Atherley leads women’s heptathlon with 3,825 points, as seven competitors surpass 3,600 following four events; Owens-Delerme enjoys strong first half of men’s decathlon with 4,621 points, as four athletes in elite invitational field exceed 4,300 at midway point

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

Photos by Kirby Lee/Image of Sport

WALNUT, Calif. – Ayden Owens-Delerme, Heath Baldwin and Austin West have all enjoyed memorable moments in the decathlon at the Mt. SAC Relays during the past two years, but if the second half of their competitions can maintain the momentum the trio created Wednesday to open the meet’s 64th edition, then they are all on the verge of producing personal-best performances.

The same optimistic outlook is in place for American heptathlete Michelle Atherley, Lithuanian standout Beatrice Juskeviciute and Chinese competitor Ninali Zheng, who also produced the best opening-day marks of their careers at Hilmer Lodge Stadium.

Owens-Delerme, a Nike a professional athlete representing Puerto Rico, won the 100-meter dash in a wind-legal 10.31 seconds, prevailed in the long jump with a wind-aided leap of 25-6 (7.77m) and triumphed in the shot put with a mark of 53-4.25 (16.26m), in addition to clearing 6-6 (1.98m) in the high jump and running 47.23 in the 400 meters to lead at the midway point of the decathlon with 4,621 points.

Owens-Delerme surpassed his previous-best first-day performance of 4,606 points when he finished fourth at the 2022 World Athletics Outdoor Championships with 8,532 points at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.

Baldwin, a senior at Michigan State, is second with 4,469 points, including a victory in the high jump with a 6-9.50 (2.07m) clearance, and West – a senior at Iowa – ranks third with 4,392 points, highlighted by winning the 400 to close out the schedule in 46.82.

Baldwin, who placed runner-up last year in the decathlon at Mt. SAC with a personal-best 8,084 points, only accumulated 4,223 at the halfway point of that competition.

West, who finished second behind Owens-Delerme at the 2022 Mt. SAC Relays with 8,179 points and third last season with 8,038, produced a lifetime-best 8,331 in July at the USATF Outdoor Championships. West had 4,430 points following the first half of the schedule in Oregon.

Devon Williams, an American competitor representing Goon Squad Elite Track Club, is in fourth overall with 4,306 points.

Atherley leads the heptathlon following four events with 3,825 points, followed by Juskeviciute with 3,749 points and Zheng at 3,739 points.

American athletes Annie Kunz (3,674 points), Chari Hawkins (3.663 points), Alex Gochenour-Brondyke (3,630 points) and Notre Dame standout Jadin O’Brien – a two-time NCAA Division 1 indoor pentathlon champion – with 3,625 points are all within striking distance.

Allie Jones, a former USC standout who prevailed last year at the Mt. SAC Relays with 6,217 points, completed her opening-day schedule with 3,580 points.

Atherley, who boasts a lifetime-best 6,352 points from the 2021 U.S. Olympic Trials, amassed 3,776 points following four events in that competition at Hayward Field.

The reigning Thorpe Cup winner for the U.S. in August, Atherley ran the fastest wind-legal time of her career in the 100-meter hurdles by clocking 12.83 seconds, equaling her all-conditions best mark in the victory. Atherley also prevailed in the 200 in a wind-aided 23.28 seconds.

Juskeviciute, the NCAA Division 1 heptathlon runner-up last year for Vanderbilt, achieved a personal-best 6,117 points in Austin, Texas, including 3,675 points on the first day.

Zheng, who was born as Nina Schultz and competed for Canada until 2019 before changing her national eligibility to China in 2021 to honor the legacy of her grandmother Zheng Fengrong, produced her top career mark of 6,358 points in 2021 in Arona, Spain, including an opening-day score of 3,711. 

Kunz triumphed in the shot put with a 50-1.25 (15.27m) effort, with fellow American Erica Bougard clearing 6-0.75 (1.85m) to win the high jump, although she didn’t compete in the 200.

JaiCieonna Gero-Holt, a junior at Emerald Ridge High in Washington, is in 12th place with 3,430 points, highlighted by a 5-11.50 (1.82m) clearance to place second in the high jump.

Gero-Holt, an Illinois commit, boasts a personal-best 5,552 points from July at the USATF Under-20 Outdoor Championships. She accumulated 3,435 points after the first four events in Oregon.