Concord Starts Indoor Campaign at Liberty

ATHENS, W.Va. – The Concord University men's and women's track teams begin the indoor season Thursday and Friday at the Liberty Kick Off hosted by Liberty University.

LIVE COVERAGE
Live Results will be provided by Blue Ridge Timing.

Live Results

SEASON PREVIEW
Head coach Jonathan Kigel begins his first season in charge of the track & field programs at Concord. The Mountain Lions welcome back 19 men's athletes. Junior Braden Ward put together an all-region cross country season and will look to continue his success on the oval. Fellow junior AJ Skeens just missed All-Mountain East Conference honors during the outdoor season in the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 2025. Sophomore Brandon Canaday made a big jump during the cross country season. And after a strong finish to the outdoor season in the decathlon, sophomore Tobi Adebulu leads the Mountain Lions in the field events. Some new faces to the roster include freshmen Thomas Chisley and William Jackson. Chisley specializes in the jumps as he has triple jumped over 14 meters during his high school. Jackson ran 50.5 seconds in the 400-meter dash during his senior season of track at nearby James Monroe High School.

Sophomore Cassidy Hammonds, the reigning MEC Outdoor Freshman of the Year, headlines 13 returners to the women's roster. Hammonds along with sophomore Cierra Parker were not only MEC Champions in the heptathlon and high jump, respectively, during the outdoor season, but both were All-Atlantic Region picks. Junior Meagan Poticher nearly broke the school record in the discus at the end of the outdoor season. The distance duo of freshmen Avery Lilly and Violet Wall are among the newcomers for CU. Wall is coming off a First Team All-MEC cross country season where she was also the MEC Freshman of the Year.

LIBERTY ENTRIES
Beginning with men's 400-meter dash, three Mountain Lions are entered. Sophomore Aaron Miller just missed All-MEC last year in the event, and enters Thursday with the 16^th seed in a field of 45 athletes. Freshman Myles Gurnee makes his collegiate debut in the event along with senior Andrew Beohler. Five CU athletes are scheduled for the mile: graduate student Connor Cormack, junior Garrett Hatcher, sophomore Reese Hickey, junior Wes Holcomb and Skeens. Ward will double in the 3,000-meter and 5,000-meter runs. Along with Ward in the 5,000-meters are Canaday, junior Bramley Childress, Hickey and freshman Johnny Walkup. The trio of junior Shawn Bennett, freshman Isaac Treadway and sophomore Marquise Walker are slated for shot put and weight throw in field events.

The middle distance and distance events will be on display for the Concord women. In the mile, freshman Molly Jones, Lilly, junior Charlotte McGinnis, Wall and freshman Emma Willie will be in the event among the 29 competitors. Junior Piper Doughton, senior Emma Londeree and junior Sara Turner are slated for the 5,000-meter run with a light field of 15 athletes. Sophomores Kendall Lilly and Jenna Webb will be alongside freshmen Alison Miller and Hannah Rhodes in the 200-meter dash with the latter two making their collegiate debuts. Poticher will be Concord's lone competitor in the throwing event as she competes in the shot put. And Hammonds will start the season in the heptathlon.