Winthrop’s track and field team is set to compete in their second meet of the season at the South Carolina Invitational on Jan. 28 and 29 in Columbia.
Over 40 teams are expected to compete in the invitational, including Campbell, Charleston Southern, High Point and USC Upstate.
According to head coach Ben Paxton, the Eagles opted out of the Carolina Challenge meet that took place on Jan. 21 and 22 due to COVID-19 related reasons.
The Eagles competed in their first meet at Appalachian State on Dec. 3 and 4. Paxton said this meet was to check on how fall conditioning went for the team, and he said the team did not disappoint.
Freshman Jaden Mathieu placed third in this meet with a high jump of 1.88 meters (6-2) which puts him at sixth in the conference. Ambar Nunez-Gomez, a sophomore, placed first in the weight throw with a big throw of 18.07 meters (59-3.5), ranking them first in the conference.
According to Paxton and coach Brent Best, this indoor season will count as a training season for the team. According to Best, this is a fairly new group of athletes along with some returning athletes, which should make the team fairly balanced among talents.
With the recent departure of coach Bobbie Schreiner and rise of graduate assistant Jeremy Falwell, the team is adjusting and transitioning, but Paxton expects the team to come out strong in the end. With the addition of North Carolina A&T (one of the best track programs in the country) to the Big South Conference this season, there is expected to be more competition at the Conference Championship meets.
With the low amount of funding and scholarships available to the team, Paxton does not expect the team to win conference meets but said the team has been able to make the best out of their situation. The team has been able to qualify at least one person to the NCAA Championships every year since 2004.
Senior Bethany Wise is looking forward to this upcoming outdoor season. Due to an injury, Wise will sit out this indoor season, but she expects to train hard and end her last year here at Winthrop on a high note.
Junior Libby Roush said her main goals for this season are to build off of the foundation she built for herself last year (almost qualifying for NCAA’s in discus) and to stay healthy.
