by Benny Benton
LYNCHBURG, Va. – Barton College junior Larry Russell won the long jump at the Liberty Kickoff on Saturday with a mark that moved him into the top-five nationally this season in NCAA Division II.
Russell topped a field of 49 competitors at the Liberty University Indoor Track Complex with his leap of 7.37 meters, or 24 feet, 2 1/4 inches. The jump was just three one-hundredths off the facility record of 7.40 meters set last year by Laron James of NCAA Division I program Savannah State.
The mark was the second-best of Russell's career indoors, trailing only the 7.49 meter performance he recorded at last year's Conference Carolinas Championships that earned him his first trip to the NCAA Division II national meet.
Russell is currently the only person in the league with a mark over seven meters in the event, and he leads the Southeast Region by a tenth of a meter over Ja'vonta Smith of UNC Pembroke.
The Sicklerville, N.J., resident also finished sixth out of 26 participants in the triple jump at the Liberty meet with an effort of 14.31 meters. The leap was .08 off his own indoor school record, and currently ranks third-best in the league this year.
Combined with performances earlier this season in the 60-meter hurdles and the high jump, Russell now ranks among the top-five in the conference and top-10 in the Southeast Region in four events.
In addition to the results earned by Russell, Barton also received a top-five finish from sophomore Micah Clemons in the weight throw. The Greenville, N.C., resident placed fourth in a field of 36 with a toss of 16.68 meters. His school-record mark of 16.83 meters posted in December currently leads the conference and ranks second in the Southeast. He is also among the league and region leaders in the shot put.
Senior Aaron Jones narrowly missed a top-10 showing in the 400-meter run, placing 11th in a field of 60 with a season-best run of 49.92 seconds.
One school record was set on Saturday, that claimed by senior Joel Lagat. The Eldoret, Kenya, resident broke his own BC record in the mile run with a time of 4:28 flat.
The mark was also one of six personal records set by team members. Also posting indoor and/or overall PRs were senior Collin Wilks in the 60-meter dash (7.13 seconds) and 200-meter dash (23.09 seconds), senior Qasim Ray in the 400-meter run (52.18 seconds), freshman Chianti Ghee in the weight throw (13.07 meters) and freshman Brian Creasey in the shot put (7.48 meters).
This weekend, Barton will visit Johnson City, Tenn., for the second time this season, where it will compete in the two-day Buccaneer Invitational hosted by East Tennessee State University. The meet will serve as the team's final tune-up for the Conference Carolinas Indoor Championships on February 18.
