GREENVILLE, S.C. (April 7, 2007) - The ETSU track and field team had an outstanding day at the Furman Invitational Saturday as 14 different Buccaneer athletes claimed titles in their respective events, and collected 18 titles overall. The men brought home 11 titles and the women came away with seven.
The men and women throwers had a spectacular day, making it a clean sweep in the shot put, discus and hammer events. Freshman Zachlynn Blackburn (Tazewell, Va.) won her first two outdoor titles in the hammer and discus, while another freshman, Brooke Berarducci (Knoxville, Tenn.), claimed her first collegiate title by winning the shot put. On the men's side, a pair of ETSU throwers also claimed titles as Jarrod Burton (Bastian, Va.) continued his dominance by winning both the shot put and hammer, while Dakota Cagle (Rutherford College, N.C.) took home his first collegiate title, winning the discus.
Continuing on the men's side, Derek Carey (Nassau, Bahamas) collected his first-ever title while competing at ETSU, posting a time of 11.28 in the 100-meters, while freshman Chris Harrison's (Woodbridge, Va.) was the first sprinter to cross the finish line in the 200-meter finals (22.63).
Jeff Crane (Taylors, S.C.) had no problem distancing himself from the pack in the 1500-meters, as he finished first in 4:05.75, while Michael Deren (Blasdell, N.Y.) was right behind him in second. Both ETSU's relay teams came in first as the 4x100 squad finished in 43.30, and the 4x400-meter group ended with a time of 3:24.54. Junior Mike Wright (Chattanooga, Tenn.) walked away with the 110-meter hurdle title after finishing with a time of 15.44. Rounding out the titles on the men's side was Nate Strickland (Morganton, N.C.) in the long jump and David Thomas (Maryville, Tenn.) in the pole vault.
On the women's side, senior Anna Marie Ricciardi (Canfield, Ohio) won her second straight title in the high jump, clearing 5-08 (1.77m). A trio of Buccaneer sprinters had successful showings as Jenny Knox (Connelly Springs, N.C.), Nae-Nae Bailey (Statesville, N.C.), and Christin Zink (Herndon, Va.) cruised to victory in their respective events, marking their first titles of the 2007 outdoor season. Knox won the 100-meter event in 12.45, Bailey crossed the line first in the 200 (24.83) and Zink led the pack in the 400.
The Bucs will now split up as half the team will compete at the Sea Relays, and the other half will go to the Radford Collegiate Invitational. The Relays begin on Wednesday in Knoxville, while Radford's meet will be held on Saturday, April 14.
