MOC track

By MOC Sports Information
Published in Sports on April 26, 2010 1:47 PM

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HICKORY -- Mount Olive College's Paul Hoffman, Kerrly Maloney and Joey Murphy each seized an individual championship during a Southeast Regional men's track and field meet contested at Lenoir-Rhyne.

The Trojans finished fifth overall in the nine-team event.

Hoffman claimed the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 9 minutes, 37.54 seconds. He ended up eighth in the 800 with a personal-best time of 2:01.74.

Maloney placed third among 21 competitors, but emerged the top Division II runner, during the 5,000 meters. He crossed the finish line in 15:41.16.

Murphy competed in four field events and broke his own school record in the javelin with a regional-winning throw of 53.41 meters. He captured third in the hammer throw (40.54 meters), third in the shot put (12.90 meters) and eighth in the discus (36.12 meters).

Murphy broke program records in the discus and shot.

Keonta Coleman narrowly missed a first-place finish in the 400-meter dash with a time of 48.8 seconds.

Mount Olive tied with Carson-Newman (Tenn.) in the team standings. In-state archrival Lees-McRae took the regional meet, followed by Mars Hill.

While the meet wasn't an official-sanctioned NCAA regional, the event could help the Trojan competitors earn individual bids to the 2010 NCAA Division II track and field national championships, scheduled for May 27-29 in Charlotte.