Clinton, Miss. – The Millsaps Majors Men's and Women's Track and Field Team opened their outdoor season this past weekend as they traveled to Clinton to compete in the Mississippi College Season Opener. The Majors put together a solid performance in sprints, distance, and field to come away with a stellar opener as they broke nine school records on the day.

On the women's side, sophomore Michelle Wheeler put together her second straight impressive performance in sprints. She put together a great run in the 200m with a third place finish (27.99s) and the 400m with a second place finish (1:02.36). Freshman Melinda Soloman picked up a second place finish in the 800m with a time of 2:40.22.

The Majors also got a great run from their distance runners as Soloman, freshman Sara Humbert, and freshman Mikaela Thurber. Soloman finished third in the race with a time of 5:21.04, Humbert finished fifth with a time at 5:23.04, while Thurber finished eighth overall at 5:48.56.

On the men's side, sophomore Jonathan Moore did very well in all sprints with finishes of sixth in the 100m, third in the 110m hurdles, and third in the 400m hurdles to lead the Majors. Freshman Byron Johnson finished sixth in the 200m.

In distance, freshman Travis Hebeler set a school record in the 800m with a time of 2:08.75 while freshman Ben Parva set a record in the 1500m with a time of 4:21.93 and a third place finish. Freshman Patrick Lacombe was right behind him in fourth. Freshman Sam Martin competed in his first steeplechase and finished second overall and set a new school record with a time of 11:16.52.

The Major 4x400 relay team of Johnson, Moore, Lacombe, and freshman Shane Harrington won the relay with a time of 3:37.75.

In field events, sophomore Mitchell Keeton won the pole vault with a 3.65m vault while Sophomore Nate Davis and freshman Leland Elchos made a huge impact in the throws.

The Majors are back in action this weekend as they head to Hattiesburg, Mississippi they compete in the Southern Miss Invitational.

Sewanee, Tenn. – The Millsaps Majors Men's and Women's Track and Field Team had another solid showing this past weekend at the Sewanee Indoor Track and Field Invitational. The Majors set seven school records on the day and 12 performers had personal bests at the competition.

On the women's side, both sophomore Michelle Wheeler and freshman Jaleesa Perez had solid outing in sprints as both of them set personal records on the day. In the 55m, Wheeler ran a 8.18 (PR) while Perez added a 8.27 (PR) to finish 19th and 20th among many Division I and II teams.

In distance, the team of freshman Sara Humbert, freshman Melinda Soloman, sophomore Haley Brown, and Wheeler ran very strong and overtook Huntingdon on the last leg to win the event and set a new school record with a time of 14:03.80.

The Majors had a tremendous day in throws thanks to the efforts of sophomore Alexis Guice and junior Kasey Laird. Guice finished third in the shot put with a final throw of 11.73m to set a new school record and later set another school record and finished second in the weight toss with a throw of 12.42m.

Laird also did well as she finished fifth in the shot put with a final throw of 11.24m and followed that up with a third place finish in the weight throw with a final of 11.82m, all which were personal records. Sophomore Sarah Navarro also set new personal records in both the shot put and the weight throw.

On the men's side, sophomore Jonathan Moore set a personal record in the 200m as he finished 12th overall with a time of 24.20. Freshman Byron Johnson and sophomore Mitchell Keeton were right behind him in 14th and 15th with times of 24.30 and 24.40.

The Majors also won the distance medley with Hebeler, Moore, Parva, and freshman Patrick Lacombe leading the way.

In the field, sophomore Mitchell Keeton returned to compete in the pole vault and finished 3rd overall with a final of 3.80m. Senior Nate Davis set school records in the shot put and weight throw as he finished sixth and fifth in his events.

Sewanee, Tenn. – The Millsaps Majors Men's and Women's Track & Field Team opened their third season under Head Coach Andy Till at the Tiger Indoor Track & Field Invitational. In their first even of the season, the Majors got strong showings from many different athletes, including a first place finish by sophomore Alexis Guice in the shot put event.

Guice was impressive as she threw a career best 11.62m/38-01.50 to blow away the competition, which included big schools such as Jacksonville, Bethel, and Chattahoochee, for her first win of the season. She also finished fourth in the weight throw with a 10.75/35-03.25.

“Alexis worked very hard during the off-season with Coach Bynum, said Coach Till. “She is extremely explosive and her speed through the ring is amazing.”

Senior Kasey Laird earned an eight place finish in spot put with a 10.11m/33-02.20 throw while sophomore Sara Navarro (9.13m/29-11.50) and freshman Jenna Johnson (9.08/29-09.50) finished eight and ninth respectively in the weight throw.

