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University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Women’s DMR Wins Gold to Highlight Day One at Big South Indoor Championships
02.27.2026 | Track and Field
MILL SPRING, N.C. – After the opening day of competition at the Big South Indoor Championships, Asheville sits fifth on the men's side with 18 points and seventh on the women's side with 10 points.
The women's distance medley relay team captured gold to headline day one, while the men's DMR earned silver. Nkosi Jeju also secured a silver medal in the men's long jump. In total, 11 Bulldogs qualified for finals on Saturday.
The women's distance medley relay team of Isabel Richardson, Zoe Bos, Nikole Baikova, and Aneta Kucerová set a new school record of 11:59.05, dipping under 12 minutes for the first time in program history. The performance ranks fifth all-time in Big South history.
In a dramatic finish, Kucerová leaned at the line to secure the victory by just 0.01 seconds. The previous school record of 12:04.83 was set in 2016.
The men's distance medley relay team of Tadiyos Sloan-Westmoreland, Jalice Payton, Jaheem O'Hara, and Jan Málek also rewrote the record book, clocking 10:03.98 to set a new school record and move to No. 6 all-time in Big South history. The previous mark of 10:07.77 was set in 2022.
Jeju opened his championship with a second-place finish in the men's long jump, matching his school-record leap of 7.40 meters to score eight points. He later qualified for the men's 60-meter final with a fifth-place prelim time of 6.91.
Noah Henthorn placed seventh in the men's pole vault, clearing 2.97 meters to score two points, just 0.03 meters shy of his personal best.
Stephen Pryor leads Asheville in the men's heptathlon after four events (60 meters, long jump, shot put, high jump). Pryor has totaled 2,591 points and currently sits fourth overall, including third-place finishes in both the 60 meters and high jump.
Shemarr Session qualified for the men's 60-meter hurdles with a second place finish and a time of 8.10, while Pryor also advanced in fourth with a personal-best 8.43.
Kelechi Anyanwu and Jalice Payton advanced to the men's 400-meter final, placing fifth (48.76) and sixth (49.02), respectively.
In the men's 60 meters, DaMarr Harvey claimed the final qualifying spot in 6.94, joining Jeju in Saturday's final. On the women's side, Kieayla Williams secured the final qualifying position with a personal-best time of 7.74.
Harvey also advanced to the men's 200-meter final with a fifth-place time of 21.63 and will be joined by Ty'vell Foskey, who posted a personal-best 21.69 to take the eighth qualifying spot.
In the 800-meter prelims, Bennett Moreno qualified fifth for the men's final (1:56.02). On the women's side, Baikova (2:17.76) and Ella Warren (2:19.06, PR) advanced in fifth and seventh place, respectively.
Full results from day one of the Big South Indoor Championships are available HERE.
Asheville returns to action Saturday, Feb. 28, beginning with the men's high jump final at 12:15 p.m. The first track final of the day will be the men's mile at 2:00 p.m.
Players Mentioned
