Eastern’s track and field team posted just two first-place finishes at the Bill Cornell Classic in Carbondale this weekend but snagged 27 top-five combined finishes.

Seniors Ruth Garripo and Bryn Buckwalter took home the only top honors for the Panthers in the 5,000-meter run and the shot put, respectively. Garippo finished in 18 minutes, 00.34 seconds. Buckwalter tied with Northern Iowa’s Allison Griffin as each athlete tossed the shot put 45’3”.

The highest individual finishers for the men were sophomores Ashton Wilson and Clayton Turner.  Wilson earned the silver in the high jump after clearing 6’6.25”, and Turner placed second in the javelin throw with a 140’1.25” toss.

The men’s 4×100-meter relay team also picked up a second-place win. Sophomores Brandan Lane, Ja’Marcus Townsend and Michael Miller and senior Jamal Robinson coasted through the race in just 41.28 seconds.

Robinson was also third in the 100-meter dash with a time of 10.83 seconds. Lane was fifth in the same event with a time of 10.96 seconds. Miller earned points with his fourth-place, 400-meter finish of 49.19 seconds.

The women’s 4×400-meter relay team finished third with a time of 4:04.39. Seniors Julie James, Kristen Paris and Tori Master and freshmen Sophia Keith were all a part of the relay squad.

Junior Stephanie Dominguez sailed over the 400-meter hurdles to earn fifth with a time of 1:07.41.

Junior Brion Portis and sophomore Shirley Jones rounded out the women’s top five finishes for the day. Portis was third in the triple jump, covering 39’6.50”, and Jones placed fifth in the 400-meter dash with a time of 59.62 seconds.

Seniors Riley McInerney and Riley Kittridge and junior Myles Foor provided Eastern with a third-place performance a piece. McInerney trekked the 1,500-meter run in 3:52.03, and Foor placed in the 800-meter dash with a time of 1:55.41. Kittridge tossed the shot 53’9”.

Juniors Davion McManis, Chrisford Stevens and Lars Ott, senior Juan Barajas and freshman Nicholas Phillips all earned the rest of the men’s top five-finishes as well. McManis was fourth in the long jump with a leap of 22’7” while Stevens was fourth in the triple jump with a mark of 47’7.75”. Ott was fourth in the 200-meter dash with a time of 21.96 seconds, and Phillips tossed the hammer 170’5.25” to earn fifth. Barajas was fifth in the 5K with a time of 15:27.78.

Next up for Eastern is their only home meet of the season. The Panthers will host the EIU Big Blue Classic March 31 and April 1 for a two-day stint at O’Brien Field.

Kaitlin Cordes can be reached at 581-2812 or krcordes@eiu.edu