finished 5th in 43.59.
The 4x400 relay team of Frueh, Hanson, Dillingham, and Wentworth placed 2nd with a time of 3:32.42, while the 4x800 relay team of Sullivan, Dillingham, Murphy, and McManus also secured a 2nd-place finish in 8:02.53.
With a wide range of personal bests, collegiate debuts, and strong finishes, the Lynx capitalized on the opportunity to compete at home while honoring their seniors. The Lynx will head to Saint Louis this weekend to compete in the WashU Invitational where they will look to build on this momentum as the outdoor season.
Senior Recognition:
Thank you and Congratulations to our seniors for your dedication, leadership, and lasting impact on the Rhodes Track & Field program:
Daniel Blaich (Decatur, GA)
Liam Conroy (Tampa, FL)
Owen Foster (Naperville, IL)
Jack Sullivan (Chattanooga, TN)
Bryce Tuchner (Mount Prospect, IL)
Congratulations to all the seniors for their dedication and lasting impact on Rhodes Track & Field. Their leadership and performances will leave a lasting legacy for future Lynx athletes.
