Both men and women notch top five overall finishes

CULLOWHEE, N.C. (March 23, 2013) – The ETSU men’s and women’s track & field teams wrapped up competition on Saturday at the Beynon Sports Catamount Classic, complete with a third-place finish for the women and a fifth-place finish for the men on the final day of play at the Western Carolina Catamount Athletic Complex.

“We had another good day of competition with numerous top three finishers and quite a few personal bests,” said Director of ETSU Track & Field/Cross Country George Watts. “We must continue to elevate our competitiveness and reap the benefits of our training.”

Following a solid start to the Catamount Classic on Friday, the ETSU women carried the momentum over to day two where they turned in solid scores again. In the 5000m run, freshman Jessica Palmer (Oak Ridge, Tenn.) achieved a personal best time of 18:29.64 and a second-place finish, while sophomore Nicole Alexander (Rock Hill, S.C.) added first and third-place showings in the 100m and 400m hurdles with times of 14.82 and 1:05.80, respectively. In addition, junior Scotti Sampair (Forest Lake, Minn.) recorded a 5.15m leap in the long jump which placed second and added vital points to keep women in the top three overall.

After sending out only a few competitors on day one, the men rounded out nicely on day two en route to a fifth-place finish. Multiple collegiate and outdoor bests were set, featuring a collegiate best time of 15:20.64 by junior Sean Duffy (Jonesborough, Tenn.) in the 5000m run. Senior Michael Lockhart (Nassau, Bahamas) was able to pace the field with an outdoor best mark of 7.05m in the long jump. In the hammer throw, juniors Justin Harris (Johnson City, Tenn.) and Richie Lovell (Orlando, Fla) each notched collegiate bests and top-10 finishes with tosses of 43.96m and 38.40m, respectively.  

“We had some nice wins from Michael [Lockhart] and Nicole [Alexander] today,” said Watts. “We also had excellent improvement from all the event groups.”

ETSU ended the Catamount Classic with dual top-five finshes with the women placing third overall with 66 points, while the men bounced back with a fifth-place finish and 47 points.

The Bucs will return to action next weekend when they head to Raleigh, N.C. to compete in the Raleigh Relays at the Paul Derr Track & Field facility located on the North Carolina State campus March 29-30.

Notables

Men

Michael Lockhart – long jump – 7.05m (OB) – 1^st place, 100m – 11.20 – 8^th place

Trey Johnson – 400mH – 55.78 – 2^nd place

Chris Winkle – pole vault – 4.40m – 3^rd place

Sean Duffy – 5000m – 15:20.64 (CB) – 3^rd place

Justin Harris – hammer throw – 43.96m (CB) – 6^th place

James Miller – 1500m – 4:07.03 (CB) – 7^th place

Avery Hall – 400m – 50.14 (OB) – 8^th place

Briar Pierce – 110mH – 15.82 – 8^th place, 400mH – 58.98 (CB) – 9^th place

Richie Lovell – hammer throw – 38.40m (CB) – 9^th place

Women

Nicole Alexander – 100mH – 14.82 – 1^st place, 400mH – 1:05.80 – 3^rd place

Jessica Palmer – 5000m – 18:29.64 (CB) – 2^nd place

Scotti Sampair – long jump – 5.15m – 2^nd place

Ashley Kessler – pole vault – 3.35m – 5^th place

Tyesha Jones – hammer throw – 37.24m – 8^th place

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