DES MOINES, Iowa – The University of Evansville men’s 4×100-meter relay team of seniors Brendon Smith (Newburgh, Ind./Castle) and Greg King (Indianapolis, Ind.), junior Giovanni Purser (Port Maria, Jamaica) and sophomore Geordan Blades (Avon, Ind./Avon) earned a podium finish on Sunday to help cap a successful weekend for the UE track and field teams at the Missouri Valley Conference Outdoor Championships in Des Moines, Iowa.
Smith, Blades, King and Purser placed third overall in a time of 42.12. It marks the first time in which UE has placed on the podium in a relay event at the MVC Championships. The time of 42.12 is also the fastest on record at Evansville since 1972, when Marvin Cooper, Bob Koehl, Bob Barnett and Jeff Willoughby set the school standard at 42.05.
“The guys today were really locked in,” said UE head coach Don Walters. “They did a great job with their hand-offs and really left it all out on the track today, and I am really proud of them for making the podium. What a great way to wrap up the year!”
The relay teams were the story of the day for UE, as all four relay teams posted season-best marks in the 4×100 and 4×400-meter relays. On the women’s side, the 4×400-meter relay team of seniors Haley Dean (Lacombe, La./Lakeshore), Sam Weldon (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Bishop Dwenger) and Skylar Tucker (Linton, Ind./Linton-Stockton) and freshman Kara Yunker (Evansville, Ind./North) also posted the second-fastest time on record at UE with a time of 4:10.39. It fell just a second and a half shy of the 2019 school record of 4:08.82.
Tucker and Yunker also teamed with seniors Taiza Alexander (Berea, Ky./Berea Community) and McKenna Sapp (Bloomington, Ill./University) to place seventh in the scoring in the women’s 4×100-meter relay in a time of 50.39.
Individually, graduate student Anna Lowry (Taylorville, Ill./Taylorville) capped her distinguished UE running career with a ninth-place finish in the 5,000-meters in a season-best time of 17:03.32. Freshman Denzel Lasam (St. Louis, Mo./De Smet Jesuit) also placed tenth in the triple jump with a leap of 13.11 meters (43’0.25″), while senior Andrew Schuler (Ferdinand, Ind./Forest Park) capped his UE throwing career with a personal-best toss of 40.93 meters.
“We did what we set out to do this year: set PRs and school records,” said Walters. “I really think that we set more PRs this year (168 total) than any other year in which I have coached. That is a real credit to the student-athletes and my assistant coaches for all of the hard work they put in together to get better. While, yes, we were focused on our team finishes this year as well, the real key to our growth this season has been that focus on setting PRs and always trying to get better in meets and in practice.”
Team-wise, Evansville finished eighth on the men’s side, posting UE’s highest men’s scoring total in MVC Championship history, while the women placed ninth in the MVC. Sunday’s action concluded not only the 2022 track and field season, but also the Don Walters’ era as head coach of the Purple Aces. Walters will officially retire from coaching after 23 years as UE’s cross country and track and field head coach at the end of May.
“Today was a very emotional day for me,” said Walters. “I can’t even count how many people came over and talked to me and shook my hand and congratulated me on the job that I have done at UE over the years. It means more than they know, and while it will be tough to step away at the end of the month, it is time for my next adventure in life. I just want to thank all of the student-athletes, coaches and administrators who have made these last 23 years so enjoyable at UE.”
