GULF SHORES, Ala. – The Mount Vernon Nazarene University outdoor track and field team set school records for All-American plaques and medals in competition at the 2022 NAIA Outdoor Track and Field Championships on May 25-27 at Mickey Miller Blackwell Stadium in Gulf Shores, Ala.
The 2022 event became a special one for coach Ellis Gallion’s qualifiers. Overall, MVNU saw team records fall, PRs get set, and team members earn seven All-American plaques and medals. The All-American honors marked the most the program has had in its history.
In the school team competition, the men scored eight points and finished tied for 40th out of 77 teams that scored points. Life University won the men’s championship with 52 points, while Southeastern University and British Columbia followed with 47 and 39 points, respectively. On the women’s side, MVNU's women also scored eight points, which tied them for 31st overall out of the 70 teams that scored. British Columbia took home first with 138 points. Indiana Tech and William Carey University followed with 94 and 48 points.
Macy Weaver had a solid finish to a great career on Friday, May 27, as she ended the half-marathon as the national runner-up with a PR and school-record time of 1:25.09. The second-place finish for Weaver is the highest finish for any woman at the national level in program history. Weaver also becomes the only woman in program history with two All-American honors. Weaver ended 2021 as an Outdoor All-American in the marathon after finishing fourth.
Mount Vernon High School graduate Erich Rhodeback wrapped up an eventful freshman season on the biggest stage of his young career. After qualifying for the 110M and 400M hurdle finals with school record times of 14.28 and 52.31 seconds, Rhodeback took care of business in the final rounds to earn All-American honors in each. The Mount Vernon native finished fourth in the 110M hurdles with a school record of 14.07 seconds. Despite being hampered by an ankle injury, Rhodeback pushed through in the 400M hurdles, finishing eighth with a time of 59.37.
Rhodeback kept adding to his resume as he helped the 4x400M relay team qualify for finals with a school-record time of 3:14.08. The group of Rhodeback, Jaden Haldeman, Liam Near and Marcus Whaley capitalized on the opportunity in front of them as they placed seventh in finals with a time of 3:16.98. With the finish, the four became the first-ever relay team in MVNU history to become NAIA All-Americans.
Kyler Dickey finished the year with a 10th-place finish out of 31 throwers with a heave of 16.40 meters in the shot put. Dickey had a successful 2022 season, in which he became an All-American for the first time in his career during indoor season and claimed the Crossroads League crown in both the indoor and outdoor season for MVNU.
After punching his ticket to Gulf Shores in the Last Chance Meet on May 14 with an “A” Standard time of 14.54 seconds, Terril Skinner placed 23rd overall in the 110M hurdle prelims with a time of 14.87 seconds.
