EMPORIA, Kan. – Harding men's outdoor track and field broke a school record by scoring 50 points at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships, hosted by Emporia State University at Francis G. Welch Stadium. The Bisons finished in third place, topping its previous best finish of seventh and point total of 28 in 2006.
Vlad Malykhin won his second outdoor national championship in the pole vault and Harding's 13th individual national championship in men's outdoor track.
Below is an event-by-event summary of Harding's performances:
Men's Pole Vault
- Sophomore Vlad Malykhin won his second outdoor national championship and third overall with a clearance of 5.40m (17-8.50) … Malykhin is Harding's 10th All-American in the pole vault and third national champion … HU's other national champions in the pole vault were Dorian Chaigneau (2022) and Malykhin (2023).
Men's 110 Hurdles
- Junior Savian Bush broke a 43-year-old school record and earned First Team All-America honors with a third-place finish in 13.75 seconds … Dwayne Allen had held Harding's 110 hurdles record since running 13.81 seconds at Arkansas State on April 11, 1981 … it was Bush's first All-America honor and the first ever for Harding in the men's 110 hurdles.
Men's 400 meters
- Senior Dakarai Bush earned First Team All-America with a third-place finish in 46.05 seconds … it was Bush's second outdoor All-America honor, he won the national championship in 2023 … Bush has both of Harding's outdoor 400-meter All-America honors.
Men's Javelin
- Sophomore Casen Hammitt placed 19th with a throw of 56.67m (185-11).
Men's 5,000 meters
- Freshman Josphat Meli earned First Team All-America with a sixth-place finish in 14:46.42 … it was Meli's second All-America honor of the weekend, he placed second in the 10,000 meters … it was Harding's 12th All-America honor in the outdoor 5,000 meters and first since Daniel Kirwa in 2011.
Decathlon
- Sophomore Kelmen de Carvalho placed third of 15 competitors and earned six points for Harding … his 7,518 points broke his own school record … de Carvalho earned First Team All-America honors for his third-place finish after collecting Second Team All-America for an 11th-place finish last year.
Men's Discus
- Freshman Lucas Stiper placed 19th with a throw of 47.98m (157-5).
Men's High Jump
- Junior Antiwain Jones earned his second All-America honor with a fourth-place finish (five points) in the high jump … he cleared 2.13m (6-11.75) … last season Jones placed fifth … it was Harding's fifth All-America performance in the outdoor high jump.
Men's 200 meters
- Senior Dakarai Bush placed 16th in 21.21 seconds and did not qualify for Saturday's final.
Men's Long Jump
- Sophomore Anton Kopytko earned All-America honors with a third-place finish … his best of six jumps was his first, landing a mark of 7.80m (25-7.25), tying his own school record … he is Harding's first All-American in the outdoor long jump.
Men's 10,000 meters
- Freshman Josphat Meli earned All-America honors with a second-place finish … he clocked a time of 29:24.78 … he became Harding's ninth All-American in the 10,000 meters and the first since Harding Hall of Famer Daniel Kirwa placed second in 2010.