Appalachian State ? Georgia Tech Invitational
ATLANTA, GA. - Appalachian State University men's and women's track and field continued with their impressive performances over the weekend, as numerous Mountaineers had strong showings at the Georgia Tech Invitational.
In the 1500-meter run, senior Jen Povick posted a personal best time of 4:28.34 coming in 14th overall. Her mark moved her into third on Appalachian's all-time list in the event. She also ran a personal best in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:08.20, keeping her at second on ASU's all-time list.
Rebecca Hazeltine finished tied for seventh in the high jump, leaping 5-7, while Danielle Thorpe came in third in the triple jump, jumping 41-1.75.
Julie Ward and Ashley Beale came in eighth and ninth in the pole vault with vaults of 11-7.75, respectively.
Capping off the women's events, Whitney Smyre finished ninth in the shot put with a toss of 41-3.75, while Lily Tallent came in 11th in the discus with a throw of 128-4 and fifth in the javelin, and Smyre posted an eighth-place finish in the hammer.
On the men's side, Phillip Bush came in 26th in the 110-meter hurdles with a mark of 16.07, while finishing 33rd in the 200-meter dash with a time of 22.34.
Mike Wilson and Matt Boruff placed tied for fifth in the pole vault with vaults of 15-7, while Mark Sturgis finished eighth in the triple jump with a leap of 49-7.25.
In the 5000-meter run, Asmeron Desta finished fifth with a time of 14:48.04.
Capping off the meet, Jared Stalling, Malcolm Styers and Jerod Gardner finished 13th, 14th and 15th in the shot put, while Stalling came in 10th in the discus and Gardner 11th. Tim Daly took home an eighth-place finish in the hammer throw with a toss of 187-7.
The Apps return to action Friday May 29, as they head to Greensboro, N.C., to compete at the NCAA East Regionals.
Appalachian State ? NCAA East Regionals
GREENSBORO, N.C.- Nine Appalachian State University men's and women's track and field athletes competed at the NCAA East Regionals Friday and Saturday, hosted by North Carolina A&T University. The Apps posted many solid performances.
In the hammer throw, junior Whitney Smyre finished 19th overall with a throw of 145-5, while sophomore Jerod Gardner came in tied for 17th in the shot put with a throw of 52-1. His toss was a new personal best and moves him into ninth on ASU's all-time list in the event.
Competing on a broken foot, senior Shea Snow had a tough afternoon as she no-heighted in the pole vault.
Senior Lily Tallent had a busy weekend, as she competed in three events. The Cherryville, N.C., native placed 23rd in the discus with a throw of 137-5, 26th in the javelin with a toss of 109-8 and 29th in the shot put with a throw of 39-1.
Jen Povick posted a strong performance in the 800-meter run, but was unable to qualify for the finals in the event, as she came in 14th overall with a time of 2:11.05.
Sophomore Tim Daly notched a 26th-place finish in the hammer throw, with a throw of 163-6.
In perhaps the most impressive performance of the day, junior Danielle Thorpe placed ninth overall in the triple jump, leaping 41-7.
Rebecca Hazeltine was solid on the afternoon as well, finishing tied for 11th in the high jump, leaping 5-7, while Mark Sturgis grabbed a tenth-place finish in the triple jump, leaping 50-7.25.
Since both Thorpe and Sturgis finished in the top 12 in their respective events they are both in the pool of at-large competitors who could possibly compete at the 2009 NCAA Championships.
College of Charleston ? NCAA East Regionals
ATLANTA, Ga. ? College of Charleston track & field athlete Emily Smith (Rock Hill, S.C.) competed in her final meet before the upcoming NCAA Regionals this weekend at the Georgia Tech Invitational in Atlanta, Ga.
Smith tied for seventh overall in the high jump with a 5-7 effort.
“Emily and coach Chad Williams have been working on a few technical corrections to better prepare for the elite level of competition that will compete at the NCAA Regionals,” said head coach Amy Seago. “This past weekend help to solidify those corrections.”
“She’s one step closer to her goal of performing at the top of her game at Regionals.”
Smith now moves on to the NCAA East Regionals to be held May 30th-31st in Greensboro, N.C. The event is hosted by North Carolina A&T University.
The Citadel ? Aggie Last Chance Meet
Greensboro, N.C. ? Matt Earls, Jodi Whittle and Jamel Brown successfully competed in the Aggie Last Chance Meet in Greensboro, N.C., on Sunday afternoon.
