Sports > April 17, 2008

By Forrest Kobayashi | Contributing writer

The Deacon men’s and women’s track and field teams competed in the Spec Towns Invitational, held in Athens, Ga., April 11-12. Early rains did not inhibit the team from performing well. Several team members set new personal bests in their respective events, and the team overall had a successful showing.

The men’s team was led by sophomore Thomas Sensing. He placed fourth and set a new personal best in the discus throw. His throw came just short of the regional cutoff, posting a 169-04m throw.

In the hammer throw, Sensing posted a Demon Deacon season best with a 142-10m effort. Junior Oderah Nwaeze attained a 22-09.75m mark in the long jump. He bettered his personal best, which he set at the Wake Forest Open earlier on in the season.

Junior Phillip Warsaw attained a 52.41 in the 400m hurdles, which was just under the regional mark of 52.51. He will join fellow hurdles runner senior Michelle Loyd in regional competition.

Personal bests were also set by freshman Joel Fletcher, who ran the 100m dash in a mere 11.59, as well as the 200m dash in 23.12.

“I was pleased with the way I ran. It was a fast track and I felt like I took advantage of the opportunity and the tough SEC competition spurred me on as well,” Fletcher said.

Senior Aaron Russell finished 15th in the 200m dash, with a time of 22.70.

A back-to-back Deacon finish occurred in the 400m dash, with freshman Alan Lunkenheimer and sophomore Jon Reid. Their times were 48.07 and 48.19, respectively.

The men’s 4x400m relay team also had a good showing. Russell, Reid, Lunkenheimer and Warsaw teamed up to post a 3:14.39 relay time, improving their previous best relay time of 3:35.79. Sophomore Marcus Dillon placed 11th in the 1500m run, his first 1500m entry of the year.

The women’s team also had a strong showing in Athens. Freshman Katelyn Wohlford had a weekend full of personal bests, setting them in the 200m and the 400m dashes. She ran a 26.00 and 59.97, respectively. Sophomore Nicole Castronuova tied her own personal record in the 200m dash, placing seventh with a time of 24.40. Senior Michelle Loyd placed sixth in the 400m dash with a 56.54 effort.

Freshmen Molly Fresher and Chelsea Bolton led their Demon Deacon teammates in the 800m and 1500m races, respectively.

The Deacs will look to continue their recent successes in Atlanta, Ga., when they head to the ACC Outdoor Tournament April 17-19.