Ladipo sets school record for Blazers at PNC Bank Bellarmine Classic

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The Vincennes University Men’s and Women’s Track and Field teams had another successful day Friday down in Louisville, Ky. at the 2025 PNC Bank Bellarmine Classic.

VU sophomore Olamipo Ladipo (Sao Paulo, Brazil) set a new school record for Vincennes University, while the Trailblazers also picked up a pair of NJCAA National Qualifiers during the meet.

Vincennes was obviously headlined on the day by Ladipo who set a new school record in the 200 meter dash with a time of 21.63 seconds and also pulled double duty on the day to take first place in the 400 meters, finishing a full second ahead of the next runner with a time of 48.70.

Ladipo was joined in the 200 and 400 meter races by sophomore Zion Pruitt (Avon, Ind.) who placed 23rd in the 200 at 23.10 and 18th in the 400 at 53.55.

VU freshmen sprinters Artezz Butler-Sanders (Indianapolis, Ind.), Aaden Mapp (Indianapolis, Ind.) and Marshawn Bradley (Dyer, Ind.) rounded out the Trailblazer squad in the 200 meters with Butler-Sanders taking 35th at 23.65, Mapp took 41st at 24.32 and Bradley placed 43rd at 24.83.

This trio also ran in the 60 meter sprint for the Trailblazers with Butler-Sanders placing 28th at 7.32 seconds, Mapp taking 34th at 7.54 seconds and Bradley placing 36th at 7.59 seconds.

Freshman Karmiel Williams (Jasper, Ind.) was the fastest Trailblazer on the day, placing 26th in the 60 meter dash at 7.29 seconds, while freshman Devin Wilson (Indianapolis, Ind.) placed 39th at 7.66 seconds.

Freshman Anis Abdaoui (Kairouan, Tunisia) picked up his second NJCAA National Qualifying time of the season, placing eighth in the Mile with a time of 4:13.61.

Sophomore Tanner Spence (Carmi, Ill.) and freshman Hayden Kler (Hillsboro, Ind.) ran in a different section of the Mile race, with Spence placing 36th at 4:32.78 and Kler placing 54th on the day at 5:02.29.

Freshman Dakoda Greci (Danville, Ind.) placed 25th in the 800 meters with a time of 2:10.58, while the VU runners were rounded out on the day in the 3000 meters.

Sophomore Cody Noel (Hebron, Ind.) led the crew of VU distance runners in the 3000 meters, placing 29th at 9:07.76.

Sophomore Caden Hostetler (LaGrange, Ind.) and freshman Jeremy Mendez (Velpen, Ind.) were the next VU runners across the line with Hostetler taking 33rd at 9:12.99 and Mendez placing 36th at 9:17.43.

Sophomores Lane Connaway (Carmi, Ill.) and Nathan Whitehead (Vincennes, Ind.) closed out the Men’s track results on the day with Connaway placing 38th in the 3000 meters at 9:23.35 and Whitehead taking 42nd overall with a time of 9:33.10.

In the field events the Vincennes Men’s team were led by freshman Tremayne Brown (Anderson, Ind.) who took the top spot in the high jump after clearing a height of 2.06 meters, qualifying himself for the NJCAA Indoor National Championships.

Freshman Chase Guthrie (Indianapolis, Ind.) also came away a winner on the day for the Trailblazers, taking the top spot in two events, winning the long jump at 6.70 meters and the triple jump at 12.82 meters.

Freshman Anthony Keene (Harrisburg, Ill.) placed fourth in the pole vault Friday after clearing a height of 4.25 meters.

Freshman Cayden Gasser (Delphi, Ind.) closed out the day for the Trailblazer men’s team by placing 13th in the shot put with a best throw of 12.05 meters.

“We kept the momentum rolling into the second meet,” VU Interim Head Track and Field Coach Tyler Steigenga said. “Tremayne jumped in his first meet of the year and beat the rest of the field by a wide margin. He won the high jump in a Nationally qualifying mark that places him second in the NJCAA.”

