LEXINGTON, VA. -- Furman won three events and shattered two meet and facility records Saturday at the 2022 Southern Conference Indoor Track and Field Championship, which is being held this weekend at the Corps Physical Training Facility in Lexington, Va.

Sophomore Carson Williams won gold in the men's 3,000m with a time of 8:02.87, breaking the former meet record of 8:05.37, which was set by ETSU's Seamus Power in 1992.  He also established a new facility record, knocking over 10 seconds off the previous record of 8:13.04, set by Virginia Tech's Patrick Joseph in 2018.  

Four other Paladins placed among the top seven in the men's 3,000m, including sophomore Dylan Schubert in third place at 8:11.00 and senior Noah Dolhare in fourth place at 8:11.65.  Junior Adam Beucler finished sixth with a time of 8:21.88, and rookie Foster Wilfong placed seventh with a time of 8:23.31 to earn a spot on the SoCon All-Freshman team.

Furman won two events on the women's side Saturday.  The Paladin distance medley relay team of sophomore Megan Marvin, freshman Monica Seitz, junior Nicole Matysik, and sophomore Bethany Graham finished first with a time of 11:31.56, marking the Paladins' sixth-straight win the event and establishing a new meet and facility record.  The previous SoCon meet record of 11:39.35, which was also the facility record, was set by the Paladins in 2019.

Sophomore Madelynne Cadeau won the women's 3,000m for the second-consecutive year, posting a time of 9:36.26 for the victory.  Furman placed four runners among the top five in the event, with sophomore Emily Little placing third with a time of 9:45.80 and freshman Sierra Bower taking fourth at 9:48.30.  Freshman Meghan Ford place fifth at 9:50.66.  Both Bower and Ford were honored as members of the SoCon All-Freshman team in the event. 

In the only other track final of the day, the Furman men's DMR team of senior Cameron Ponder, junior Jonah Dill, freshman Matthew Smith, and junior Nick Epstein finished second with a time of 9:59.00. 

Five Paladins advanced to Sunday's final in the men's mile.  Senior Aaron Wier posted Furman's top qualifying time and was second overall at 4:17.54, followed by junior Mac Roberts in fifth with a time of 4:17.79.  Junior Josh Powers qualified seventh at 4:18.19, and Wilfong qualified eighth at 4:18.51.  Ponder, the two-time defending champion in the event, qualified ninth with a time of 4:17.79.

Also on the men's side, Smith posted the second-best qualifying time of 1:53.21 to advance to the 800m finals.

On the women's side, Marvin and freshman Callie Harper advanced to Sunday's final in the 800m.  Marvin, who won the event last season, posted the fasted qualifying time of 2:11.91, and Harper was fifth with a time of 2:18.50.

Four Furman runners advanced in the women's mile, including Graham, who recorded the fastest qualifying time at 5:10.29.  Matysik qualified in second at 5:10.32, followed by Ford in third at 5:10.42.  Sophomore Beth Donnelly qualified ninth with a time of 5:20.08.

After the first day of competition, Samford leads the men's meet with 57 points.  Western Carolina sits in second with 49 points, followed by Furman in third with 34 points.  On the women's side, Samford scored 80.5 points on day one to take the lead over the Paladins, who are in second with 35 points.  Wofford and ETSU are tied for third with 33 points. 

The final day of competition will begin Sunday morning at 10:30 a.m. with the men's triple jump.  Furman will also compete in the men's and women's 800m, mile, 5,000m, and 4x400m relay on Sunday.  The Paladin men are looking to win their sixth-straight title in the mile, while the women are looking for their sixth-straight championship in the 5,000m. 

SoCon Indoor Track and Field Championships - Day 1 Complete Furman Results

Men's Results

60m 

15th Adrian Gonzalez 7.31

200m

20th Adrian Gonzalez 24.70

800m Qualifying

2nd Matthew Smith 1:53.21Q

Mile Qualifying

2nd Aaron Wier 4:17.54Q

5th Mac Roberts 4:17.79q

7th Josh Powers 4:18.19q

8th Foster Wilfong 4:18.51q

8th Cameron Ponder 4:23.02Q

14th Casey Burr 4:27.62

3,000m

1st Carson Williams 8:02.87 - Meet & Facility Record

3rd Dylan Schubert 8:11.00

4th Noah Dolhare 8:11.65

6th Adam Beucler 8:21.88

7th Foster Wilfong 8:23.31

15th Benjamin Seeber 8:52.42

Distance Medley Relay

2nd Ponder, Dill, 9:59.00

Smith, Epstein

Women

200m

23rd Erin MacDevette 27.04

24th Sammy Trone 28.12

26th Caroline Nguyen 28.55

400m

16th Erin MacDevette 1:03.58

17th Caroline Nguyen 1:04.08

18th Sammy Trone 1:04.33

800m Qualifying

1st Megan Marvin 2:11.91Q

5th Callie Harper 2:18.50Q

15th Beth Donnelly 2:30.95

3,000m

1st Madelynne Cadeau 9:36.26

3rd Emily Little 9:45.80

4th Sierra Bower 9:48.30

5th Meghan Ford 9:50.66

13th Kylie Wittman 10:31.45    

Distance Medley Relay

1st Marvin, Seitz, 11:31.56

Matysik, Graham

Men's All-Freshman – Day 1

3,000m

Foster Wilfong, Furman

Women's All-Freshman – Day 1

3,000m

Sierra Bower, Furman

Meghan Ford, Furman