Last year’s Ohio Valley Conference outdoor high jump champion has been slowed by knee tendonitis.

Ian Winston got off on the right foot Saturday at the Southern Illinois Edwardsville’s Gateway Classic.

He won the high jump in his first appearance for the Eastern men’s track team.

Winston made an appearance at the OVC indoor championships in February with second-place finishes in the high jump and the triple jump.

Winston won on Saturday with a leap of 7 feet, 0.5 inches, a school record.

“Honestly, since the knee injury, I didn’t expect to go as high,” Winston said. “It was all about approach and technique. If I didn’t have good form and technique, I wouldn’t be able to clear the bar.”

Tim Thompson and Cory Utterback both jumped 6 feet, 11.75 inches in 1994 for the previous best outdoor high jump mark. Winston’s previous outdoor best was 6 feet, 10.75 inches.

During the indoor season, Winston jumped 7 feet, 0.25 inches, which ranks third all-time. Both Thompson and Utterback have indoor jumps of 7 feet, 1 inch.

Winston said the knee problem has been frustrating and is trying to work through the pain.

Winston also said he isn’t worried about a certain mark at this point, as long as he stays composed, he should be fine.

Ellis finishes second in pole vault

Assistant jumps coach Kyle Ellis finished second in the pole vault this weekend at the Southern Illinois Edwardsville’s Gateway Classic.

Ellis has the best second seed mark headed into the meet and his best vault came at 14 feet, 9 inches. Ellis holds the Eastern indoor pole vault record.

National rankings watch

This year instead of reaching the NCAA Regionals based on a conference championship, an athlete will have to reach the NCAA Regionals based on his or her performance. Eastern is seeded in the West Region and only the top 48 athletes in his or her respective event get to attend the NCAA Regional.

The NCAA Regional is used like a tournament where athletes can advance to the NCAA outdoor championships after so many rounds.

As of Monday’s West Regional rankings: red-shirt sophomore Zye Boey is ranked 18th in the 100-meter dash, red-shirt freshman Jacob Mitchell is 21st in the 100-meter dash and the men’s 400-meter relay team would rank 15th. Winston is ranked 10th in the high jump, and red-shirt junior Tyler Arnholt is 38th in the discus.

Senior thrower Kandace Arnold is tearing up the rankings for the Eastern women’s team. She is ranked ninth in the shot put, 29th in the discus throw and 59th in the hammer throw.

Team rankings watch

The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association ranked the Eastern men’s team 13th with 174.35 points in the Midwest Region headed into this week. The standings are updated every Tuesday and will be out later today.

The men’s team is ahead of two other Ohio Valley Conference schools in the Midwest Region: Southeast Missouri (15) and Southern Illinois Edwardsville (19).

There are 32 teams in the Midwest Region.

The Tennessee State men’s team is ranked 28th in the South Region. The Eastern Kentucky men’s team is ranked 36th in the Southeast Region.

The Eastern women’s team is ranked 18th with 99.49 points in the Midwest Region. Southeast Missouri is rated 19th, and Southern Illinois Edwardsville is 24th in the Midwest Region.

Jacksonville State is 25th, Austin Peay is 29th, and Tennessee State women’s team is 39th in the South Region. Murray State is 39th, and Eastern Kentucky is 40th in the Southeast Region.

Kevin Murphy can be reached at 581-7944 or [email protected].