“The 3000m was the first running event of the day,” Steigenga added. “Cody and Caden were just off their PRs in the second heat and after them Jeremy, Lane and Nathan all came away with PR.”

“In the Men’s 60m dash, four out of the five guys running ran their best time ever,” Steigenga said. “Olamipo was the highlight of the day on the team. He had two great performances. He blew away the field in the 400m and won without any challenge. He came back later and finished second in the 200m, just three hundredths of a second off of a qualifying mark. However, he did run a new school record in the event.”

“In the Mile, Tanner ran a PR in his first race of the season,” Steigenga added. “It was a very solid performance coming off a bad ankle sprain a few weeks ago. Anis ran in the invite section of the Mile and he finished with a new PR and NJCAA qualifying time. It was also the second fastest time in school history.”

“Chase had a good meet, winning the long jump and triple jump, the latter being his first attempt at the event,” Steigenga said. “Cayden finished off the competition for VU with a three foot PR in the shot put.”

The Vincennes University Women’s track team was led on the day by freshman sprinter Zoe Allen (Anderson, Ind.) who came away with a seventh place finish in the 60 meter hurdles at 9.42 seconds and also took home 19th place in the 200 meters at 26.72 seconds.

Freshman Sara Belgacem (Tunis, Tunisia) also pulled double duty Friday in Louisville, placing 15th in the 800 meters at 2:27.89 and taking 23rd in the 400 meters at 1:05.41.

Sophomores Jasmyn Self (Casey, Ill.) and Adi Fuller (Evansville, Ind.) joined Belgacem in the 800 meter race with Self placing 30th at 2:37.33 and Fuller taking 31st place at 2:38.11.

Fuller would then return to the track for the 3000 meter race, where she placed 18th overall with a time of 11:06.73.

Freshmen Alexis Hale (Evansville, Ind.) and Allie Black (Lynn, Ind.) rounded out the Women’s track results in the Mile race.

Hale placed 30th in the mile with a time of 5:47.90 and Black placed 39th overall with a time of 6:02.52.

The Women’s team was led in the field events by sophomore and two-time NJCAA National Champion Sophia Salvi (Sao Paulo, Brazil) who finished fifth on the day in the pole vault after clearing a height of 3.46 meters.

The Vincennes results from Friday’s meet were rounded out by freshmen Tamia Taylor (Vincennes, Ind.) and Braylee McKinnon (Linton, Ind.).

Taylor placed 20th in the shot put with a best throw of 7.81 meters, while McKinnon finished 21st in the shot put with a throw of 7.74 meters.

“Adi was the lone women to run the 3000m for us and she had a solid showing in her first attempt at the distance,” Steigenga said. “Zoe had another big PR in the 60m hurdles, knocking three tenths of a second off her PR from last week.”

The Vincennes University Track and Field teams will look to continue to build on this early season success as they get set to head down to Louisville for the third straight weekend Friday, Jan. 31 and Saturday, Feb. 1 for the two-day PNC Lenny Lyles Invitational.

This will be the third out of four straight weekends the Trailblazers will travel to Louisville for a meet, with VU heading back down Friday, Feb. 7 to take part in the Eastern Indoors Collegiate meet.

“We picked up right where we left off last week and continued to add more National qualifying marks and PRs,” Steigenga said. “Next week we will target a few more and get ready to come back to Louisville again for our most competitive meet of the season.”

