TOPEKA, Kan. (Jan. 28, 2022) – Verrell McBride ran his best-ever 200-meter indoor time and Chaney Martin opened his quest in the seven-event heptathlon on Friday on the opening day of the Washburn Open at the Washburn Indoor Athletic Facility.

McBride, a junior from Norman, Okla., took fourth among 88 runners in the 200 with a time of 21.72 seconds, just .03 of a second off the NCAA Division I B qualifying standard. McBride earned All-America honors outdoors in the 200 last May.

Two freshmen OC sprinters also ran in the 200, with Sam Fisher of Norman 60th in 23.23 seconds and Isaac Koomson of Accra, Ghana, 71st in 23.53 seconds. They also competed in the 60 meters, with Koomson 27th among 60 runners in 7.23 seconds and Fisher 38th in 7.33 seconds.

Martin, a sophomore from West Plains, Mo., competed in the heptathlon's first four events – the 60 meters, long jump, shot put and high jump – on Friday. His best finish in any of those was a second-place finish in the 60, in which he ran a career-best time of 7.19 seconds.

He rolled up 2,560 points in the four events, putting him sixth in the 13-man field. On Saturday, he'll compete in the 60-meter hurdles, pole vault and 1,000 meters. The pole vault is perhaps his best event. His career-best score is 4,563, but he is shooting not only for that, but to reach the 4,753-point mark, which is the Division II provisional qualifying standard. OC's school record in the heptathlon is 4,783, set by Austin Wallace in 2014.

Two OC veterans posted career-best times or marks on Friday. In the 5,000 meters, Colten Brown, a sophomore from Boise City, Okla., finished the 5,000 meters in 14:45.12, good for 11th place in a 43-man field. In the weight throw, Jonathan Olsson, a junior from Emporia, Kan., took ninth among 36 men with a top mark of 50 feet, 4¾ inches (15.36 meters).

Freshman Kameron Shropshire of Poteau, Okla., was 21st in the weight throw at 40 feet, 3½ inches (12.28 meters).

In the distance medley relay, the Eagles' quartet of junior Jelte van Atten, freshman Elijah Edwards, senior Colton Meyers and sophomore Austin McNair placed fifth of eight teams with a time of 10:19.53.

The meet will continue on Saturday.