Earls had the highest Bulldog finish taking fourth place in the javelin with a mark of 154-9.00.
Brown ran a time of 15.29 in the 110-meter hurdles to finish fifth and he also posted a time of 56.85 in the 400-meter hurdles to place seventh. Whittle finished sixth in the 400 hurdles with a time of 1:08.10 and placed seventh in the 100 hurdles with a time of 15.63.
Brown will have two weeks to prepare for the NCAA East Regional on May 29.
The Citadel ? NCAA East Regional
Greensboro, N.C. ? Redshirt senior Jamel Brown ran a time of 52.75 to finish 15th overall in the prelims of the 400-meter hurdles at the 2009 NCAA East Regional in Greensboro, N.C., on Friday.
Brown improved his 2008 regional time of 54.47 and placed higher than in 2008. This is Brown’s second NCAA East Regional appearance and the fourth consecutive season that a Bulldog athlete has qualified for the NCAA Regionals. This is also his last appearance as a Citadel athlete earning two Southern Conference championships and breaking several school records.
Furman ? Georgia Tech Last Chance Meet
Atlanta, Ga. - Furman senior Patrick Morgan ran a season-best time in the 1500-meter to finish 13th overall at the Georgia Tech Track and Field Invitational at Griffin Track on Friday night. An hour and 20 minute rain delay forced the event to be held after 10 p.m.
Morgan, the lone Paladin competitor at Georgia Tech, crossed the finish line of the 1500 race in 3:49.07, besting his previous season-best mark of 3:49.36. Morgan holds the top time this year among all Southern Conference runners in the 1500. He was aiming to qualify for NCAA Regional competition, missing the qualifying time of 3:47.80 by less than two seconds.
Georgia Southern ? Georgia Tech Last Chance Meet
Day 1
ATLANTA, Ga. ? Georgia Southern completed day one of the rain shortened Georgia Tech Invitational.
The majority of the nightcap has been postponed due to rain and only a handful of events were completed. The Long Jump was the last event completed on Friday.
Demetrise Anthony (Manchester, Ga.) paced the Eagles in the 100-meter run with a time of 11.97. Antoinette Jordan (Griffin, Ga.) finished with a time of 12.43, just shy of her career high. Courtney Ware (Indianapolis, Ind.) rounded out the event and crossed the line with a time of 12.53.
Anthony also finished eighth in the long jump with a mark of 5.86 meters. Lynndsey Hyter (Dallas, Texas) finished 14th with a jump of 5.68 meters.
Georgia Southern ? Georgia Tech Last Chance Meet
Day 2
ATLANTA, Ga. - The Georgia Southern track & field team finished the Georgia Tech Invitational Saturday. The broke a season high in the 400-meter hurdles and had a good showing the 4x400-meter relay.
Courtney Ware (Indianapolis, Ind.) had a strong showing in the 400 hurdles setting a season high with a time of 1:04.89. Ware shaved nearly two seconds off of her previous season high of 1:06.78 set in the Auburn Invitational.
The Eagles had a pair of 15th-place finishes in the high jump. Jasmine Lightning (Dacula, Ga.) and Melanie Trumbo (Lilburn, Ga.) both recorded jumps of 1.65 meters.
Shauntel Jennings (Stone Mountain, Ga.) paced the Eagles in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:16.21. Morgan Jefferson (Villa Rica, Ga.) finished 35th with a time of 2:19.04 and Azura Robillard (Altamonta Springs, Fla.) crossed the line with a time of 2:26.62.
JoAnn Benson-Jaja (Savannah, Ga.) and Ashley Bush-Hardy (Fayettevile, Ga.) finished back-to-back in the 400-meter dash. Benson-Jaja finished 24th with a time of 57.15 and Bush-Hardy crossed the line right behind her with a time of 57.59.
Shaunta Hamilton (Macon, Ga.) finished fifth in the triple jump with a distance of 12.22 meters.
Georgia Southern's 4x400 relay team of Benson-Jaja, Jefferson, Jennings and Bush-Hardy finished fifth with a time of 3:46.22.
The Track & Field athletes who qualified for Regionals will head to Greensboro, N.C., to take part in the NCAA East Regional. The regional begins May 29th and runs through the 30th.
Georgia Southern ? NCAA East Regionals
GREENSBORO, N.C. - The Georgia Southern Eagles had two athletes competing in Friday's scheduled events at the NCAA East Regionals.
