Keydets Notch 16 Points in Steeplechase, Sit Third at BSC Championships

Men's Track and Field VMIKeydets.com

Keydets Notch 16 Points in Steeplechase, Sit Third at BSC Championships

CHARLESTON, S.C. – The VMI men's track and field team scored 16 points in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, including second and third-place finishes, and Felix Kitur set a meet record in the 800-meter preliminaries during day two of the 2010 Big South Outdoor Track and Field Championships, hosted by Charleston Southern University in Charleston, S.C.

The steeplechase saw Matt Satterwhite (9:22.37) and Matt Sagar (9:22.71) earn All-Big South honors, as Satterwhite was second and Sagar, for the second straight year, finished third. Ian McGinn used a strong closing half-lap to finish seventh, as the freshman posted a time of 9:37.29 to round the Keydet scoring contingent in the event.

“Our entire team did a good job today, as we have had 15 to 20 seasonal best performances over the course of the meet. Several other schools, however, have had similar outings,” said VMI head coach Darrin Webb. “We just have to come out tomorrow ready to go, and I'm confident that will happen. I expect it to be a very tough day of competition, but we will be out there fighting for every last point we can get.”

The team scores show VMI in the midst of a battle for second, as the third place Keydets trail runner-up Coastal Carolina by just two points, 46.5 to 44.5. High Point is fourth with 41 points, while Radford is fifth with 35 markers. Charleston Southern, who is expected to accumulate a large number of points in Saturday's sprint finals, will go into that day in sixth place with 24 points. Winthrop (15), Gardner-Webb (14) and UNC Asheville (5) round out the standings, while Liberty is leading, thanks to its 87 points scored.

While Kitur has not yet added to that point total, the junior out of Eldoret, Kenya looked very strong in the preliminaries of the 800-meter run. He took the lead in the first turn, held it throughout the race and was never seriously threatened en route to a 1:49.76 clocking. That time was a new Big South meet record and also was the top qualifying time for Saturday's final.

In addition to Sagar and Satterwhite, VMI had an additional All-Big South honoree Friday, as Cody Davis finished second in the shot put. Davis' throw of 15.94 meters (52'3 ¾”) earned him the runner-up finish, and gave the junior out of Woodstock, Ga. a new personal best.

Three other Keydets notched points Friday, including two in the decathlon. Michael Munson posted 6,136 points and finished fifth in the 10-event discipline, while freshman Antonio Wood placed just behind him, coming home with 6,097 points in a very close competition. The event was so close, in fact, that the top six in the decathlon were separated by just 306 points.

Dennis James was the other point scorer on the middle day of the Championships, as he tied for fourth place, thanks to a jump of 2.01 M (6'7”).

In other running event preliminaries, the Keydets advanced three competitors to Saturday's 1,500-meter final. Ermin Mujezinovic was VMI's top qualifier, finishing third in the faster of the two heats with a time of 3:59.45. Jason Thorpe advanced on time (4:01.27) out of that same heat, while Dean Gonsalves earned the final automatic qualifying berth out of the first heat (4:01.79).

Finally, James Alexander moved on to the finals of the 200-meter dash, as he finished second in his heat with a 21.51 clocking.

VMI track and field will return to action Saturday, as the Keydets wrap up competition at the 2010 BSC Championships. The men's portion of the meet will get underway at 11 a.m.
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Players Mentioned

James Alexander

James Alexander

Sprints
Junior
Cody Davis

Cody Davis

Throws
Junior
Dean Gonsalves

Dean Gonsalves

Mid-Distance
Junior
Dennis James

Dennis James

High Jump
Junior
Felix Kitur

Felix Kitur

Mid-Distance
Junior
Ian McGinn

Ian McGinn

Mid-Distance
Freshman
Ermin Mujezinovic

Ermin Mujezinovic

Distance
Junior
Michael Munson

Michael Munson

Hurdles
Junior
Matt Sagar

Matt Sagar

Distance
Senior
Matt Satterwhite

Matt Satterwhite

Distance
Senior
Jason Thorpe

Jason Thorpe

Distance
Freshman
Antonio Wood

Antonio Wood

Multis/High Jump
Freshman

Players Mentioned

James Alexander

James Alexander

Junior
Sprints
Cody Davis

Cody Davis

Junior
Throws
Dean Gonsalves

Dean Gonsalves

Junior
Mid-Distance
Dennis James

Dennis James

Junior
High Jump
Felix Kitur

Felix Kitur

Junior
Mid-Distance
Ian McGinn

Ian McGinn

Freshman
Mid-Distance
Ermin Mujezinovic

Ermin Mujezinovic

Junior
Distance
Michael Munson

Michael Munson

Junior
Hurdles
Matt Sagar

Matt Sagar

Senior
Distance
Matt Satterwhite

Matt Satterwhite

Senior
Distance
Jason Thorpe

Jason Thorpe

Freshman
Distance
Antonio Wood

Antonio Wood

Freshman
Multis/High Jump