BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The University of the Incarnate Word men's and women's track & field teams competed in day one of the Southland Conference Championships at the Birmingham CrossPlex on Sunday. The highlight of the opening day was freshman Jeremiah Gilliam's silver medal performance in the high jump.

"I'm proud of what the team did today," head coach Derek Riedel said. "Conference meets always present highs and lows. It's a pressure-packed environment where all the work they've put in comes down to one opportunity to make it happen. We had quite a few highs today and I'm especially please with the perseverance the team showed and hoe they fought through adversity."

"Going into tomorrow we have to execute with valuable points on the line and finish it out. They're focused on doing it for each other so they have the right mentality going into the final day."
 
MEET COVERAGE
Watch: Southland Digital Network
Meet coverage: Championship Central
 
THE MEN'S TEAM
Gilliam was the first Cardinal to earn some hardware at the meet, winning silver in the high jump. He cleared his first three jumps cleanly, but narrowly missed the 6-11 mark for gold. His 2.08-meter jump in the event set a new program record of 6-9.75, knocking down the 6-8.75 record that was set in 2016 at the SLC Championships by Luke Killough.
 
Two Cardinals qualified for the 800-meter final as Matthew Hernandez and Jordan Cherin made crucial strides in the final go-around, taking first in their respective heats. Hernandez ran a time of 1:53.85, while Cherin clocked the best time in the event at 1:53.15.
 
Freshman Richard Kuykendoll qualified for the 400-meter dash finals after taking first in his heat in the prelims with a time of 48.03 seconds.
 
Armando Villarreal set a new UIW freshman record in the 5,000-meter run, recording a time of 5:15.16 that knocked off a record set by Tyler Martin in 2017. Senior Adam Herrera set a personal best in the event when he recorded a time of 15:17.57, beating his previous fastest performance by 10 seconds.
 
Freshman duo Parker Barrett and Dallas Williams, competing in their first career heptathlons, are in fifth and 12th, respectively, after four events in the heptathlon. Williams ran the best time of the heptathletes in the 60-meter dash, crossing the finish line in 7.08 seconds.
 
THE WOMEN'S TEAM
The distance trio of Alia Henderson, Katherine Ramirez and Ivette Alcantar-Herrera qualified for the finals in the one-mile event. Alcantar-Herrera also qualified for the 800-meter run finals as she recorded a time of 2:18.58 minutes.
 
Freshman Afiah Brathwaite competed in the pentathlon for the first time in her career and set a new school record of 3,656 points for a seventh-place finish. She opened the meet taking first in the 60-meter hurdles event with a time of 9.25, and she had the best high jump of the pentathlon of 1.68 meters.
 
Freshman Sabrina Goains set a new freshman program record in the 5,000-meter run with a time of 18:01.43. This was the first time Goains competed in the event. The time also rates as third best in program history.
 
In the pole vault, Alisa Novosad cleared a height of 3.42 meters (11-2.50) and tied for seventh to add points for the UIW team total. This is just the second time a pole vaulter has placed to add to the team total.  
 
Klaire Bentley led the throws squad with a 16.61 meter (54-6.0) throw for a sixth-place finish to add to the UIW team total. Both Antwasnisha Riddle and Victoria Sunday threw personal bests in the event with 15.18m and 14.15m, respectively.
 
Sophomore Oghale Omakor was the top finisher in the sand pit for the Cardinals with a long jump distance of 5.62 meters (18-5.25). Her seventh-place finish was a scoring finish to add to the team total.
 
The women closed out the first day of the meet with a fourth-place finish in the distance medley relay. The relay squad of Madeline Marrone, Rhea Miles, Katherine Ramirez and Megan Hernandez recorded a time of 12:21.45 for a top-10 performance in UIW history.
 
UP NEXT
UIW competes in the final day of the Southland Conference Indoor Championships on Monday morning with the remaining heptathlon events slated for 9 a.m. (CT).
 
For athletes that achieve qualifying marks or have done so throughout the indoor season, the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships will be hosted at the Albuquerque Convention Center in Albuquerque, N.M., March 14-15.
 
FOLLOW ALONG
For the most up to date information on UIW Athletics, visit uiwcardinals.com, follow the Cardinals on Twitter @UIWAthletics and like UIW Athletics on Facebook. 
 
Follow the team on Twitter @UIWTrackXC and on Instagram @uiwtrackxc.