Friday's events featured a pair of conference champions. Demetrise Anthony (Manchester, Ga.) won the long jump medal with a jump of 6.08 meters.
She finished seventh in flight one of the long jump at the regional with a mark of 5.61 meters.
Kristin Olson (Senoia, Ga.) won the 100-meter hurdles at the SoCon Championships and finished with a time of 15.03 at the NCAA East Regional.
Melanie Trumbo (Lilburn, Ga.) did not record a mark in the high jump on Saturday. She was unable to pass the first height of 1.7 meters.
Track & Field wraps up its 2009 season after sending three athletes to the NCAA East Regional and finishing third in the SoCon Championships.
UNC Greensboro ? Tar Heel Classic
CHAPEL HILL, NC ? Freshman Joey Thompson capped off one of the most impressive freshman campaigns in UNC Greensboro history by breaking another school record in the final meet of the season on Sunday afternoon at the Tar Heel Classic.
Thompson finished in eighth place in the 1500-meter run in Chapel Hill as the lone competitor for the Spartans in the final competition.
Thompson’s time of 3:50.90 broke the previous school record by 1.37 seconds that he set earlier this season. Thompson set that earlier school record last month when he earned All-SoCon honors at the Southern Conference Championships.
Samford ? Georgia Tech Last Chance Meet
ATLANTA --- The Samford University track and field team rounded out its regular-season this weekend with the Georgia Tech Invitational. Only four Bulldogs competed in the two-day meet, and three of those four landed in the top ten of their events.
Freshman distance runner Andrea Seccafien was the only female to compete for the Bulldogs in this meet. She finished seventh in the 5000-meter run with a time of 18:10.70.
Patrick Wells took fourth in the men's pole vault as he cleared a height of 16-00.75 while Thomas Oliver placed ninth in the javelin throw with a toss of 167-01.
Blaise Carie ran the 800-meter run in 1:56.99 to finish 45th.
Although, no Bulldogs qualified for the NCAA Mideast Regional this weekend, Samford will be taking two Bulldogs to the event in two weeks.
Hillary Neal has qualified for the Regional in both the 800 and the 3000-meter steeplechase while Patrick Wells has qualified in the pole vault.
The NCAA Mideast Regional is set for May 29-30 in Lexington, Ky.
Samford ? NCAA Mideast Regional
LOUISVILLE, Ky. ---- Junior pole vaulter Patrick Wells broke his own school record Saturday as he finished 15th in the NCAA Mideast Regional competition. This is the third time Wells has either broken or tied a school record this outdoor season.
Wells notched a height of 16'7.25" on Saturday, passing the record he set at the Auburn Invitational on April 18 by half an inch.
Sophomore middle distance runner Hillary Neal finished 21st in the 3000-meter steeplechase with a time of 11:09.91 while freshman distance runner Andrea Seccafien placed 21st in the 5000-meter run with a time of 18:24.96.
Junior distance runner Blaise Carie took 29th place in the men's 3000 steeplechase with a time of 9:39.59.
The Bulldog squad wraps up its first season under the direction of head coach Rod Tiffin. Samford notched several school records in various events during the 2009 season while having four athletes qualify for Regionals in seven events.
Chattanooga ? NCAA Mideast Regional
LOUISVILLE, Ky. --- Chattanooga’s Anneli Uys, competing in her first NCAA track meet, finished 11th overall in the 800-meter run at the 2009 NCAA Mid East Region Saturday afternoon in Louisville, Ky.
"It was just not her kind of race," UTC Head Coach Bill Gautier said. "They went out at a jog. She's got to go out hard and hope no one catches her."
Uys ran the event in a time of 4:35.48 after qualifying for the finals in the second heat Friday afternoon. The top five in each event earn an automatic qualification to the NCAA National Championships. After that the next seven best times will earn an at-large bid to the meet.
The Somerville, Australia native won the event at the Southern Conference Championships last month and set a school record in the 800 which she won as well.
"It's very emotional," Gautier said. "She gave it her all and made it into the finals. You have to start somewhere."
Western Carolina ? NCAA East Regional
Greensboro, N.C. -Western Carolina's men's 4x100-meter relay team, and Dominique Young advanced in two events to the finals on Friday at the 2009 NCAA East Regional at the Irwin Belk Track. Also competing in Saturday's finale, WCU freshman Jamie Van Pelt will open competition in the men's discus event with the top nine advancing to the finals.
