CHARLESTON, Ill. – Donald Hatfield Jackson, Kaitlyn Shea and Shea DeGraaf combined to break a trio of records as Southeast Missouri track & field registered a strong showing in the second day of the 2021 Ohio Valley Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championship Friday at O'Brien Field.
 
The SEMO men head to the final day of the Championship leading the team standings with 86 points followed by Eastern Illinois (70.5) and Belmont (52). The Redhawk women are second with 53 points behind Belmont's 69. The host EIU women are third with 47.5 points.
 
Hatfield Jackson won his second Gold medal of the 2021 Championship in SEMO record-breaking fashion. He captured the 2021 OVC high jump crown with a SEMO program-best and PR mark of 7-1.75 (2.18m) on his third and final attempt at the height.
 
Hatfield Jackson surpassed Jim Lohr's record of 7-1.25 set in 1984.
 
Hatfield Jackson is now tied for 11th in the NCAA West Region for high jump.
 
SEMO has now won high jump in consecutive OVC Outdoor Championships with Titouan Sajous winning the event in 2019.
 
Kaitlyn Shea won the 3,000-meter steeplechase in an OVC Championship record time of 10:23.48. Shea, the SEMO 3,000 meter steeplechase record holder, broke Cecile Chevillard's (Eastern Kentucky) mark of 10:28.80 compiled in 2014, Friday.
 
Shea is the first SEMO athlete to win the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase since Juli Koenegstein won the race in 2009 and 2010.
 
DeGraaf won the decathlon Gold medal with an OVC Championship-record 6,886 points. DeGraaf surpassed Yoshua Reed's (Eastern Kentucky) mark of 6,778 points set in 2018.
 
DeGraaf, the 2020 OVC heptathlon Silver Medalist, is the first SEMO OVC decathlon champion since Eric Gordon (6,291 points) in 2016.
 
Jon Bissell earned Bronze in the two-day competition with a personal-best 6,268 points Friday. Isaac Readnour accumulated a career-high 6,127 for fourth at the Championship.
 
SEMO secured Silver and Bronze in the men's discus. Dylan Clark, the 2021 OVC Hammer Champion, won his second medal of the Championship, posting a personal-best distance of 164-10 (50.25m) on his fourth attempt for second overall.
 
Clay Alewelt followed with a personal-record mark of 159-11 (48.74m) to take Bronze.
 
Katie Schumer garnered Bronze in the pole vault with a career-best height of 12-7.25 (3.84m). Schumer overcame the mark in her third attempt Friday. The height ties Sierra Maddox (2016) for second all-time in SEMO program history.

Bailey Griffiths cleared 9-5.75 (2.89m, 11th) in the pole vault.
 
Ellie Gamradt surpassed a career-best matching high jump feat of 5-6.50 (1.69m) to earn Bronze in the field event. Gamradt has now captured Bronze at the past two OVC Championships (2021 Outdoors and 2020 Indoors).
 
Nicole Humphreys and Makenzie Williams went fourth and fifth in the discus. Humphreys took fourth in 147-0 (44.81m) and Makenzie Williams finished right behind with a distance of 145-3 (44.28m). Anya Tonga also scored for the Redhawks, tallying a throw of 136-2 (41.51m, eighth).
 
Tallyn Brazell and DeGraaf finished fifth and sixth, respectively, in the high jump. Brazell overcame a mark of 6-6.75 (2.00m) on his third and final attempt. DeGraaf bested a height of 6-5.50 (1.97m). Bissell finished ninth with a jump of 6-1.5 (1.87m).
 
Decathlon
 
DeGraaf won the decathlon Gold medal with an OVC Championship-record 6,886 points. DeGraaf surpassed Yoshua Reed's (Eastern Kentucky) mark of 6,778 points set in 2018.
 
DeGraaf, the 2020 OVC heptathlon Silver Medalist, is the first SEMO OVC decathlon champion since Eric Gordon (6,291 points) in 2016.
 
DeGraaf also overtook his SEMO multis coach Chris Navarro (6,577 points, 2014), the 2014 and 2015 OVC decathlon champion, for second all-time in program history for the decathlon.
 
In the NCAA West Region, DeGraaf now ranks 29th.
 
DeGraaf, a Knoxville, Tennessee native, placed first in the discus, pole vault and javelin in the second day of the decathlon and also took second in the 110-meter hurdles. He entered Friday's final day in second and overtook Belmont's Drake Mitchell, the 2021 OVC decathlon Silver Medalist, after discus, the seventh of 10 total events.
 
