Charlotte, N.C. - Led by Carrie Long's
first-place finish in the women's pole vault event on Friday
afternoon, the Gardner-Webb women's and men's track and field teams
combined for 15 top-10 finishes and set two new school records at
the Charlotte 49er Classic this weekend, its first outdoor meet of
the season.
GWU's Long won the women's pole vault event, taking first-place
with a height of 3.50 meters (11'5.75"), while freshman Taylor Cook
finished third overall, clearing the bar at 3.20 meters
(10'6").
Junior Diana Palka crossed the finish line in fifth in the
women's 3000 meter steeplechase with her time of 11:48.77, which
set a new school record, while GWU's Ellie Glunk took 13th-place in
the 3000 meter run with a time of 11:45.31.
Senior Brie Thompson picked up two top 10 finishes, as she took
seventh-place in the hammer throw event with a new personal best
mark of 44.75 meters and then finished in 10th-place in the women's
discus throw event, turning in a long throw of 35.68 meters
(117'1").
GWU freshman standout Ashlei Alexander placed sixth in the
women's shot put event with a long distance of 12.72 meters
(41'8.75"), Caroline Arledge took ninth overall in the women's
javelin throw event, turning in a throw of 33.30 meters
(109'3").
In the long jump event, GWU's Katy Milton finished in 16th-place
with a leap of 4.94 meters (16'2.50"), while freshman Yazzming Lee
turned in a long distance of 4.23 meters (13'10.50") to take 27th
overall.
Gardner-Webb freshman Ariel Zimmerman crossed the finish line in
12th-place overall in the women's 1500 meter run with her time of
4:48.70, while junior distance runner Laura Scott placed 14th
overall in the women's 5000 meter run with her time of 18:14.19, a
new personal best.
The Lady Bulldogs dominated the 800 meter run, as Ivana Hughes
(2:19.34) placed ninth followed by fellow freshman Leah Steinke
(2:21.65) in 13th, Cherish Richardson (2:21.77) in 14th with a new
personal best time and Zimmerman (2:22.06) in 16th-place.
In the women's 100 meter dash, Aliegha Brigham finished 15th in
the preliminaries with a time of 12.45, a new personal best, while
in the 400 meter dash preliminaries freshman Hughes placed ninth
with her time of 57.82.
Elisabeth Sawyer turned in a new personal best time of 5:16.12
in the 1500 meter run, while junior Lia Hudak finished the 5000
meter run with a new personal record time of 20:18.45.
As for the GWU men, sophomore Nick Kelly crossed the finish line
in sixth-place with his time of 14:57.94 in the men's 5000 meter
run, setting a new school record along the way.
Junior Jonathon Rucker turned in a new personal best time of
14.67 in the preliminaries of the men's 110 meter hurdles event on
Friday to qualify for the finals on Saturday in which he finished
in sixth-place with a finals time of 14.76.
Senior Paul Steinke and Rucker both qualified for Saturday's 400
meter hurdle finals on Friday afternoon, as in the preliminaries,
Steinke finished with a time of 54.02, while Rucker crossed the
finish line with a time of 54.76. Steinke went on to take
third-place in the finals on Saturday afternoon with his time of
52.95.
Freshman Bo Miller placed 10th in the preliminaries of the men's
100 meter dash event with a time of 10.93, while junior Evan
Brusich placed 17th with a time of 15.60 on Friday.
Fellow newcomer Josiah Stanton-Brooks turned in a time of
1:54.31 in the 800 meter run, good enough for a 10th-place finish,
while senior Charlie Steinke turned in a personal best time of
4:07.15 in the 1500 meter run on Saturday.
GWU's 4x400 meter relay unit of Chase Fuller, Miller, Bryce
Nixon and Lyndrez Leslie placed 16th overall with a time of 44.98,
while Nixon finished with a leap of 5.95 meters (19'6.25") in the
men's long jump event, putting him in 26th-place overall.
In the field events on the men's side, sophomore Travis Rogers
turned in a distance of 45.15 meters (148'1") in the men's hammer
throw, placing 12th overall, and then finished 19th in the discus
throw event with a distance of 34.81 meters, both of which were
personal best marks.
GWU dominated the men's pole vault event, as freshman Clint
McManus and Brusich each cleared the bar at 4.30 meters (14'1.25),
a new personal best for both individuals, to finish second and
third, respectively, while fellow Bulldog Steven Gardner placed
10th with his height of 4.00 meters (13'1.50).
Gardner-Webb's Brusich turned in a throw of 35.63 meters
(116'11") in the javelin throw, finishing in 24th-place just ahead
of Bulldog teammate Josh Padgett who finished 25th with a distance
of 35.19 meters (115'5").
Gardner-Webb will return to action next weekend, March 26-27, at
the Asics Winthrop Invitational in Rock Hill, S.C.
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