Tigers Head to Cape Girardeau for Redhawks Open

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – The University of Memphis track and field team is back in action Friday, competing at the Redhawks Open hosted by Southeast Missouri State at the SEMO Rec Center in Cape Girardeau, Missouri.

Competition begins at 4 p.m. with men's and women's weight throw. Live results are available to follow at this link.

"We're just looking to fine tune some things," head coach Kevin Robinson said. "It's our last opportunity to improve our seed marks before the conference meet. Hoping to work out some kinks, work on our competitive maturity and compete a little more closely to our potentials."

At the Bulldog Invite and Open on Feb. 9-10, the Tigers were highlighted by a big performance in the men's weight throw from sophomore Will Dibo. The Vienna, Austria native launched a lifetime-best mark of 21.82 meters (71'7.25") to finish runner-up at the Bulldog Invite on Friday and improve his No. 2 all-time mark in the event at Memphis. Dibo's mark leads The American, is third in the NCAA South Region and No. 18 in the NCAA this season. He came back on Saturday and threw 21.25 meters (69'8.75") to again finish as runner-up in a stacked field.

Dibo was named American Athletic Conference Co-Field Athlete of the Week on Tuesday (Feb. 13) for his performances, marking the first-ever conference honor for the 2023 AAC Indoor Weight Throw silver medalist.

In addition to Dibo's stand-out performance, the Tigers picked up 11 event wins over the dual-meet weekend (Gizel Clayton – women's 60-meter hurdles, Jadaja Baxter – women's long jump – twice, Vincent Chenier – men's mile, Gabrielle Cross – women's 400 meters and women's 200 meters, Poorna Raorane – women's shot put – twice, Iason Machairas – men's shot put, Sascha Salesius Schmidt – men's shot put, Kyndia Matlock, Baxter, Madison Fleming and Cross – women's 4x400-meter relay).

NOTABLES
• Will Dibo currently sits 18^th in the nation in the men's weight throw this season with his 21.82-meter heave at the Bulldog Invite on Feb. 9. That throw leads The American and is No.3 in the NCAA South Region.
• Indoor 60-meter hurdles school-record holder Madison Fleming is back in 2024 after a breakout season on the track a year ago. Fleming took bronze at the 2023 AAC Indoor Championships with her school-record time of 8.28.Teammate Gizel Clayton forms a formidable duo in the event, as the tandem ranks No. 2 (Clayton; 8.34) and No. 4 (Fleming; 8:36) in the AAC this season. Mi'Asia Bergmann makes it three Tigers ranked inside the top-12 spots in the AAC with her season-best mark of 8.65 last time out.
• Gabrielle Cross ranks eighth in the conference in the women's 400 meters with a season-best time of 54.91.
• Jadaja Baxter's season-best long jump (5.96 meters) is No. 8 in the AAC on the women's side.
• In the women's shot put, Poorna Raorane ranks fifth in the conference with a 14.88-meter throw.
• Riley Simmons is currently No. 6 in the AAC with a 17.42-meter toss in the women's weight throw.
• In the men's shot put, Sascha Salesius Schmidt (18.05 meters) and Iason Machairas (17.11 meters) rank No. 2 and No. 3 in the conference, respectively.
• Oliver Tomann (18.50 meters) is No. 6 in the league in the men's weight throw behind teammate and AAC-leader Dibo.

How to follow the Tigers: For complete information on Memphis Tiger Track & Field, visit www.GoTigersGo.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

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Players Mentioned

Jadaja Baxter

Mi'Asia Bergmann

Vincent Chenier

Gizel Clayton

Gabrielle Cross

Will Dibo

Madison Fleming

Iason Machairas

Kyndia Matlock

Poorna Raorane

Sascha Salesius Schmidt

Riley Simmons

Oliver Tomann

University of Memphis Athletics