Bissell earned Bronze in the two-day competition with a personal-best 6,268 points, which ranks fourth in the SEMO record books. Readnour accumulated a career-high 6,127 for fourth at the Championship as all three SEMO men scored in the decathlon.
 
Readnour is now sixth all-time in SEMO program history for the decathlon.
 
DeGraaf opened Friday with a second-place finish in the 110-meter hurdles, clocking in at 15.14 in the opening heat. Bissell crossed the finish in 16.07 (fourth, PR) and Readnour followed in 16.25 (fifth).
 
SEMO went one, two, three in the discus led by DeGraaf followed by Bissell and Readnour. DeGraaf won the event with a personal-best throw of 123-5 (37.63m). Bissell chipped in a mark of 122-0 (37.20m) and Readnour finished with 101-7 (30.97m, PR).
 
DeGraaf then overcame a height of 14-10.75 (4.54m) for first in pole vault. Bissell (13-7, 4.14m) was second and Readnour was fifth (13-3, 4.04m).
 
In the penultimate decathlon event, DeGraaf had a javelin throw of 166-11 (50.87m) for first. Bissell took third (146-6, 44.65m, PR) and Readnour (140-3, 42.76m) was fourth.
 
Readnour paced the men in the 1,500 meters with a time of 5:08.68 for third. Bissell finished fifth in 5:17.46 and DeGraaf was clocked at 5:18.87 (seventh, PR). 
 
Heptathlon
 
Serena Williams took sixth in the heptathlon with a career-best total of 4,373 points. Briann Jenkins finished 12th with 3,992 and Tayler Gudde totaled 3,874 points (14th), which are new personal bests.
 
Serena Williams started the second day of the heptathlon competition with a personal-best long jump of 18-4.25 (5.59m) for runner-up.
 
Gudde was eighth in the event with a jump of 16-8.75 (5.10m) and Jenkins added a mark of 15-2.75 (4.64m, 14th).
 
Jenkins and Gudde went sixth and seventh in the javelin with throws of 90-5 (27.57m) and 89-4 (27.23m), respectively. Serena Williams finished with 75-9 (23.10m, 13th, PR).
 
Gudde placed first in the 800 meters in a personal-best 2:18.70. Serena Williams crossed the finish line of the final heptathlon event in 2:36.55 (ninth, PR) and Jenkins posted a time of 2:52.04 (14th, PR).
 
Preliminaries
 
Kristen Carter qualified sixth overall for the women's 100-meter hurdles finals on Saturday. Carter posted a time of 14.54 to take second in the first of three heats Friday.
 
In the men's 100-meter hurdles, SEMO has a pair of qualifiers for the finals in Anthony Forrest (#5) and Shea DeGraaf (#8). Forrest was third in the second of two heats in 14.93 for fifth overall. DeGraaf was fourth in the opening heat in 15.10 to grab the final qualifying spot.
 
Dillon Lay (15.47, 12th) and Brock Wood (15.55, 13th) also ran in the prelims for SEMO.
 
Breanna Miles finished seventh overall in the 400 meters to qualify for Saturday's final. Miles was clocked at 55.93 for second in the first of four heats.
 
Nick Bryant enters Saturday's final for the 400 meters as the top qualifier. Bryant, the 2020 OVC Indoor Male Freshman of the Year, won the opening of three heats in 47.39. Colin Schwab snagged the sixth qualifying spot after a third place finish of 48.75 in the first prelim.
 
Serena Williams placed seventh overall in the 100-meter prelims with a time of 11.93. Williams was third in the second of three heats. Lauryn James (12.22, 13th) and Sandrea Cogio (12.56, 19th) also represented the SEMO women in the prelim.
 
Dillon Lay finished third in the opening 100 meters heat in 10.80 for third overall in qualifying.
 
Three Redhawk women qualified for the finals of the 800 meters. Carli Knott claimed the top slot with a time of 2:10.52 for first in the second of four prelims. Katie Wegmann (#4) and Claire Morrill (#7) will join Knott in Saturday's finals.
 
Wegmann and Morrill went second and third in the third heat in 2:12.69 and 2:14.76, respectively. Brianna Payton finished the race in 2:16.23 (10th).
 
On the men's side, Griffin Bailey and Terrico Garrett qualified third and fourth overall for the finals of the 800 meters. Bailey was second in the opening heat in 1:53.93 and Garrett was second in the middle of three heats, clocking in at 1:54.10.
 
Justin Splitt (1:56.16, 11th) and Austin Perkins (1:58.48, 17th) also ran in the prelim for SEMO.  
 
Saturday concludes the 2021 OVC Outdoor Track & Field Championship starting with field events at 11 a.m. Running events follow, beginning at 12:30 p.m.