WILMINGTON, N.C. - The NC Wesleyan College men's and women's outdoor track and field programs made their season debut on Saturday down in UNC-Wilmington in the Seahawk Invitational. This was the first competition under new coach Bill Dunn.

Starting the day off with a bang was freshmen thrower Christian Van Norden in the shot put. Christian led the field in the first flight of two with a school record and personal record with a throw of 11.80 meters finishing fourth overall in a field comprised of mostly Division 2 schools. Christian's throw also ranks her #1 in the USA South.

"In the premier event on the track the Lady Bishops freshman phenom Mariah Brooks showed up and showed out," commented coach Dunn.

Brooks finished second overall in a field of Div. I, II, and III student-athletes with a Division 3 second fastest time of 12.32 in the 100-meter dash. Following up the women's 100 meter were senior Bijou Patel (13.75) and freshman Assata Sirleaf (13.90). Brooks also finished 3rd place out of a field of 31 student-athletes in the 200-meter run. Brooks time of 25.25 currently ranks her 1st overall in NCAA Division 3. In the women's 400-meter dash, sophomore Teanna Bellamy ran a school and personal record in her first meet of the season with a time of 1.01.31 which placed her 3rd in the event and 1st in the USA South Conference.

In the 1500 meter run junior Kelsey Hutchison soared to a school and personal record of 5:38.14 in the event to place 14th out of 23 while she was also 8th in the 5K with a time of 22:30. Sophomore Sarah Waters placed 5th out of 16 in the javelin as well with a throw of 20 meters.

"Christian set the tone for the women with her outstanding performance in the first event of the day. The confidence she showed became contagious! Mariah had a good day, however, she has a lot more to give," said Coach Dunn. "Once she learns the art of sprinting she will be a force in this sport for years to come."

"Kelsey is a pleasure to coach. She is one of the best overall student-athletes that I've coached as the positive energy she brings everyday has made an impact to our team," continued Coach Dunn. "I thank women's soccer Coach Biancur for lending her to me this semester.

"Teanna is gaining more and more confidence by the day. She has shown the willingness to learn all aspects of her events and it has paid off with a PR in her first race of the season. We have a long way to go and many races left to run as long as we don't lose sight of our goals we should be fine," Dunn said. 

On the men's side, freshman Sherfield Smith kicked the day off in the shot put followed by freshman teammate Malik Anderson. Sherfield's throw of 11.41 meters is a school and personal record. Anderson had a throw of 9.90 meters. Both Sherfield and Anderson competed in the Discus throw with Smith also setting a school record with a throw of nearly 35 meters.

In the 400 meter run freshman Noel Meza lead the way with a time of 52.48 which placed him 10th out of 20 athletes in the event. Team captain and senior Keyonte Williams had a personal record in the 800-meter run with a time of 2.09.07 which was good for 10th place overall out of 19.

"Our men's team continues to improve, but we still have a long way to go," commented Coach Dunn. "Once they obtain more confidence in themselves they will gain momentum."

The teams again return to Wilmington next weekend for another invitational.