Track and Field: Both teams find success at Big East Outdoor Championships

The Pitt men’s and women’s track teams solidified their positions as two of the best teams… The Pitt men’s and women’s track teams solidified their positions as two of the best teams in the conference this weekend after strong performances at the Big East Outdoor Championships.

A combined total of 14 athletes earned All-Big East honors, helping the Panthers’ men’s and women’s teams finish third and sixth in their conference divisions, respectively.

Several runners on each team posted personal records, including senior sprinter Cambrya Jones, who broke her own school records in both the 100 and 200-meter races. Her performance also earned her the Big East’s Most Outstanding Track Performer award.

“Cambrya did a tremendous job for us,” Pitt head coach Alonzo Webb said on University’s official website. “She had a great day and great weekend overall.”

Jones’ time of 11.28 seconds in the 100-meter dash is tied for ninth-best in the nation, and her 22.91-second time in the 200-meter dash is tied for fourth-best.

“This is my last Big East championship and I’m extremely proud of what this team was able to accomplish,” Jones said.

Jones’ desire to win was mirrored by sophomore sprinter Micah Murray, who fell and badly scraped his arms and legs at the end of Pitt’s 400-meter relay victory. Instead of succumbing to the stinging injuries, Murray managed to compete and place in three more events over the course of the weekend.

“[Micah] showed a lot of Panther pride,” senior sprinter Jermaine Lowery said. “He was prepared to go out there and do whatever it took.”

The meet was hosted by South Florida, with the hot Tampa Bay weather providing some different running conditions than Pitt runners are used to.

“It was perfect weather to run fast,” Pitt senior sprinter Antony Hobwana said.

Hobwana won the gold medal in the 100-meter dash with a time of 10.34 seconds, but he nearly missed the finals altogether.

“The preliminaries were pretty difficult,” he said. “We really had to race for it to make it to the finals. Even though I was out of lane eight, I knew after I got into the finals, anything could happen.”

Hobwana also helped Pitt place first in the 400-meter and 1,600-meter relays.

Another strong performance came from Elizabeth Kline, who scored a personal-best 5,046 points and finished fourth in the heptathlon.

“It went great. Six out of seven events were my personal record and my overall score was about 200 points higher,” Kline said.

Jermaine Lowery, who was on the winning 1,600-meter relay team, also received a gold medal for his individual victory in the 400-meter hurdles.

“This year it was Big East Champion or nothing,” he said. “Ever since freshman year, I’ve been trying to win these events.”

Some other notable finishes for the women included a third-place finish in the 400-meter for Jonnique Lawrence and a fifth place finish for the 1600-meter relay team comprised of Lawrence, Jones, Arielle Fonrose and Xauddina Whittington.

“As a team, we all worked really hard,” Kline said of the women’s performance. “Sixth place was better than indoor and better than last year. Every year and every season we keep on improving.”

For the men, Murray’s fourth-place finish in the 400-meter, Sam Negley’s fourth-place in the 800-meter and the silver medal-winning 3,200-meter relay team all contributed towards the team’s overall third-place finish.

In the field, senior Kurt Barnhart recorded a personal best 53.15 meters in the hammer throw and finished seventh. He also finished ninth in the discus with a 48.83-meter toss. Junior thrower Josiah Rupert finished fourth in the javelin.

For the women, three Panthers placed in the top 10 of the javelin throw. Sophomore Jessica Rocco, freshman Taylor Slaney and freshman Brooke Shasteen finished fifth through seventh, respectively. Sophomore Ashley Corum also finished sixth in the triple jump event.

Hobwana said strong performances like this at the conference level will only help Pitt’s programs improve by impressing potential recruits.

“We looked really good for the recruits because we’re running well and showing we can be up there and in contention,” he said. “Now we’re sure we can do it.”

Up next for some runners is the ECAC Championships this weekend in Princeton, N.J. and regional championships the following week.

The third-place finish for the men’s team matched their indoor track conference mark and significantly improved upon last year’s 10th-place finish. The women also improved, jumping from ninth last season to sixth.

Webb praised both of his team’s showings in the conference championships.

“Our student-athletes performed very well all weekend,” he said. “It was an incredible performance for us. I was really happy with our effort.”