HARRISONBURG, Va. – The Virginia Union University men's track & field team delivered several strong performances at the JMU Invitational, hosted by James Madison University on Saturday, April 11.

Virginia Union recorded multiple event victories, personal-best performances, and several top finishes as the Panthers continued to build momentum late in the outdoor season.

Field Events

Zachary Jones highlighted the field events with an outstanding day, winning the discus with a personal-best throw of 54.42 meters. The mark moves Jones to No. 1 in the conference and No. 10 nationally in NCAA Division II. He also captured first place in the shot put to complete a dominant performance.

Jayvien Pinnock recorded a personal-best mark of 14.19 meters to finish second in the triple jump.

In the throws, Timothy Butler placed third in the discus with a personal-best throw of 42.28 meters, while Trevion Hooker finished third with a personal-best mark of 15.51 meters. Dequan Boone added a fifth-place finish in the shot put.

In the jumps, Jeremiah Palacious secured fourth place in the long jump.

Running Events

On the track, Mychael Tucker claimed first place in the 400-meter dash with a time of 47.85 seconds.

Rodgers Korir continued his strong distance campaign, winning the 1500 meters.

Antonio Smith delivered a versatile performance, finishing second in the 110-meter hurdles and third in the 100-meter dash.

Tremayne Cowart ran a personal-best time of 48.15 seconds to place third in the 400 meters.

The Panthers' 4x100-meter relay team finished fourth overall.

In the middle-distance events, Cah'lique Young placed fifth in the 800 meters with a personal-best time of 1:58.55, while Darryl Hawkins finished sixth in the 1500 meters.

"It was great to see so many of our guys competing at a high level," said VUU Head Track & Field Coach Franck Charles. "Several of our athletes came out on top, and many hit personal bests. Our throwing squad is looking especially strong right now. We're looking forward to carrying this momentum into a great meet at VSU this weekend.

"I'm proud of all our guys — let's keep building."

Virginia Union will close out the 2026 regular season when the Panthers travel to Petersburg to compete in the VSU Relays, hosted by Virginia State University, on Saturday, April 18.