Gunter Wins Discus On First Day Of Landmark Conference Outdoor Track And Field Championships

BALTIMORE, Md. – Led by Taylor Gunter's (Laurel, Md./Sandy Spring Friends School) gold medal, it was the discus where Goucher College made its mark at the 2019 Landmark Conference Outdoor Track And Field Championships on Saturday.

Gunter became the third conference champion on the day for Goucher after the men's tennis program won its fourth-straight title and men's golf team won its second consecutive conference title. Gunter became a conference champion in the discus with a hurl of 36.34m. The junior could have a big championship weekend with Gunter going into the shot put with the top throw in the regular season and the second-best hammer throw, two events scheduled for Sunday.

Mikayla Hinnant (Waldorf, Md./Westlake) joined Gunter on the podium in the discus, finishing fourth with a throw of 33.02m. On the men's side in the discus, Darby Bauer (Perkiomenville, Pa./Boyertown Area) and Joel Gladney (Perry Hall, Md./Perry Hall) also stood on the podium with Bauer placing fifth with a school-record toss of 38.81m and Gladney finishing seventh with a personal-best hurl of 36.94m. Bauer just missed a chance to get on the podium by a mere inches in the javelin after finishing ninth with a throw of 37.36m. The junior will have his best event on Sunday with the hammer throw, an event he ranks third after his school-record toss.

Sydney Smith (Falls Church, Va./George Mason HS) also earned points for the team in the long jump, finishing sixth with a leap of 5.03m, an event she just started to compete in this outdoor season.

Devon Esslinger (Las Cruces, N.M./Las Cruces) qualified for the 110m hurdles after placing third in the preliminaries with a time of 16.03. The sophomore also has a Top-3 mark in the triple jump, which he will be competing in on Sunday.

Smith and Anna Gallina (Whitehall, Pa./Whitehall) qualified in the 100m final. Gallina qualified with the fifth-best time in the preliminaries with a time of 13.12 while Smith had the eighth-best time at 13.26 in the event. Gallina just missed reaching the 200m final by .08 seconds after placing ninth with a time of 27.26 while Smith, who had personal-best times in the 100m and 200m, finished 14th in the 200m preliminaries with a time of 27.90.

Jennifer Alves (Rockville, Md./Richard Montgomery) finished 14th in the 400m (1:09.67) preliminaries while Charlotte Birnbaum (Princeton, N.J./West Windsor-Plainsboro North) was 20th in the long jump (3.62m) and 22nd in the 100m (15.94).

Miles (Mia) Taylor (Bowie, Md./Wakefield) was 10th in the 110m hurdles (17.99) and 20th in the 100m (12.17) while Matthew Knudson (Washington, D.C./E.L. Haynes) was 24th in the 1500m (5:36.47). Taylor had a personal-best time in the 100m and a season-best mark in the 110m hurdles. 

Goucher wraps up the Landmark Conference Outdoor Track And Field Championships on Sunday.