CLINTON, Miss. - The Belhaven Men's and Women's track & field teams turned in a strong showing at the Belhaven Invitational. The meet marked the Blazers' second outdoor competition of the season and first opportunity to host in 2026 and Belhaven made the most of it with standout performances in sprints, hurdles, middle distance, and field events.

MEN'S RECAP
Belhaven's sprint group set the tone early, led by a big improvement from Julius Phillips in the 100 meters. The sophomore clocked a 10.89 to finish fifth overall, shaving significant time off his 11.24 entry mark.

Phillips followed that up with another strong showing in the 200 meters, placing sixth in 22.28, improving on his previous 22.34.

Leeson Taylor III delivered one of the top all-around performances of the day. He posted a 22.53 in the 200 meters, a one-second drop from his 23.44 entry time, and later turned in a 50.94 in the 400 meters, improving on his 51.14 seed.

Freshman Jaheem Cook also showed growth in both events, cutting his 200-meter time from 24.45 to 23.09 and improving in the 400 meters from 53.99 to 53.50.

In the 800 meters, freshman Jacob Turner led the Blazers with a 2:13.90, slightly improving on his entry time. The distance group saw competitive efforts from Donovan Hurst and Drew Duckworth, though both ran just off their previous marks in the event.

Duckworth returned in the 1500 meters and posted a 4:42.29, while Hurst followed at 4:49.85. Peyton Vandevuss also competed in the event, finishing in 4:59.34.

The highlight of the day came in the field events, where freshman Kenneth Mills delivered a historic performance. Mills cleared 2.05 meters (6-8.75) to win the high jump and tie the Belhaven program record set by Joshua Reed at the Mississippi State Invitational in 2016.

Senior Neal Terry added a fourth-place finish in the high jump at 1.80 meters.

Terry also led the way in the long jump with a seventh-place finish at 6.77 meters, improving from his previous outing, while Alex Reed (6.07m) and Cook (5.47m equivalent from Matthews comparison baseline) contributed solid marks. Reed added a fifth-place finish in the triple jump at 12.56 meters.

WOMEN'S RECAP
Yasmyne McCann continued her strong start to the season, placing second in the 100 meters with a time of 12.32, improving on her entry position and remaining competitive among the field. She also posted a 5.13-meter mark in the long jump to finish fifth.

Freshman Brycelyn Townsend impressed in the 100-meter hurdles, placing third overall in 15.69 in one of the top finishes of the day for the Blazers.

Senior standout Kimona Haynes delivered one of the most top performances in her four-year Blazer career. Haynes won the 200 meters in 24.26, improving on her 24.73 entry time, and followed with a victory in the 400 meters in 55.06.

Her 400-meter time ranks as the second-fastest in Belhaven program history.

In the middle-distance events, Courtney Adams (2:42.23) and Myisha Turner (2:45.92) competed in the 800 meters, while Destiny Griffin posted a 3:23.31. Though slightly off their entry marks, the group gained valuable early-season experience.

In the 1500 meters, freshman Jocelyn Belonga showed improvement, cutting time from 6:10.05 to 6:05.63, while Ruth Dixon finished in 6:32.78.

In the field events, freshman Mallory Golden recorded a mark of 1.50 meters in the high jump to place fifth overall.

UP NEXT
Belhaven will look to build on its early-season momentum as the Blazers continue their outdoor slate in two weeks when the Blazers host the Belhaven Midweek Open on Thursday, April 2nd.

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