In the running events, freshman Sara Humbert highlighted Millsaps with a fourth place finish in the one mile run with a time of 5:54.43. Freshman Melinda Soloman followed up with an eighth place finish with a time of 6:06.22 while freshman Mikaela Thurber came in 11th with a time of 6:23.06.

Millsaps also earned a fourth place finish in the 4x400 thanks to Humbert, Soloman, sophomore Haley Brown and sophomore Sara Sacks.

The Majors also got good sprinting work from sophomores Jaleesa Perez and Michelle Wheeler in short sprints while Brown and Sacks competed in the 800 meters.

On the men's side, sophomore Jonathan Moore finished third in the 55-meter hurdles, just .01 seconds behind Chattahoochee's Levi Josephs for second with a eight flat. Moore also had a great run in the 55m dash as he finished ninth with a time of 6.76 seconds.

The Majors also got sprint work from freshmen Byron Johnson, Nate Volk, and Shane Harrington. Freshmen Ben Parva, Patrick Lacombe, Sam Martin, and sophomores Chris Duck and Will Napier handled the long distance running for the Majors.

Senior Nate Davis competed for the first time as track & field athlete and picked up an eighth place finish in the shot put event with a throw of 10.84m/35-06.75.

“We had a very solid meet Sewanee, added Till. It was really good for the team to get out and compete; I am very proud of everyone's effort.”

The Majors are back in action on March 3rd as they will be at Mississippi College for a meet.

Seguin, Texas - The Millsaps Majors Cross Country Team compete at the South Regionals in Seguin, Texas on Saturday morning. The women's team finished 16th out of 30 teams while the men finished 22nd.

Sophomore Haley Brown led the Majors on the women's side as she posted a time of 25:10.8 to finished 57th. Rounding out Millsaps was sophomore Sara Sacks (87th), sophomore Coutney Aymett (94th), freshman Melinda Soloman (104th), freshman Makaela Thurber (117th), and freshman Sara Humbert (125th).

On the men's side, freshman Ben Parva led Millsaps with a time of 30:01.5 to finish 106th. Rounding out the Majors were freshman Sam Martin (113th), sophomore Will Napier (114th), sophomore Thomas Silas (127th), freshman Patrick Lacombe (128th), sophomore Chris Duck (132nd), and freshman Travis Hebeler (134th).

Sewanee, Tenn. – The Millsaps Majors Men's and Women's Cross Country Team finished up a successful season on Saturday as they competed at the SCAC Tournaments. The men placed ninth overall in the 8K while the women placed seventh at the 6K.

Freshman Sara Humbert finished 35th overall to lead the Majors with a time25:06.37 (6:44.4 mile) and freshman Melinda Soloman finished close behind. Fellow freshman Mikaela Thurberplaced 43rd overall with a time 25:40.87 (6:53.3 mile). Sophomore Courtney Aymett finished 47th with a time of 25:56.10 (6:57.4 mile) while fellow sophomore Haley Brown was right behind her in 48th with a time of 25:57.16 (6:57.7 mile). Rounding out the Majors was sophomore Sara Sacks with a time of 26:08.36 (7:00.7 mile).

For the men, freshman Ben Parva concluded his terrific first year campaign as he finished 40th overall with a time of 28:50.14 (5:48.1 mile) while freshman Sam Martin finished 45th overall with a time of 29:26.50 (5:55.4 mile). Sophomore Will Napier finished 50th with a time of 29:59.66 (6:02.9 mile). Rounding out Millsaps was freshman Patrick Lacomber (30:23.66; 6:06.1 mile) in 56th, sophomore Chris Duck in 60th (30:57.74; 6:13.8 mile), freshman Travis Hebeler in 62nd (31:12.85; 6:16.8 mile), and sophomore Thomas Silas in 63rd (31:13.55; 6:16.9 mile).

Runners will look to compete in regional action on November 12th. The cross country runners will also be action in the spring during track & field.

Clinton, Miss. – The Millsaps Majors Men's and Women's Cross Country Team competed at the Choctaw Open on Saturday morning at Choctaw Trails. The women continued their great run, finished third overall (first among Division III schools) while the men finished sixth overall.

The ladies finished behind Division I South Alabama and Mississippi State while defeating the likes of Loyola, Mississippi College, Birmingham-Southern, Jackson State, Louisiana Tech, and Belhaven.

