FEATURE: Track's Evans rewrites record books, races into nationals as freshman

When freshman Zaiyon Evans moved onto Averett University’s campus last fall, his step-dad Calvin Hall handed him a ring. It wasn’t just any ordinary piece of jewelry. It was Hall’s 2006 USA South Athletic Conference championship ring he won while playing football at Averett.

“He gave me his ring and said, ‘Use this as motivation, see what you can do,’” Evans recalled.

After playing football in the fall, Evans quickly made his mark on Averett’s track and field team and hasn’t stopped. Straight out of the blocks, Evans has sprinted his way to the top of the second-year program’s record book and now finds himself as one of the top 22 in the nation competing in the men’s 100-meter dash at this week’s NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field National Championships in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

A native of Charlotte, North Carolina, Evans entered his first season with great expectations for himself, as so many student-athletes do.

“My family growing up would always tell me, wherever I go, they want me to set history,” Evans said. “So, I listened to them, trusted in God, used my abilities and came out and I’m here.” 

With the Cougars’ track program just getting off the ground, the chance to blaze a trail and write his own history has allowed Evans to capitalize on the opportunity this season.

A quick glance at Averett’s record books reveals all one needs to know about Evans’ on-track accomplishments. His name is plastered all over this season’s top performances, easily accounting for the five fastest times in the 100-meter sprint, as well as claiming the school record with a 10.49 mark at the Old Dominion Athletic Conference Outdoor Championships in April. Evans earned national recognition throughout the season for his accomplishments, peaking as high as seventh in the Division III national rankings for the 100-meter event. To the surprise of no one within the program, Evans did not falter in the face of rising national attention.

“If somebody was in my shoes and they were at practice day in and day out, through indoor and outdoor season, they would have come to the same conclusion that I have, which is absolutely not being surprised at all,” said Kameron Blanding, Averett’s director of track and field. “I think anybody, his teammates, his other coaches that are around him, knew and felt that same way as well.”

At the ODAC Outdoor Championships, Evans won the 200-meter race and finished as the ODAC runner-up in the 100 despite clocking a time that set the school record. That mark held up as one of the top 22 times needed for Evans to qualify for the Division III national championships, which begin on Thursday. Evans will run in Heat 1 of three when the 100-meter prelims take place on Friday. The top finisher in each heat along with the next top five times will advance to Saturday’s final.

Perhaps the key to Evans’s success is his ability to stay calm and prepare for the spotlight as if there was no pressure involved. Even as he prepares for the biggest race of his life, Evans hardly seems phased.

“For me, I’m just treating it as any other week,” Evans said. “I’m trying not to let who I’m running against really get in my head. I just see it as, I’m out here running against the clock, really, just trying to set a time for myself.” 

Evans delivered the quote with such a calm and focused demeanor that there isn’t a shadow of doubt about its truth in the mind of Blanding, who was a listening to the conversation. 

“What he said reflects perfectly what he’s been doing all year, and we saw that happen at the ODAC Championships,” Blanding said. “When we went there, he wasn’t treating it like this bigger than life thing, he appreciated the moment, but he went in and did what he needed to do, focused on himself, focused on executing, and that’s why he’s here now at nationals.”