Belhaven Blazers Track Teams Shine at Invitational, Mills and Haynes Lead
The Belhaven men’s and women’s track and field teams delivered a strong showing at the Belhaven Invitational, their second outdoor meet of the season. The event was also the first hosted by the school in 2026, and the Blazers capitalized with standout performances across sprints, hurdles, middle-distance, and field events, according to the school.
On the men’s side, Julius Phillips highlighted the sprint group with a personal best of 10.89 seconds in the 100 meters, finishing fifth overall. He also ran the 200 meters in 22.28 seconds, placing sixth and improving on his previous best. Leeson Taylor III posted notable times in the 200 and 400 meters, clocking 22.53 and 50.94 seconds, respectively. Freshmen Jaheem Cook and Jacob Turner also posted personal bests in the 200 and 800 meters.
The meet’s highlight came from freshman Kenneth Mills, who cleared 6 feet 8.¾ inches (2.05 meters) to win the high jump and tie the Belhaven program record set in 2016. Senior Neal Terry finished fourth in the high jump and seventh in the long jump with a mark of 6.77 meters. Alex Reed and Cook contributed solid marks in the long jump and triple jump, respectively.
For the women’s team, Yasmyne McCann finished second in the 100 meters with a time of 12.32 seconds and placed fifth in the long jump with a 5.13-meter leap. Freshman Brycelyn Townsend impressed in the 100-meter hurdles, finishing third in 15.69 seconds. Kimona Haynes recorded a pair of wins in the 200 meters (24.26 seconds) and 400 meters (55.06 seconds), with her 400-meter time ranking as the second-fastest in program history.
Other notable performances included Courtney Adams and Myisha Turner in the 800 meters, and Destiny Griffin in the 1500 meters. Freshman Jocelyn Belonga improved her 1500-meter time, and Mallory Golden recorded a fifth-place finish in the high jump with a mark of 1.50 meters.
Belhaven will continue its outdoor season in two weeks at the Belhaven Midweek Open on April 2. The school encourages fans to follow @BelhavenBlazers on social media for updates and to support athletic programs through Team Green Giving.
Source: Original Article
