High Point Leads After Day 1 of 2026 Men's Outdoor Track & Field Championships

High Point Leads After Day 1 of 2026 Men's Outdoor Track & Field Championships

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HIGH POINT, N.C. (www.BigSouthSports.com) – High Point sits atop the standings with 90 points following the first day of the 2026 Big South Men’s Outdoor Track & Field Championships Monday at Vert Stadium on the campus of High Point University.  The Panthers had three individual champions and seven All-Conference performers to build their opening day lead.  Gardner-Webb is in second-place with 36 points, while Charleston Southern is third with 31 points.
 
Champions were crowned on Monday in the Hammer Throw, Long Jump, Pole Vault, Javelin and 10,000-meter run.  Gardner-Webb’s Jon Garrett won the hammer with a distance of 59.63m, marking the second consecutive year a Runnin’ Bulldog has won the event.  High Point’s Justin Sluijter repeated as the victor in the long jump with a leap of 7.49m -- the Big South’s first back-to-back long jump champion since 2001-02.  High Point’s Drew Noblet won the javelin with a throw of 64.67m, marking the program’s first win in the event since 2022.  
 
HPU swept the pole vault for the fourth consecutive year and sixth time since 2019, with Ricardo Montes de Oca earning the gold medal with a Big South Championship Meet-record clearance of 5.50m.  Charleston Southern swept the 10,000m for the second time in three years as Martin Iriondo won the race in 30:24.34.
 
In preliminary action, USC Upstate’s Shriyaan Krishnaraj finished with the top time in the 400m Hurdles at 52.52 seconds, as he seeks to repeat as the event champion.  In the 200m prelims, Charleston Southern’s Laden Beckwith had the top time at 20.72, while High Point’s Gavin Stevens paced the 1,500m runners with a top qualifying time of 3:48.73.
 
Meanwhile, High Point holds the top three spots in the decathlon after five events.  Two-time defending champion Cole Wilson leads with 4,043 points, ahead of Nigel Steenwinkel (3,781 points) and Kelan McCullough (3,259).
 
The Big South Men’s Outdoor Track & Field Championships continue Tuesday, May 12 from Vert Stadium at 12:00pm.  Coverage on ESPN+ begins at 2:30pm.
 
Men’s Standings – Day 1
  1. High Point – 90
  2. Gardner-Webb – 36
  3. Charleston Southern – 31
  4. USC Uspstate – 20.5
  5. UNC Asheville – 8.5
  6. Radford – 7
  7. Winthrop – 2
Men’s Individual Champions – Day 1
Hammer Throw – Jon Garrett, Gardner-Webb
Long Jump – Justin Sluijter, High Point
Javelin – Drew Noblet, High Point
Pole Vault – Ricardo Montes de Oca, High Point
10,000m – Martin Iriondo, Charleston Southern
 
Men’s All-Conference Performers – Day 1
Hammer Throw
  1. Jon Garrett, Gardner-Webb (59.63m)
  2. Joshua Sterling, USC Upstate (57.12m)
  3. Quentin Peterson, Gardner-Webb (55.86m)
Long Jump
  1. Justin Sluijter, High Point (7.48m)
  2. Joshua Powell, Gardner-Webb (7.48m)
  3. Ricardo Montes de Oca, High Point (7.43m)
Javelin
  1. Drew Noblet, High Point (64.67m)
  2. Blaine Blose, Gardner-Webb (61.37m)
  3. Henry Zief, High Point (58.55m)
Pole Vault
  1. Ricardo Montes de Oca, High Point (5.50m – Meet Record)
  2. Jackson Toumey, High Point (5.22m)
  3. Jason Olivera Jr., High Point (5.22m)
10,000m
  1. Martin Iriondo, Charleston Southern (30:24.34)
  2. Hayden Goode, Charleston Southern (30:29.57)
  3. Micah Gilpatric, Charleston Southern (30:32.32)