In the first day of the NCAA East Regional Championships Western Carolina surprised many teams with their solid play in qualifying for two event finals set for Saturday's final day.
The Catamounts didn't compete in their first event till 4 p.m. when the women's 4x100-meter relay team placed 13th in the preliminaries with a time of 45.64 seconds. The team consisted of freshman Emma Bowers, sophomore Felicia Paulding, sophomore Janet Carothers, and senior Aneesha Lane.
Junior Dominique Young placed second in the second heat of the men's 200-meter dash preliminaries with a time of 20.86 seconds, to earn him a qualifying bid to the finals on Saturday. Young currently sits seventh overall for the Catamounts.
Senior Manteo Mitchell finished 11th place in the 200-meter dash with a time of 20.93 seconds hoping to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Nationals in two weeks. Teammate and fellow senior Kevin Johnson ran in the 200 also finishing in 31st place with a time of 21.84 seconds.
In the women's 200-meter dash sophomore Felicia Paulding finished just out of the qualifying times in ninth place with a time of 23.83 seconds.
On the men's side in the 4x100-meter relay team the Catamounts qualified for the finals on Saturday with a time of 39.86 seconds. The team of senior Kevin Johnson, senior Manteo Mitchell, junior Dominique Young, and freshman Benny Davis reached their personal-best for the season.
Western Carolina currently stands in seventh place in the 400-meter relay heading into the much anticipated final tomorrow with Clemson leading the way in first place.
In the men's 100-meter dash junior Dominique Young qualified for the finals with a new WCU record of 10.40 seconds breaking T. Alford's mark of 10.41 back in 2004.
In the women's 400-meter dash event sophomore Janet Carothers placed 19th in the preliminaries with a time of 55.38 seconds.
In the men's 400 senior Manteo Mitchell placed ninth in the preliminaries, falling just one spot short of qualifying for the finals with a time of 46.42 seconds. Mitchell still has an opportunity to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Nationals event in two weeks.
In the women's 400-meter hurdles event junior Tierra Johnson placed 42nd in the preliminaries with a time of 1:05.32 seconds.
In the men's 400 hurdles event junior Jestin Jennings placed 27th in the preliminaries with a time of 54.28 seconds.
The Catamounts will return to action in the final day of the NCAA East Regional with the first event for the Catamounts beginning around 5 p.m. in the men's discus event.
Western Carolina ? NCAA East Regional
Greensboro, N.C. -Western Carolina's women's 4x400-meter relay team places sixth in the 2009 NCAA East Regional finals at the Irwin Belk Track, while junior Dominique Young finished in the top-ten in both the 100-meter dash and 200-meter dash in Saturdays finale.
The women's 4x400 relay team placed first in the first heat with a blistering new WCU record at 3:37.42 seconds breaking last season's mark by .12 seconds. The team of sophomore Shalyn McMichael, sophomore Felicia Paulding, freshman Felisha Garren, and sophomore Janet Carothers finished in fifth overall at the NCAA East Regionals. The women's 4x400 relay team will look to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Nationals announced later next week.
Western Carolina had to wait till 5 p.m. to begin their first event of the final day at the NCAA East Regional in the men's 4x100-meter relay final. The Catamounts finished the event in seventh place with a time of 40.58 seconds. The team of senior Kevin Johnson, senior Manteo Mitchell, junior Dominique Young, and freshman Benny Davis still has a very good chance of qualifying for one of the at-large bids to the National Championships in two weeks.
In the men's 100-meter dash junior Dominique Young placed eighth with a time of 10.55 seconds. Young will now hope to receive an at-large bid to the NCAA nationals in two weeks.
Junior Dominique Young also ran the men's 200-meter dash placing seventh with a time of 21.23 seconds. Young will wait to see if he receives an at-large bid to the NCAA nationals being held in Fayetteville, Arkansas on June 10-14.
In the final event for the NCAA East Regionals the men's 4x400-meter relay team competed but were hurt early by two of their top runners being scratched from injury. Junior Dominique Young and Senior Manteo Mitchell both were scratched due to hamstring injuries. The Catamounts still finished in 16th place with a time of 3:16.41 seconds. The team of freshman Benny Davis, senior Thomas Funderburk, junior Jestin Jennings, and senior Kevin Johnson.
Western Carolina will now wait and learn their fates for the 2009 NCAA National Championships, as the participants will be announced on Tuesday June 2.