Appalachian State has impressive outing at Wake Forest Invitational
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Appalachian State University track and field put forth another impressive early-season showing, this time at the Wake Forest Invitational over the weekend.
On the men's side, Jared Stalling grabbed first-place in the hammer throw with a toss of 58.47 meters (191'10") and Alex Taylor finished first in the 800-meter run (1:53.02). Stalling also finished fourth in the shot put with a throw of 15.97 meters (52'4.75").
Will Raby captured first in the 5,000-meter run (14:46.84) and the Mountaineer 4x100-meter relay team of Dennis Moore, AJ Dohanic, Justin Thomas and Landon Powell finished first with a time of 40.48 seconds.
Other top finishers for the Apps included Darius Purcell, who captured second-place in the high jump with a leap of 2.22 meters (7'3.25") and Dohanic, who finished second in the 110-meter hurdles (14.31 seconds).
Powell brought home a second-place time in the 100-meter dash (10.64 second) while Moore finished fifth (10.68).
Appalachian State also had strong showings from Caleb Poplin and Zane Lail in the discus throw as the pair finished fifth and seventh, respectively.
The Mountaineers finished with a total of 17 top-10 finishes on the men's side.
On the women's side, Shaquiela Robinson and Sarah Williamson brought home first-place honors. Robinson, who won the high jump in the season-opening Coastal Carolina Invitational last weekend, also picked up the high jump title at the Wake Forest Invitational with a leap of 1.73 meters (5'8").
Williamson brought home the title in the 5,000-meter run with a time of 17:24.25 while teammates Amanda Hamilton, Hannah Orders and Kayla Schneider finished third, fifth and seventh, respectively.
The Mountaineers also had a strong showing from Cassie Crawford, who finished fifth in the pole vault with a mark of 3.5 meters (11'5.75").
Asia Dunlap finished in the top five in two events, finishing second in the 800-meter run (2:12.03) while taking third in the 400-meter dash (55.37 second). Allison Cook finished third in the 3,000-meter steeplechase (11:17.85) and Kaitlyn Cagle took second in the 10,000-meter run (37:14.34).
Mary Theresa Montgomery and Janet Wastson finished fourth and sixth, respectively, in Flight B of the high jump and the Apps' 4x100-meter relay team of Breanna Alston, Kristen Campbell, D’Shawrna McLucas and Shenita Martin grabbed second place (46.00).
Alston also finished third in the 200-meter dash and Gayshawna Watkins led ASU's throwers with a sixth-place showing in the shot put with a throw of 13.93 meters (45'8.50")
The Mountaineers return to action at the South Carolina Invitational next Saturday.
Western Carolina recorded 27 top-ten finishes at 49er Classic
CHARLOTTE, N.C.--Western Carolina’s track & field teams wrapped up action at the 49er Classic on the campus of UNC Charlotte Saturday afternoon with 27 top-ten finishes and two wins in its first outdoor meet of the season.
Sophomore Megan Morton opened her outdoor season with a win in the javelin. Morton’s best throw of 44.78m was a personal best. Morton has won five out of the nine meets in which she has participated in her young career. She has never finished outside of the top six. Teammates Summer Hughes and Kim Cannon earned top-ten finishes, placing sixth and ninth respectively.
Freshman Alisha Bradshaw finished third in the shot put with a throw of 14.06 meters while classmate Megan Withers placed tenth with a throw of 12.25m.
On the track, sophomore Jocelyn Keen was the top collegiate finisher in the 800m run – second overall – with a personal best time of 2:09.56. Michaela Birek placed tenth in the 400m hurdles final.
The women’s final with the most Catamounts was the women’s 400 meter dash. Senior Felisha Garren crossed the line in 54.69, finishing second. Garren was edged out by Charlotte’s Sheila Mungo who finished in 54.47. Freshmen classmates Genevieve Emrick and Lena Elliott finished fourth and fifth.
On the men’s side, Keith Leonard and Matt Stenger placed third and fourth in the pole vault with vaults of 4.45m and 4.30m. Junior Chase Fisher earned a third place finish in the 3000m steeplechase.
