COLUMBIA, S.C. (Feb. 3) – Junior Kamden Johnson set a school record in the long jump and sophomore Nicholas Cloud claimed a victory in the shot put on the opening day of the South Carolina Invitational on Friday.

Johnson shattered the UMO record in the long jump with a second-place finish while reaching an NCAA provisional mark on a distance of 7.29 meters (23-11.0 feet) on his second attempt. The previous school record was held by Eian Hines at 7.23 meters, which was set in 2018. A native of Rocky Mount, North Carolina, Johnson set a personal best in the event and now holds the top mark in the long jump in the conference this season.

Cloud registered a massive win in the shot put with a personal record of 15.55 meters (51-0.25 feet), defeating several Division I throwers at the South Carolina Invitational. He moves into second all-time in school history and improves his conference qualifying standard to remain among the top three in the league.

In the weight throw, the Trojans secured a pair of podium finishes and improved their league standards. Senior Joshua Faison placed second overall with a personal best distance of 16.34 meters (53-7.50 feet) on his fourth toss. He advances on the conference qualifying list to second and set the fifth-best mark in program history. Fellow senior Dorian Tolbert also delivered a personal best in the event with a mark of 15.97 meters (52-4.75 feet) to finish third in the weight throw. His distance keeps him among the top five in the Conference Carolinas this year and ranks seventh all-time at UMO.

Sophomore Riley Willcox produced a league standard in the mile with a time of 4 minutes, 28.15 seconds, which ranks sixth in the conference this year.

Senior Jordan Martin set a season-best mark in the 60-meter hurdles after crossing the line in 8.51 seconds to improve to the top five in the league in the event.

The Trojans return to action tomorrow, Saturday, Feb. 4, for day two at the South Carolina Invitational, with events starting at 10 a.m.