Track & Field ACCtion: Weekend of January 18-20
Clemson sweeps its own invitational; Boston College women win BU Invite.



Jan. 20, 2008

Kasey Hill Leads Eagles at BU Multi-Team Meet

BOSTON, Mass. - The Boston College men and women's indoor track teams tallied 17 first-place performances in the Multi-Team Meet against Boston University and Sacred Heart held at the Boston University Track & Tennis Center on Thursday.

The women took first place with 94 points. Sacred Heart followed with 52.50 points and Boston University placed third with 23.50 points. The men placed second with 64 points while Sacred Heart won the multi-meet with 103 points. Boston University captured 22 points.

Senior Kasey Hill recorded a personal-best performance in the 200-meter dash, clocking a 24.85 to lead all runners. Hill's time put her second on BC's all-time performance list and marks the second-fastest time in the ACC this season. She also took top honors in the 55-meter hurdles, crossing in 8.19, tying her fastest performance in the event this season.


Tigers Sweep Clemson Invitational

CLEMSON, S.C. - Senior Matt Clark broke the Clemson Indoor Facility record in the 3000-meter run to highlight Saturday's action and lead the Tigers to a first-place finish at the Clemson Invitational. Travis Padgett and Trenton Guy also captured event titles in the 60m and 200m races, respectively.

The men's track & field team scored 133.5 points for a convincing win at the Clemson Invitational on Saturday. Georgia was second with 102 and Charlotte came in third with 83 points.

The Lady Tiger track & field team scored 104.5 points to win the title. The second day of competition was highlighted by Patricia Mamona's runner-up finish in the triple jump and Jenna Baker's second-place finish in the 3000m.

Mamona was runner-up in the triple jump for Clemson after capturing the long jump title on Friday night. The Lisbon, Portugal native posted a NCAA provisional qualifying mark of 41'6.5". Nakeisha Wineglass also scored in the triple jump while coming in fifth place with a mark of 39'0.25".


Miami Opens With Strong Performance at Illinois Invitational

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The University of Miami women's track team began their 2008 indoor season with an impressive showing at the Illinois Women's Invitational. The squad finished with 120.5 points only 1.5 behind host No. 25 Illinois. No. 11 Texas finished with 119 and No. 14 UCLA ended the season opener with 110.5.

The Hurricanes were the only team not ranked in the top-25 but showed with their performance that they belong back in the mix with the nation's top teams.

"I am pleased on the way we competed against some of the nation's top programs," head coach Amy Deem said. "Our freshman was impressive in their collegiate debuts and this is a very good start to our season."


Terrapins and Cavaliers Compete in Maryland Invitational

LANDOVER, Md. - University of Maryland senior Jillian Anwah won both the women's shot put and the 20-pound weight throw to highlight the home team's 10 event victories Saturday at the Maryland Indoor Invitational track and field meet held at the Wayne Curry Sports and Learning Center.

Anwah had season-best marks of 59 feet, 5.75 inches in the weight throw and came back later to go 47-1.50 in the shot put. Her winning effort in the shot put led a 1-2-3 finish by the Terrapins in that event.

She was followed by Ashley Williams, whose 46-4.75 moved her into sixth place on Maryland's all-time list, and Aysha Gregory, who was third in 45-0.25. All three marks qualified for the ECAC Indoor Championships to be held in Boston in March.

Anwah's mark in the weight throw was nearly a foot better than her throw last week at the Virginia Tech Invitational, and bested the Maryland Invitational field by more than four feet better than second-place Taylar Stallings of South Florida. Gregory was fourth at 52-5.50, a half-inch off a qualifying mark for the ECAC Indoor.


Tar Heels Perform Well At Eddie & Jo Smith UNC Classic

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - The University of North Carolina track and field program hosted its second meet in as many weeks and turned in similar results Saturday as the Tar Heels combined to win 11 events and place in the top five in several others. Freshman hurdler LaToya James tallied her second provisional time of the year in the 60-meter hurdles as she posted an 8.32 after running an 8.39 a week ago. Next week the Tar Heels will head to Penn State for the Penn State National on Feb. 25-26.

James was the lone qualifier among all the athletes at the meet but she was far from the only Tar Heel to pick up a victory on the day. On the women's side in the track events, Colleen Farley earned a win in the 800 as she edged out her teammate Dominique Jackson by .06 of a second. Farley completed her four laps in 2:14.84, while Jackson finished in 2:14.90 for second place. In the 3,000-meter Addie Bracy picked up a victory in her first meet of the season as she finished in a time of 9:58.48. Lauren Holesh finished second in the 3,000 with a time of 10:04.42. In the relays, the distance medley relay team placed first with a time of 13:03.76, more than a minute ahead of the second-place finisher. The 4x400 meter relay team finished with a time of 3:55.50, which was good for third place.


Hokies Place Four in Top 10 of Men's Pole Vault at Niswonger Invite

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. - Four current Virginia Tech men's pole vaulters earned top-10 finishes Saturday at the Niswonger Invitational, held on East Tennessee State's David E. Walker Track in Johnson City, Tenn.

Current Tech sophomore vaulters Jared Jodon and Yavjeniy Olhovsky led the way by tying for third and fourth place in the individual standings, respectively. Jodon cleared a height of 5.05m (16'6.75"), while Olhovsky was at 5.02m (16'5.5"). Jodon, a Uniontown, Pa., native, established a new personal best by .10 meters. His former personal record of 4.95m (16'2.75") was set at the Golden West Track & Field meet for Laurel Highlands High School.

A trio of freshmen turned in solid performances for the Hokies, as well. Hunter Hall registered a sixth-place finish with a 4.87m (15'11.75") performance. Hall was followed by classmate Joe Davis, who cleared an identical height of 4.87m (15'11.75"). Michael Miller was 12th at 4.42m (14'6").