In the 400m hurdles final, Tyler Bentley ran the fastest time for WCU, finishing third with a time of 54.26 in a close race. Sam Lusty (54.42) and Marquis Bailey (55.95) placed fifth and seventh.
In the 4x400-meter relays, the Western Carolina men’s team took first place with a time of 3:12.39. The women placed second in the event, running a 3:48.16. The men’s 4x100-meter team came in second to Charlotte, crossing the stripe in 40.94. Charlotte edged the Catamounts with its time of 40.53.
The Catamounts next compete at home in Cullowhee on Saturday, March 24 with the Beynon Sports Catamount Classic. The meet begins Saturday at 9:45 am with the men’s hammer and the women’s javelin. Running events are set to begin at noon. The meet is free and open to the public.
Furman has strong outing at 49er Classic
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Sophomore Jack Klecker placed third with a time of 8:56.16 in the 3,000m to lead the Furman outdoor track and field teams Saturday in the final day of the Charlotte 49er Classic at the Irwin Belk Track in Charlotte, N.C.
Senior Lee Gilmer took fifth place in the 800m after posting a time of 1:52.05, while sophomore Jackson Sinor and freshman Stuart Graham finished back-to-back with 10th (9:17.31) and 11th place (9:17.67) finishes, respectively.
The Paladin 4x400m relay team of junior Raul Rodriquez, Sinor, Gilmer, and sophomore Zack Duskin placed 15th with a time of 3:25.86.
For the Furman women’s team, senior Erin Barker finished eighth in the 800m with a time of 2:14.36, and freshman Blair Burke placed ninth in the 3,000m with a time of 10:54.76. The Furman women’s 4x400m relay team of freshman Rachel Gilbert, junior Misha Holmes, sophomore Alexa Wilton, and freshman Shannon Murphy finished 12th with a time of 4:09.89.
In Saturday’s field events, junior Scott DesMarais placed 16th in the discus with a mark of 43.82 (143-9) and 23rd in the shot put after placing a throw at 13.06 (42-10.25). Freshman Danielle Ebzery recorded a jump of 10.38 (34-0.75) in the triple jump for 15th place, and fellow-rookie Gretchen Gabrielson placed 24th in the shot put with a mark of 10.36 (34-0).
The Furman squad will compete in two separate meets the weekend of March 30-31. The Paladins will attend both the Raleigh Relays in Raleigh, N.C., and the Emory Classic in Atlanta, Ga.
UNCG’s Schnell, Katam put up second place finishes at Wake Forest Open
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – UNCG’s track and field team turned in several solid finishes on the second and final day of the Wake Forest Open on Saturday, highlighted by runner-up finishes from Ashley Schnell and Paul Katam.
On the women’s side, Kerry Hartman started the day well for the Spartans by shaving two seconds off her personal best time in the 1,500 meters. Hartman finished third overall in the event with a time of 4:34.45.
In the 3,000m, Schnell paced the Spartans by finishing second in a time of 9:35.67, followed by top-10 finishes from both Chelsea Sumney (fourth, 9:51.82) and Shaina Sumney (sixth, 10:02.99).
For the men, Katam and Joey Thompson finished second and third overall, respectively, in the 3,000m while Tyron Alston won his heat en route to a new personal best-time of 8:54.29.
The Spartans will be back in action next Saturday at the HPU VertKlasse Meeting hosted by High Point University.
Samford’s Goodson, Poole set school records at Shamrock Invitational
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. ---- The Bulldogs headed to the east coast this weekend, continuing their outdoor season at the annual Shamrock Invitational, hosted by Coastal Carolina University.
Claire Goodson set a new Samford school and Shamrock Invitational meet record with her win in the women’s pole vault, as she cleared 12-9.5 (3.90m) on her second attempt. The former school-record holder, Ashley Cope, finished fourth with a height of 11-11.75 (3.65m). Laura Bedsole was the third Bulldog to finish in the top ten in the field, as she placed eighth (11-5.75, 3.50m).
