Friday, March 17, 2006

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (March 17, 2006) - The East Tennessee State men's and women's track and field teams began competition on Friday at Charlotte 49ers Classic at Irwin Belk Track.  Several Bucs notched strong performances, with a trio of ETSU athletes managing top-10 finishes.

Jenny Knox (Connelly Springs, N.C.) had a good day in the sprints, recording a preliminary performance of 11.94 in the 100-meter dash, good for the eighth and final spot in tomorrow's final.  Knox also ran strong in the 200-meters, finishing in a 17^th-place tie with teammate Cagney Bailey (Statesville, N.C.).  The ETSU duo clocked identical times of 24.98.

Johnny Tucker (Spartanburg, S.C.) led the Buccaneer men in the sprints, sailing to a time of 10.88 in the 100 to finish 18^th.

The Bucs managed a pair of top 10 finishers in the men's 1,500-meters, with Josh Hicks (Riceville, Tenn.) going 3:59.13 for sixth place and Jeff Crane (Taylors, S.C) crossing the line in ninth place in 4:01.91.  Jordan Ladd (Ontario) posted a 15^th-place showing in the 5,000-meters, running 15:15.38.  

Christine Ward (Candler, N.C.) was the women's team's highest finisher in Friday's distance events, running 18:47.92 for 5,000, enough for 14^th place in the race.

Action at the 49er's Classic wraps up on Saturday with events beginning at 10 a.m.  Click the link above for live meet results.