BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Southeastern Louisiana University track and field team picked up its first two gold medals of the 2024 Southland Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships as Slavko Stevic won the high jump for the third time while Terrell Webb got his first SLC gold in the weight toss on day one of the Championships Sunday at the Birmingham CrossPlex.
 
On the track, Southeastern put numerous competitors through to Monday's finals of several races. On the women's side, Immaculate Danial will represent SLU in the 60-meter dash final as she won her heat to automatically pass through with a time of 7.62 seconds.
 
In the 400-meter dash, two Lady Lions earned spots in Monday's championship run. Onyah Favour ran in the first heat and crossed the line in second place in a personal best time of 55.45 seconds, earning her a spot in the finals on time. Esther Nwanze ran in the final heat of the day, and earned herself a spot in the final from it, winning the heat with a time of 55.86 seconds to earn a spot in the final on time.
 
On the men's side, Southeastern will have two chances to medal in the 800-meter run as two Lions qualified for Monday's final. Tim Anstett made his mark in his first conference championship as a Lion, winning the first heat with a personal best time of 1:53.01 to automatically move on to the final. Javon-Taye Williams also passed though as he finished second in the second heat, stopping the clock with a time of 1:53.00, his fastest time in the 800-meters this indoor season, to move on inside of the cut line.
 
SLU's lone point on the track from day one came in the women's distance medley as Alivia Buley, Alexandra Cleveland, Laney Wilkes, and Ava Pitarro combined to run a 13:12.42, good for ninth-place and a point in the team standings.
 
The rest of Southeastern's team points from day one came from the field, led by the two Lions who have been pacing the Southland in their respective disciplines all season long.
 
On the women's side, Lara Zupanc picked up five points for the Lady Lions as she finished fourth in the pole vault as she cleared 3.70 meters (12'1.5"), the highest height she's successfully crossed this season.
 
The men's weight throw competition is where the Lions took home their first 2024 Conference Championship while two Lions came away from the competition with points for the team. Webb, who was the only Southland Conference athlete to throw for 20 meters in the discipline this season, did it for a fourth time and in the process earned gold and 10 points for Southeastern with his best throw landing 20.10 meters (65'11.5") away, improving on the bronze medal he won at last year's SLC Indoor Championships. Gerrit Visser also earned points for SLU in the weight throw as his best throw of the day landed 17.40 meters (57'1") away, a new personal best and good enough for a seventh-place finish and two points in the team competition.
 
Southeastern's final points of the day came in the men's high jump competition as again, the season's leader proved to be the best but a new Lion made a mark on the scoreboard. Stevic earned his third gold medal, and fourth overall medal, from the Southland Conference Indoor Championships as he cleared 2.15 meters (7'0.5"), enough to earn the conference championship and 10 points for SLU, though his attempt to tie his own SLU indoor record at 2.21 meters (7'3") came up just short. But Donald Butler proved to be not far behind Stevic as the sophomore cleared 1.98 meters (6'6") which earned him a fourth-place finish on the day and five more points for Southeastern in the team competition.
 
Dedrick Gant wrapped up day one of the men's heptathlon with 2,379 points, currently sitting in ninth place with three competitions left to take place on Monday.
 
Day one of the 2024 Southland Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships concluded with the Lady Lions holding six points and sitting in ninth place with 11 events remaining while the Lions are in a three-way tie for fourth place with 27 total points after six of 17 events have been totaled.
 
The final day of the 2024 Southland Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships is Monday with the last events of the men's heptathlon starting at 9 a.m. while field events start at 10 a.m. and track events beginning at 11 a.m. at the Birmingham CrossPlex. The 2024 Southland Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships are being live streamed on ESPN+ with live results available through the Southland Conference website.
 
PODIUM CLUB/S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the track and field program are encouraged to join the Podium Club. Lion alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners. All membership fees and donations to Podium Club are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern track and field program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.LionUp.com.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
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