Kaitlyn Poole set a school record for the second-consecutive week, improving her personal best mark in the women’s shot put to 40-6.75 (12.36m) with her finish this weekend. She previously set the school record at last week’s Birmingham Southern Invitational with a mark of 39-7.25 (12.07m).
Samford fielded a formidable 4x800-meter relay squad of Holly Benson, Chelsea Treadway, Anna Laura Irvine and Marie Demedicis, as they cruised to a first-place finish in the event with a time of 9:06.61. Demedicis, Benson and Treadway also performed well in the women’s 1,500 meters, as they each placed in the top fourth of the field. Demedicis led the way in fifth (4:40.19) with Benson in seventh (4:41.24) and Treadway in 12th (4:47.79). Irvine ran a solid race in the 800 meters, placing sixth (2:16.25).
Owen Wagoner earned a win in the men’s pole vault in his first outdoor competition of the season, clearing 16-6.75 (5.05m). School record-holder Michael Seaman finished fourth (16-0.75, 4.90m) and Ryan Cook finished eighth (15-7, 4.75m).
Justin Emerson qualified for the 100-meter dash finals with a ninth-place showing in the prelims (10.69) as he placed 12th in the finals (12.72). Julie McDonald did the same in the women’s 100-meter hurdles, placing sixth in the prelims (14.37) and tenth in the finals (14.83). The Bulldogs fielded a pair of fourth-place finishers in the multi events, as Bo Ackerson-Gilroy finished fourth in the decathlon (5,860) and Christian McGuire (4,448) did the same in the heptathlon.
Samford’s next competition will be at the Alabama Crimson Classic, beginning Saturday, March 24.
Davidson concludes opening weekend at 49er Classic
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Freshman Presley Parkes led the Davidson women’s track and field team in its first spring event by getting a top-20 finish as the Wildcats opened the outdoor season at the UNC Charlotte 49er Classic over the weekend.
Parkes, who was an All-SoCon Freshman team member during the indoor season, picked up a 17th place finish in the 1500-Meter run with a time of 4:45.53. She was one of four Wildcats who ran in the event. Maggie Rickard followed with a time of 4:58.03, good for 44th place, while Grace Watt (5:03.65) and Jane Gay (5:05.80) had finishes of 53rd and 56th, respectively.
Erin Osment, who also joined Parkes on the all-freshman team during indoor season, ran to a 20th place finish in the 5000-Meter as she clocked in at 18:29.64. Joining her in the event was Manya Swick, who was 30th on a time of 18:55.38, and Lauren Carter, who ran to a time of 19:23.52 for 42nd place. Abbey Thibeault rounded out the event for the Wildcats with a time of 20:44.46.
Competing in the 400-Meter dash was Mackenzie Hicks and Ashley Paige, getting 54th and 58th place finishes, respectively, on times of 1:06.54 and 1:08.55.
In the long jump, first-year jumper Gracie Gordon came in 19th overall on a jump of 4.86 meters.
Davidson will next compete at the Vertklasse Meet in High Point, N.C., Saturday, March 24.
Elon places four distance runners in the top-ten
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Four distance runners of the Elon track and field team turned in top-10 performances in the first day of the Wake Forest Open today, March 16, at Kentner Stadium.
Emily Tryon placed second out of 17 competitors in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 11:12.28. Erin Macbeth took 13th after finishing in 12:24.41.
In a field of 111 in the 800-meter run, Louise Prevoteau claimed eighth after posting a time of 2:15.81. Jackie Madden finished 52nd clocking a 2:22.09 and Brennan McDavid took 65th with a 2:23.52. Ellie Taff rounded out the event for the Phoenix with a time of 2:24.40 for 74th.
Allyson Oram turned in a performance of 17:41.52 to claim fourth in the 5,000-meter run. Morgan Denecke also finished in the top 10 with a time of 18:22.46 for ninth. Haylee Dawe (18:54.05), Christine Pacewicz (18:58.34) and Kaitlin Stober (19:01.51) took 17th – 19th, respectively, while Katelyn O’Dunne posted a time of 19:36.55 for 28th.
The Elon track and field team will be back in action on Friday, March 30, at the Raleigh Relays in Raleigh, N.C.