Virginia launched its indoor track and field season with great success this weekend at the Liberty Kickoff, which occurred on Thursday and Friday, followed by the Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener on Saturday. Senior Margot Appleton and junior Gary Martin were standout performers, each improving their personal and school records by 11 seconds, while senior Brooke […]
Virginia launched its indoor track and field season with great success this weekend at the Liberty Kickoff, which occurred on Thursday and Friday, followed by the Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener on Saturday. Senior Margot Appleton and junior Gary Martin were standout performers, each improving their personal and school records by 11 seconds, while senior Brooke Lumpkin set a new facility record in the shot put.
Liberty Kickoff
For the Cavaliers’ inaugural indoor competition of the year, a majority of the team made their way to Lynchburg, Va., for the Liberty Kickoff. This event featured more than 30 schools and commenced on Thursday with pentathlon and heptathlon events. Sophomore Elsa Spoor secured 11th place in the women’s pentathlon, whereas sophomore David Frasier finished fifth in the men’s heptathlon.
In the 60-meter hurdles, freshman Maya Rollins earned second place for the women, while juniors Peter Djan and Jeremiah Wilson took third and fifth in the men’s competition, respectively. Next up was the 60-meter dash, where junior Sarah Akpan triumphed in 7.45 seconds.
Junior Myles Plummer achieved second place in the 1,000 meters with a time of 2:27.73, and senior Tobias L’Esperance followed closely behind to secure third place just over a second later. On the women’s side of the 1,000 meters, senior Annie Jackson finished second in 2:47.04, slightly ahead of freshman Amelia Maughan, who captured third.
In the women’s 300-meter dash, Virginia occupied the 18th, 19th, 24th, and 26th positions. The Cavaliers excelled in the men’s 400-meter race, claiming the top four spots with junior Evans White IV, senior Alex Sherman, sophomore Gage Gose, and senior Max Russo finishing in times from 47.86 to 48.94 seconds. Sophomore Ariel Fletcher took fourth, and senior Emily Alexandru finished fifth among the women, with other Virginia runners in 11th and 13th place.
Freshman James Ford secured seventh in the men’s 500-meter race with a time of 1:06.27. In the 200-meter dash, White again won first place in 21.52 seconds, with Sherman finishing sixth. On the women’s side, Akpan clinched her second victory of the day in 24.14 seconds.
Sophomore Richard Moreno achieved fourth in the 3,000 meters in 8:25.18, and in the 4×400-meter relay, Virginia’s women came in second, while the men finished third.
In the showstopper of the two-day event, Lumpkin shattered the facility record in the shot put, throwing 53 feet, 1.75 inches. Freshman Theresa Breckley followed in second place with a distance of 46 feet, 4.5 inches.
In the high jump, senior Carly Tarentino clinched victory with a jump of 5 feet, 10.75 inches, while freshman Grace Flynn secured third with a height of 5 feet, 8.75 inches. In women’s pole vault, the Cavaliers attained third and fourth places, with senior Trina Barcarola and junior Samantha Romano both vaulting 12 feet, 11.5 inches.
Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener
The remaining team members journeyed to Boston University for the Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener on Saturday, where they faced stiff competition from around the nation.
Junior James Donahue initiated the events for Virginia, finishing 30th in the mile with a time of 4:09.97. In the men’s 5k, junior Will Anthony placed 53rd, clocking in at 13:43.57.
Martin excelled in the men’s 3k race, finishing fourth and improving his own school record by 11 seconds with a time of 7:36.09. Senior Margot Appleton followed suit in the women’s 5k, also claiming fourth place in 8:46.23 and reducing her own school record by 11 seconds.
These two events mark the onset of a promising indoor track season for Virginia and illustrate the building momentum, particularly highlighted by the performances of Appleton and Martin. The Cavaliers are set to take a break from competition during winter break, resuming activities on January 17 and 18 with a contest against Virginia Tech.