Sophomore Haley Brown finished 18th overall to lead the Majors with a time of 20:33.45. Freshman Sara Humbert was right behind her, finished 21st overall with a time of 20:39.91. Freshman Mikaela Thurber was third overall on the team as she finished 27th overall with a time of 20:54.54.

Freshman Melinda Soloman finished 34th, sophomore Courtney Aymeet finished 38th, and freshman Sara Sacks finished 42nd to round out the women.

The men were led by freshman Ben Parva finished 30th overall with a time of 28:53.73 followed closely by freshman Sam Martin who finished 33rd overall with a time of 29:36.33. Sophomore Will Napier came right after finishing 35th overall with a time of 29:41.52.

The field was rounded out by freshman Patrick Lacombe who finished 44th, sophomore Thomas Silas who finished 53rd, freshman Travis Hebeler who finished 54th, and sophomore Chris Duck who finished 61st.

The Majors will take the week back before returning on October 29th as they will travel to Sewanee, Tennessee for the SCAC Cross Country Championships.

Clinton, Miss. – The Millsaps Men's and Women's Cross Country Team competed Friday at the Watson Ford Invitational. The women placed third overall out of 13 teams while the men placed fifth overall out of 11 teams.

The women ran as a pack for their high placing as sophomore Haley Brown was the top runner as she placed 13th overall with a time of 25:10.25. Freshman Sara Humbert ran one of her best times of the season as she finished second on the team and 15th overall with a time of 25:22.21. Freshman Melinda Soloman finished 20th overall and added a time of 25:53.20.

Rounding out the field was sophomore Sara Sacks finished 21st, freshman Mikaela Thurber finished 25th, sophomore Courtney Aymett palced 29th, and freshman Maria Vasser, who is returning from injury, finished 72nd.

The men finished fifth overall with freshman Ben Parva, sophomore Will Napier, and freshman Sam Martin finished 21st, 22nd, and 23rd overall to lead the Majors. Freshman Patrick Lacombe and Travis Hebeler finished 31st and 33rd overall while freshmen Thomas Silas and Chris Duck rounded the field out at 34th and 37th.

Cross Country is back in action next Saturday as they head back to Choctaw Trails for the Choctaw Open.

JACKSON - There is no denying that the 2011 Millsaps Men's and Women's Cross Country team is young, but youth will be a key to turning a down program into a competitive and winning team. The Majors welcome back five runners (three men, two women) and bring in 10 total newcomers as they look to make a statement this season.

“We have a very special and committed team this year,” says third year Head Coach Andy Till. “The runners are seeking Arete which is a virtue meaning Excellence. Each runner is committed to being the very best runner, scholar, and teammate they can be. “

On the men's side, a core of three freshman look to lead the men in sophomores Thomas Silas, Will Napier, and Chris Duck. The men struggled to compete last year due to low numbers, but thanks to a strong recruiting class, they are ready to run and make an impact immediately.

“The first thing (the freshman) bring are numbers, last year we were down a runner and had to recruit another athlete just to make us eligible to run in conference, but they also bring a new and exciting energy to the team,” says Duck. “Their athleticism is astounding and their mental strength is fantastic, especially for how they will be training and running. When they race they will be able to push themselves harder than they ever have before.”

The four new runners include Patrick Lacombe, Travis Hebeler, Ben Parva, and Sam Martin. Each made huge impacts in their high school's success a year ago and look to bring that success to Millsaps. All four also plan to run an event in track & field.

“The goal is to run as a close pack, what I mean by that is the closer we run together, the better our scores are,” adds Duck. “When you run as a pack you gain a sort of energy from your teammates, it pumps you up to run faster.”

“We now have the runners to win a conference championship but it will take time to build them from the ground up. I believe that we'll need to continue our family atmosphere and team concept so that each athlete feels connected,” an ecstatic Till says. “There are going to be great challenges ahead for our young runners, but we will try to stay focused on the big picture and seek excellence in all we do.”

JACKSON - In his third year as the Head Coach of Cross Country at Millsaps College, Andy Till believes his squad is ready to take the next step towards a strong contender in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference. The Majors prepare to welcome in seven female and four male distance runners to this year's team. Coach Till feels that these young men and women will be able to make an impact of the cross country team immediately. Here is the incoming freshman class for the 2011 season.

Patrick Lacombe, Niceville HS, Niceville, Fla.

Patrick Lacombe of Niceville, Florida comes to Millsaps where he lettered four years in cross country and track at Niceville High School. A Florida State Contender in the FHSAA State Championships, Lacombe earned the Most Valuable Runner Award his junior year and the Horizon Award his freshman season. Lacombe also prepares to run the 5,000m for the track team.