The Emporia State men’s track & field team defended home turf with a win in the ESU Relays on Thursday at Welch Stadium. The Lady Hornets team finished second behind South Dakota State. The women’s team started strong with a provisional qualifying mark for Mele Taula who threw 145 feet-3 inches for the fifth best throw of the season to win the women’s javelin. Travis Morrison picked up a provisional qualifying mark in the men’s shot put winning with a toss of 60 feet-11.25 inches on his final throw. Taula finished third in the women’s shot put with a provisional mark of 47 feet-3 inches. Jayda Harris picked up the win in the women’s triple jump with a leap of 36 feet-5 3/4 inches. Ashley Wildeman won her heat and finished fourth in the women’s 100m dash, Xavier Hall was second in the men’s 110m hurdles, Jack Watson was second in the 400m dash, Jake Johnson finished third in the 400m hurdles, Abigael Reid was second in the 400m hurdles, Ty Anderson was the runner-up in the long jump, and Max Neely was second in the men’s pole vault. The Hornets ended the night by winning the men’s 4×400 meter relay and finishing second in the women’s 4×400. The Hornets return to action next weekend at Carnie Smith Stadium at Pittsburg State for the David Suenram Gorilla Classic.