Track and field enjoys success all over the place

The Pitt track and field team found success in three different states over the weekend as the… The Pitt track and field team found success in three different states over the weekend as the squad split and competed in various meets.

Members from both the men’s and women’s teams participated in the Akron Quad.

For the men, sophomore pole-vaulter Keith Higham took home first place and set a school record with a mark of 5.47 meters. He beat out Akron’s John Russell, who had set the Akron facility pole-vaulting record during a meet earlier in this season. The record is Higham’s third school record this season.

Panthers’ senior Troy Roberson finished seventh in the 400-meter dash with a time of 49.22 seconds. Roberson also finished 21st in the 200-meter dash.

Pitt’s Andrew Tomaswick finished 10th in the 3000-meter run with a time of 8:36.72. Junior Michael Long recorded a time of 8:50.96 to take 20th in the event.

In the 5000-meter event, sophomore Curtis Larimer finished 11th with a time of 15:07.75.

Senior Jeff Kiss took ninth for Pitt in the triple jump with 12.98 meters. Kiss also finished 20th in the long jump.

The Panthers also made a strong showing in the throwing events. Junior Justin Clickett finished fourth in the shot put with a throw of 17.54 meters. Sophomore A.J. Kielinski finished fifth in the weight throw with a distance of 18.31 meters.

On the women’s side, Pitt junior Mycah Clemons took first place in the pentathlon with 3,563 points. It was her first victory of the season. Senior Joelle Ambrose finished fourth with 3,153 points.

Panther sophomore Martina Hallman had an excellent weekend, finishing first in the triple jump with a distance of 12.17 meters and sixth in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.82 seconds.

The Panther pole-vaulters had a terrific performance in Akron. Senior Marissa Dudek, who holds the facility record at Akron with a mark of 4.02 meters, finished fourth with a vault of 3.77 meters. Sophomore Nicole Pitchford matched Dudek’s vault to take fifth-place.

On the track, Pitt sophomore Selena Sappleton finished fifth in the 400-meter dash with a time of 57.28 seconds. Fellow sophomore Ali Briggs took 11th place in the 3,000-meter run with 10:36.91.

In the high jump, freshman Kristin Johnson tied three others for sixth place with a height of 1.55 meters.

Junior Kimberly Rorabaugh also turned in solid performances for the Panthers, finishing eighth in the weight throw (17.19 meters) and 13th in shot put (13.16 meters).

In addition to the Akron Quad, some members of the track team participated in the New Balance Collegiate Invitational at the Armory track in New York.

Sophomore Mike Wray recorded the best 60-meter hurdle time in the Big East at 7.99 seconds. Senior Dwayne Grant-Higgins recorded a time of 8.44 seconds in the event to place 14th in the conference. Both runners have qualified for the Big East Championships.

Freshmen James Stratton and Kevin Gilpatrick both recorded personal best times in the 800-meter event.

For the women, the 800-meter relay team of junior Julianna Reed, sophomore sisters Shantea and Shanea Calhoun, and freshman Raquel Bender finished in first place and set a new school record of 1:39.83.

“I had a pretty rough meet last weekend at Penn State, so I decided I was just going to go out there this weekend relaxed and whatever I ran would be good enough,” Reed said. “I ran relaxed and the time just came. I just did it.”

Reed also set a new meet record of 1:13.32 in the 500 meters, but that doesn’t mean she is convinced that she has reached her potential yet.

“I definitely feel like that’s not my best,” she said. “I can top that with a better run and a better time.”

Senior Abby Zaylor took fifth place in the 1,000-meter run with her best time of the season at 2:56.36.

In the Meyo Invitational hosted by Notre Dame, Pitt sophomore Sam Bair, one week removed from his school-record finish of 4:01.14 in the mile, finished in first place with a time of 4:01.22.

His teammate, junior Tim Konoval, ran a personal-best 4:04.43 to finish third in the event. Both Bair and Konoval are NCAA provisional qualifiers.

Pitt will head to State College, Pa., next weekend for the Penn State Challenge Cup before returning to Akron the following week for the Big East Championships, something that Reed and the Panthers are already gearing up for.

“I really feel a lot more confident going into the Big East Championships,” she said after the New Balance meet. “Breaking the record feels great!”