Strong showings in two states for Track and Field

Sophia Belletti
Contributing Writer

VCU men’s and women’s track and field team traveled to Lynchburg, Virginia and Gainesville, Florida to compete in the Liberty Invitational and Florida Relays the weekend of April 2-4. Photo by Mary Clarke

VCU’s track and field team traveled down to Gainesville, Florida on Saturday, April 4 to compete in the Florida Relays while some participants stayed in Virginia for the Liberty University Invitational, continuing their streak of strong performances.

At the Liberty Invitational, freshman distance runner Courtney Holleran won the 1,500-meter run, crossing the line at 4 minutes, 53.75 seconds. Sophomore Iman Lee was the highest VCU finisher in the 400-meter dash. Lee ran a time of 1:00.90, which earned her a sixth place finish. Freshman Jasmine Lackey also finished among the top-10 with a time of 1:02.08.

Senior Niema Eaves and freshman Hannah Taylor both recorded top-10 finishes in the 800-meter. Eaves ran a time of 2:21.45 and Taylor finished with a time of 2:25.75. With a jump of 5.59-meters, senior Sarah Fulgham finished third in the long jump, while Taylor McCormick took fifth in the triple jump with a mark of 11.15-meters.

The women’s track team also outed well at the Florida Relays. Senior sprinter Kiara Porter took sixth place in the 400-meter with a time of 52.33. In the 800-meter run, freshman Nichelle Scott was the top VCU finisher with a time of 2:12.82, placing her 43rd in a deep field of 92 runners. Lastly for the women’s team, sophomore Emily Dyke ran a 4:33.15 in the 1500-meter run, finishing in the top-25.

For the men’s time at the Liberty Invitational, senior Khalid Khamis won the 800-meter dash, running a time of 1:53.89. Sophomore Austin Lushinski finished third in the 5000-meter, crossing the line at 16:16.95.

Making the 45.65-meter mark in the hammer throw, sophomore thrower Ben Melton finished in sixth place and seventh in the discus with a throw of 43.39-meters. Lastly at the Liberty Invitational, senior Christopher Smith registered 5,447 points in the decathlon to finish fourth.

At the Florida Relays, senior Brandon Ruffin finished sixth in shot put with a mark of 15.14-meters. Senior Ryan Coles finished with a throw of 16.04-meters. In discus, Coles recorded a top-five finish at 50.98-meters, with Ruffin placing eighth at 50.40-meters. Ruffin also recorded a top-10 finish in the hammer throw at 52.40-meters.

Battling within a deep field, senior George Moore was the first Ram to cross the finish line in the 400-meter dash, with a time of 48.73. Junior hurdler Kyle Martin registered a time of 14.80 seconds in the 110-meter hurdles.

With the outdoor championships looming, the Rams had student-athletes dispersed around Virginia and Tennessee this past weekend. Men’s and women’s track and field teams teams competed in the Sea Ray Relays in Knoxville, Tennessee, the Hampton Relays in Hampton, Virginia and in the George Mason Invitational in Fairfax, Virginia.

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