Maryland
Maryland Invitational
Terps Show Well at Maryland Invitational
3/26/2016 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field
COLLEGE PARK, Md. – The Maryland track and field programs returned to action Saturday as the Terps served as hosts for the Maryland Invitational at the Kehoe Track and Field Complex. The squad welcomed Rowan, Johns Hopkins, Howard, American, Saint Rose, George Washington and Coppin State to College Park for the first of two outdoor home meets this season. The Maryland women took first with 311 points, while the men were third in the field with 146.
“I think we came out with a clear plan that we needed to be in the front of all the races and really be competitive,” said head coach Andrew Valmon. “It's a stepping stone to the [Big Ten Championships] and it's just one meet at a time philosophy.”
Men
It was a fantastic finish in the men's 4x400 relay to end the meet as Maryland's anchor TJ Bleichner overtook Howard down the final stretch to win the heat and event by less than two tenths of a second. Bleichner, along with Dahri Jahn-Richardson, Alex Leto and Hazem Miawad combined to go 3:15.07 as the Terps finished third in the team scoring with 146 points. Rowan won the meet with 173, while Johns Hopkins took second with 149.
Junior Brandon Thompson captured his second consecutive 100 meter title, outpacing the field by over four tenth of a second with a time if 10.95.
The Terps went 2-3 in the 400, led by a personal-best time of 47.88 from junior Dahri Jahn-Richardson. Sophomore Alex Leto was third with a time of 48.45. Jahn-Richardson would go on to finish second in the 200 with a time of 22.06.
Sophomore Louis Corgliano was second in a deep field of 3000 meter runners, finishing in 8:41.23. The time was over a second faster than his finish at last year's Maryland Invite. He was also the fastest Terrapin in the 1500 meter run, finishing sixth in a personal-best 3:55.24.
Sophomore Josh Landsman was third in the high jump, clearing 1.90 meters (6'2¾). Fellow sophomore Nicholas Pulli was the top collegiate finisher in the hammer throw with a distance of 50.61 meters (166'0.75”). He also took third in the shot put with a throw of 13.52 meters (44'4½).
Sophomore Diego Lyon won the 110 meter hurdles, knocking over six tenths of a second off his time last weekend to finish in 14.59. Junior Paul Joseph won the 400 meter hurdles, topping the field by nine tenths of a second with a time of 54.08.
Women
Maryland was dominant on the women's side, scoring 311 points to outscore second place Howard by a 203-point margin. The Terps were paced by 12 individual event victories, and had several strong performances throughout the day to get the win.
Maryland produced the top four run runners in the 100 meter hurdles. Senior Noella Anyangwe won the event with a time of 14.42, while Lisa Meneau (14.48), Taylor Tucker (14.64) and Peyton Wade (14.65) went 2-4 as Maryland amassed 29 points.
The Terps again separated themselves in the 800, finishing 1-5 with seven total runners in the top 10. Senior Charlotte Staver paced the field with a time of 2.13.18 to win, while junior Catherine Voelpel (2:14.30) wasn't far behind to secure second.
Alexandra Lucki moved into the top five all-time in Maryland history in the 3000, finishing in 9:47.34 to win the event. Senior Katie Nappi outran her seed time by nearly 20 seconds in the 3000 meter steeplechase, finishing in 10:52.81 to take first in the event. Junior Micha Powell knocked over four tenths of a second off of her top 200 outdoor time from last season, finishing in 24.36 to win the event.
The Terps swept the top three spots in the long jump, led by a leap of 5.51 meters (18'1”) from senior Lauren Ball to win the event. Sophomore Kayla Richardson (5.42 mm/17'9.50”) and freshman Jewel Smith (5.35m/17'6.75”) placed second and third respectively.
Sophomore Claudia Ababio won the hammer throw with a career-best toss of 52.97 meters (173'9¾). The mark topped her previous-best set at last year's Kehoe Twilight Meet (170'1”). Senior Chioma Onyekwere took first in the shot put with a throw of 15.36 meters (50'4.75”), while Ababio was third with a mark of 13.42m (44'0.50”). The duo then went 1-2 in the discus, with Onyekwere winning the event with a throw of 50.34 meters (165'2.25”).
Maryland went 1-3-4 in the high jump, as sophomore Peyton Wade claimed the top spot with a jump of 1.74 meters (5'8.50”). Fellow sophomore Isabella Laurel was third at 1.70m (5'7”), while senior Johnna Dominick was fourth with a leap of 1.66m (5'5.25”).
UMD had three of the top five finishers in a deep field of 1500 meter runners, led by a 4:41.71 from junior Alexa Squirini. Freshman Kiernan Keller (4:50.57) and senior Emily VandeWater (4:51.74) took fourth and fifth (respectively) as the Terps totaled 17 points in the event. Junior Karah O'Halloran was the top collegiate runner in the 5000, finishing third overall with a time of 18:18.99.
Junior Jillian Maloney improved her season-best in the javelin throw, finishing third in the field with a mark of 37.23 meters (122'2”). Sophomore Peyton Wade also finished in the top five with a throw of 33.72m (110'7.75”).
Maryland will head back down south for its next meet at the Pepsi Florida Relays March 31-April 2.
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Players Mentioned
