Pirates Set for Dick Taylor Carolina Challenge Friday and Saturday

Friday, January 17

Chapel Hill, NC

East Carolina University

Dick Taylor Challenge

Pirates Set for Dick Taylor Carolina Challenge Friday and Saturday

January 16, 2025 | Track & Field

Live Results Meet Info

GREENVILLE, N.C. - The East Carolina track & field team is set to return to competition on Friday and Saturday at North Carolina's Dick Taylor Carolina Challenge. The action begins at 5 p.m. on Friday and picks back up at 11 a.m. on Saturday.

The Pirates will be looking to build on a tremendously successful opening week which resulted in Kelly Ufodiama and J Henry Lyon being named American Athletic Conference Track Athletes of the Week. It was the first time since joining the conference that the team has had multiple weekly honorees in one week, indoor or outdoor.

Following the first week of competition, the Pirates have 10 marks which rank in the top 50 in the NCAA and 11 more still ranked in the top 100.

ECU Entries
Women
60m: Andralyn Livingston, Natalie Mial
500m: Kamoy Campbell, Amaya Pleas
1,000m: Navaya Zales, Abrielle Schweitzer, Eliza Greengrass, Madelyn Mead, Sarah Ann Miller
1 Mile: Bella Wood, Katrina Ford, Ava Elliott
60mH: Naturi Robinson
PV: Adeline Woodward, Sarah Smith

Men
1 Mile: Zach Willer, Nick Willer, Cooper Kleckner, Judah Lacroix
60mH: Avery Fraley
PV: Fraley
LJ: Fraley
TJ: Javariante Core

Last Time Out
The season started with a bang at the Clemson Invitational as the Pirates won six events, tied-or-broke three program records, and made 14 changes to the program top 10 lists. The star of the day was unquestionably true freshman Kelly Ufodiama who took a torch to the program record book in her first collegiate outing.

Ufodiama, a sprinter by way of Round Rock, Texas, broke the program records at both 60m and 200m, taking the event win in the 200m as well. Her time of 7.26 seconds in the 60-meter dash prelim bested by one-hundredth of a second Melicia Mouzzon's program record from a season ago before her 7.27 result in the final gave her a second-place overall result. Her true masterpiece, though, was her 200m run, in which she finished with a time of 22.99 seconds. Notable for several reasons, Ufodiama became the first Pirate ever to run under 23 seconds in the event and as of writing stands atop the national rankings through three weeks of competition in the 2024-25 indoor season in the NCAA.

The sprints group wasn't the only one which saw a record on Saturday, however. J Henry Lyon tied a record which has long seemed in danger as he equaled Matthew Dennish's 4:08.09 in the men's mile. The result was also good enough for a win in the event with teammate Alex Sawyer just behind in 4:09.61.

A few other Pirates found themselves standing atop a podium, so to speak, in the meet, representing the jumps group, Skyler Harrelson took a victory with a long jump effort of 5.96m (19-6.75) which now ranks fifth in program history. From the throws group, Jocelyn Pringle took a not altogether unexpected lead in the weight throw with a toss of 19.83m (65-0.75) which catapults her into fourth in program history.

Back on the rack, Kaylee McCullough made it a sound day for the distance group with a 9:50.14 run in the 3,000m, taking a victory and sixth in program history.

On the men's side, Shakiel Dacres had an excellent outing in the shot put with a toss of 16.72m (54-10.25), good for an event win and breaking a tie with Logan Carroll to move to solo sixth in ECU history.