LYNCHBURG, Va. (Jan. 29, 2011) - The ETSU men's and women's Track and Field teams had several athletes post outstanding performance Saturday as the Bucs had five first place finishes at the Liberty Open in Lynchburg, Va.
"This meet has shown us that we are doing the right things, and putting things together at the right time," said assistant coach Eli Sunquist. "I was thrilled with the performances across the board, and it's a great meet to set us for our home meet next week. Jarrod continues to improve each week, and his hard work is really paying off. I was also very excited about how Ryan Beaver jumped. This was his first time jumping from a full approach this season, and I think today is just the beginning of something special for him this year."
On the men's side, senior Jarrod Burton (Bastian, Va.) continued a great 2011 campaign as he placed first in the shot put for the second straight week after a personal best throw of 57-0. Burton also finished second in the weight throw with a mark of 58-11 ¼.
Sophomore Ryan Beaver (Virginia Beach, Va.) also posted a first place finish in the field events as he had a lifetime best jump of 49-7 ¾ to win the men's triple jump. The mark was two feet better than Beaver's previous best, and currently ranks in the US top 40.
In the sprints, the Bucs had a breakout performance from sophomore Tim O'Dell (Palm Coast, Fla.) as he won the men's 400m with a time of 49.75. Current A-Sun Athlete of the Week Ifrish Alberg
(Paramaribo, Suriname) followed up his performance last week with a third place finish in the men's 60m dash as he had a time of 6.88, while Mike James (Palm Bay, Fla.) placed second in the 60m hurdles with a time of 8.06.
The men's 4x400m relay team (O'Dell, James, Desmond Pierce, and Robert Purcell) also had a second place finish as they were just edged out by the host Liberty Flames after running a time of 3:22.89.
On the women's side, senior Jasmine Ingram (Fredrick, Md.) led the way as she won the 200m after running a time of 25.44. Ingram also placed third in the women's 60m dash as she had a personal record time of 7.80, while Emani Harrison (Columbia, S.C.) finished second in the 60m with a time 7.73.
Also placing for the Bucs in the sprints was junior Hannah Bowers (Jonesborough, Tenn.) as she finished second in the 400m with a time of 1:00.29.
The women's 4x400 relay team of Emma Bowers (Jonesborough, Tenn.), Harrison, Ashton Bishop (Gate City, Va.), and Ingram ran away with a first place finish as the Bucs ran a season best time of 3:56.55.
In the field events, A-Sun Athlete of the Week Lexie Burley (Johnson City, Tenn.) had another strong outing as she finished third in the women's triple jump with a personal best mark of 38-2 ¾, while sophomore Jasmine Foster (Johnson city, Tenn.) placed third in the shot put with a lifetime best throw of 41-1.
"On the women's side we continue to improve in both top performances, as well as depth," Sunquist added. "Jasmine Ingram ran very well, Jasmine Foster had a great PR, as did Lexie. We are really excited about how our women are coming together as a team."
In the combined events, freshman Stephond Allmond (Memphis, Tenn.) showed some promise as he placed sixth in the heptathlon in his first action of the season totaling 4056 points on the weekend.
"Stephond had a fantastic first heptathlon," Sunquist said. "He was a bit unlucky in the long jump, but all of his events really impressed me. Being able to score what he did in just 6 events is great. He showed great courage throughout the 2 day event."
The Bucs return to action next weekend as they host the Niswonger Invitational inside the MSHA Athletic Center from Feb. 4-5.