VINCENNES RESULTS

MEN’S RESULTS

60m

Karmiel Williams – 26, 7.29

Artezz Butler-Sanders – 28, 7.32

Aaden Mapp – 34, 7.54

Marshawn Bradley – 36, 7.59

Devin Wilson – 39, 7.66

200m

Olamipo Ladipo – 2, 21.63

Zion Pruitt – 23, 23.10

Artezz Butler-Sanders – 35, 23.65

Aaden Mapp – 41, 24.32

Marshawn Bradley – 43, 24.83

400m

Olamipo Ladipo – 1, 48.70

Zion Pruitt – 18, 53.55

Dakoda Greci – 25, 2:10.58

Mile Section 1

Tanner Spence – 36, 4:32.78

Hayden Kler – 54, 5:02.29

Mile Section 2

Anis Abdaoui – 8, 4:13.61

3000m

Cody Noel – 29, 9:07.76

Caden Hostetler – 33, 9:12.99

Jeremy Mendez – 36, 9:17.43

Lane Connaway – 38, 9:23.35

Nathan Whitehead – 42, 9:33.10

High Jump

Tremayne Brown – 1, 2.06m

Pole Vault

Anthony Keene – 4, 4.25m

Long Jump

Chase Guthrie – 1, 6.70m

Triple Jump

Chase Guthrie – 1, 12.82m

Shot Put

Cayden Gasser – 13, 12.05m

WOMEN’S RESULTS

200m

Zoe Allen – 19, 26.72

400m

Sara Belgacem – 23, 1:05.41

800m

Sara Belgacem – 15, 2:27. 89

Jasmyn Self – 30, 2:37.33

Adi Fuller – 31, 2:38.11

Mile

Alexis Hale – 30, 5:47.90

Allie Black – 39, 6:02.52

3000m

Adi Fuller – 18, 11:06.73

60m Hurdles

Zoe Allen – 7, 9.42

Pole Vault

Sophia Salvi – 5, 3.46m

Shot Put

Tamia Taylor – 20, 7.81m

Braylee McKinnon – 21, 7.74m

Cuff’s career game lifts Aces past Beacons

Aces take 78-68 road win at Valparaiso

VALPARAISO, Ind. – Tanner Cuff scored a career-high 22 points to lead the University of Evansville men’s basketball team to a 78-68 road victory over Valparaiso at the ARC.

Cuff was 8-for-12 from the field on the way to his career game.  His previous scoring high of 18 points came earlier this season against Chattanooga.  Just behind Cuff was Gabriel Pozzato who finished with 21 points.  Both led the Purple Aces with seven boards.  Tayshawn Comer completed the game with 17 points while Connor Turnbull reached double figures once again with 11.  He matched his career mark with six blocked shots.

“We stayed with the plan and did what we needed to do to come away with the win.  I am proud of our guys for how they battled from start to finish,” Evansville head coach David Ragland said.  “The way we practiced yesterday really set the tone for today.  Our guys brought intensity and focus that carried over into the game.”

Shooting 66.7% in the first half, the Purple Aces found themselves up by 18 at the break. Gabriel Pozzato found Tanner Cuff for the first basket of the game with Valpo taking its first lead with four in a row.  Tayshawn Comer found Connor Turnbull for a basket to put the Aces back in front before Comer hit from downtown to give UE an 11-6 lead five minutes into the game.

At the 12:45 mark, a dunk by the Beacons cut the UE lead to 17-16 before Comer responded with a layup to cap an 8-of-11 start from the field.  As the clock moved under eight minutes to play in the first half, it was Comer knocking down his third 3-pointer of the day to push the lead to eight points at 29-21.

Evansville’s largest run came in the late stages of the period.  Up 30-23 with 7:14 remaining until halftime, UE outscored Valpo by a 14-2 margin to take its largest lead at 44-25.  Turnbull had a putback dunk during the stretch while Kaia Berridge and Comer added triples to expand the advantage.  Valparaiso hit a free throw in its final possession to make it a 44-26 at halftime.

In the first possession of the second half, Pozzato’s third triples of the day gave the Aces their first 20-point lead at 47-26.  With 13 minutes remaining, a triple by Tanner Cuff expanded the UE advantage to a game-high 22 points at 62-40.  The Beacons countered over the next three minutes, posting nine points in a row to cut the deficit to 13.  Comer and Pozzato connected on field goals to prevent the Beacons from getting closer at the lead stood at 66-49 entering the final eight minutes of the game.

