Hutchinson CC Sports Information
WINFIELD – Sophomore Antonio Cooper placed in four events and qualified for the 2022 NJCAA Outdoor National Championships in two of them to lead the Hutchinson Community College men's track and field team to a team championship at Southwestern College's Jinx Invitational on Saturday.
The Blue Dragons scored 172 team points, defeating runner-up Garden City by 68.5 points. The Broncbusters scored 103.5 points. Ottawa University was third with 85 points.
Cooper's event win in the shot put led a group of four Blue Dragons to capture individual titles on Saturday. Cooper, who qualified for nationals in the shot put and discus was joined by Sharim Hamilton (400-meter hurdles) and Cleydterrious Thompson (200 meters) as qualifiers for the 2022 NJCAA national outdoor championships in May at Gowans Stadium.
Cooper won the shot put with a qualifying distance of 52 feet, 1.75 inches. Cooper's throw was the sixth-best shot put in Blue Dragon history.
Cooper then qualified in the discus with a throw of 154-1, which is the ninth-best discus mark in Blue Dragon history. Cooper also placed fourth in the javelin after a throw of 149-9. He was fifth in the hammer throw after a throw of 124-9.
Thompson won the 200 meters on Saturday and qualified for nationals with a winning time of 21.35 seconds. Thompson posted the fifth-fastest outdoor 200 time in Blue Dragon history. Thompson was also second in the 100 meters in a time of 10.68 seconds, the ninth-fastest outdoor 100 time in Blue Dragon history.
Hamilton finished second in the 400-meter hurdles with a national qualifying time of 10.58 seconds. That time ranked ninth on the Blue Dragon historical charts.
Two other Blue Dragons won events on Saturday. Demetre Browne won the men's long jump at 22-3.5. Alexander Holt won the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 15.31 seconds.
Other top Blue Dragon performances at the Jinx Invite were:
+ Aaron Geissinger placed second in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 10:19.81. That time is the seventh in Blue Dragon history.
+ Andrew Holt was second in the 1,500 meters after a time of 4:09.54, which is the fifth-fastest time in program history. Holt was second in the 5,000 meters with a time of 16:34.86. That time ranked as the 10th-fastest time in Blue Dragon history.
+ Jade Jantzen was second in the pole vault after he cleared 13-7.75.
+ Caleb Manning was second in the triple jump at 45-5.25.
+ Andrei Fuentes was third in the triple jump at 44-11.5.
+ Alexander Holt placed fourth in the high jump after clearing 5-11.5.
+ Thompson placed fourth in the long jump at 21-0.75.
+ Brayden Peterson was fourth in the pole vault at 12-2. Peterson also finished seventh in the javelin at 139-0.
+ Jobe Fowles placed fourth in the discus at 135-1.
+ Caleb Manning was fifth in the high jump after clearing 5-11.5.
+ Carsyn Turpin was eighth in the 1,500 meters with a time of 4:19.15. Turpin was third in the 5,000 meters in a time of 16:38.36.
+ The Blue Dragon 4x400-Meter relay team of Davion Gardenhire, Tracey Mason, Fuentes and Hamilton was second in a time of 3:24.32. The relay team of Browne, Dre'Shun Bridges, Donovan Hines and Thompson was third with a time of 3:25.11.
The Blue Dragons will next compete at the Friends University Invitational on Friday and Saturday in Wichita.