BLACKSBURG, Va. (Jan. 15, 2011) - The ETSU track and field team closed out its second day of competition with some strong finishes Saturday at the Virginia Tech Invitational inside the Rector Field House in Blacksburg, Va.
"Being the first meet back after a long break, I expected the kids to be a tad rusty," said assistant coach Eli Sunquist. "We had an unnecessary number of fouled jumps, no heights, and poor race strategies. As the season goes on, that is something that will be fixed once they get back into the competition routine."
"However, it was nice to be back in competition mode," Sunquist added. "We are hoping that this meet was a great way to get the kids focused, and show them how hard they need to work if they want to bring home a team title."
Jarrod Burton (Bastian, Va.) and Mike James (Palm Bay, Fla.) led the way for the men's side. Burton placed third in both the shot put and the weight throw as he had a mark of 55-2 � in the shot, while posting a distance of 56-9 � in the weight throw. James also placed third as he had a time of 8:01 in the finals of the men's 60-meter hurdles.
In the jumps, Jesse Aliaga-Jacob (Nice, France) came in third as his final jump of 23-0 � in the men's long jump edged out Elias Still of Charlotte. Dre Westfield (Cleveland, Tenn.) finished 10th in the triple jump with a mark of 45-10 �, while Stephond Allmond (Memphis, Tenn.) had a lifetime best in the pole vault as he came in tied for fifth at 14-1 �.
Sophomore Tim O'Dell (Palm Coast, Fla.) also had a good showing as he finished 10th in the 400-m a time of 49.68.
On the women's side, Jasmine Ingram (Fredrick, Md.) came in seventh in the 400-m with a time of 56.09. In the women's 5000-m, Caitlyn Epps (Cookeville, Tenn.) finished third as she posted a time of 18:20.71.
Jasmine Foster (Johnson City, Tenn.) placed 10th in the women's weight throw with a mark of 49-7 �.
"This was a good chance for our sprinters to assess our fitness levels," said assistant Brandon Morton. "Now that we know where are, it gives a better idea of what needs to be done in the coming weeks."
The Bucs return to action next Saturday as they head to Boone, N.C. for the Appalachian Open. For more information on Buccaneer track and field please visit www.ETSUBucs.com.