The lead for UE went back up to 20 points inside of the 7-minute mark (72-52) before Valpo fought back once again.  With under two minutes remaining, the Beacons stormed back to make it a 10-point game and threatened to get even closer, but a huge make by Turnbull ended the stretch and the Aces came out on top by a final of 78-68.  One play that did not make the scoresheet was by Tanner Cuff.  After the Beacons got within ten, he drew a charge on what would have been a made basket by Valpo.  Instead, UE got the possession and added to its lead.

After shooting 66.7% in the first half, the Aces completed the game at 58.0% while holding the Beacons to 38.6%.  Valparaiso had a 36-31 advantage on the glass.  Cooper Schwieger, All Wright, and Tyler Schmidt led Valpo with 13 points apiece.  On Wednesday, the Aces return home to face Murray State in a 7 p.m. game at the Ford Center.

-www.GoPurpleAces.com-

Screaming Eagles hold on to defeat Panthers, 64-60
USI has won three of its last four

CHARLESTON, Ill. – University of Southern Indiana Men’s Basketball held off a second half surge by Eastern Illinois University to post a 64-60 win Saturday afternoon in Charleston, Illinois. The Screaming Eagles are 9-11 overall and 4-6 in OVC action, while the Panthers go to 5-15, 1-8 OVC.

USI spotted EIU a 7-0 lead to start the game before the Eagles’ sophomore forward Stephen Olowoniyi posted a basket to cut the deficit to 7-2. The Panthers would get their lead to eight points, 10-2, before the Eagles started to close the gap.

The Eagles’ deficit shrank to three points, 12-9, on a bucket by junior guard Jayland Randall with 13:22 on the clock. USI continued its push to a 15-13 lead after a three-point bomb by junior guard Braxton Jones capped off a 13-3 run at 9:51. Jones finished the half with a team-high six points on a pair of three-pointers.

The USI lead would continue to grow to 14 points, 30-16, with a 15-1 run and a shutdown defense that held EIU without a bucket for over 10 minutes (13:02-2:48). The Eagles finished the opening half with an 11-point margin, 30-19.

The 19 points by EIU was the first time USI had held an opponent under 20 points in a half since January 14, 2012 when it held Rockhurst University to 17 points in the first half and 14 points in the second.

The second half started with USI having the hot hand, hitting five-of-six from the field and increasing the halftime margin to 16 points, 42-26. The margin would grow to 20-points, 46-26, on a modest 9-0 run that saw the USI defense hold EIU without a point for another 5:37 (17:21 to 11:44).

EIU would make a push with a 13-4 run midway through the final half, cutting the USI advantage to 11 points, 50-39, with 6:21 to play. The Eagles pushed the lead back to 13 points, 57-43, but the Panthers clawed their way back to within four points with seven seconds left before USI could close out the 64-60 win.

Olowoniyi led the Eagles in the scoring column with 13 points. The sophomore forward was six-of-10 from the field and one-of-two from the stripe. Junior guard Sam Kodi and Jones followed Olowoniyi with nine points each.

Next Up For USI:
The final game of the three-game road swing is Tuesday when USI travels to Morehead, Kentucky, to face Morehead State University. Start time is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. (CST).

The MSU Eagles are 13-8 and an OVC-best 8-2 in the league after falling on the road to Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, 65-54, Saturday. Morehead State has won five of six games and 10 of the last 12.

Morehead State extended its all-time series lead over USI to 4-1 after winning at Liberty Arena, 70-68. USI junior guard Damoni Harrison led USI with a game-high 24 points, while junior guard Braxton Jones came off the bench to score 20.

The next home game for USI at Liberty Arena is February 1 when it starts a three-game homestand by hosting Tennessee Tech University. Tickets for the homestand and all USI home dates are on sale now at USIScreamingEagles.com.