 Freshman Stanley Broaden and senior AJ Dohanic condition in the Varsity Gym last Tuesday afternoon. Olivia Wilkes | The Appalachian
Appalachian State University’s track and field teams loaded up the bus for a 370-plus mile ride to Penn State this weekend - and they didn’t disappoint.
The Mountaineers left Friday morning for the Sykes and Sabock Challenge Cup, where the men put nine athletes in the top eight and the women put six in the top eight.
“We had some really good performances,” head coach John Weaver said. “Generally speaking, we had a few who highlighted the meet for us and then we have some kids who are moving along.”
For the men’s team, freshman Stanley Broaden finished in fourth place in the 60-meter hurdles, with a time of 8.16. The time, a personal best for Broaden, also put him in the ASU record book at fifth all-time.
Senior A.J. Dohanic also competed in the 60-meter hurdles, taking sixth place.
Distance runner Alex Taylor put himself in sixth place in the mile, second all time for ASU, with a personal best of 4:05.73.
Senior Brian Graves ran the 5000-meter, placing eighth with a time of 15:18.60.
The Apps had jumpers finish in fourth and fifth place in the high jump, with senior Darius Purcell, clearing 7-0.50, in fourth, and freshman Daryl Saunders, clearing 6-10.75, in fifth.
Jared Stalling had quite a week. He not came in sixth in the weight throw and eighth in the shot-put and was named Southern Conference Field Athlete of the Week.
The women’s team put up impressive finishes as well, with sophomore Breanna Alston leading the way in the sprinting field. Alston ran a season-best 24.68 in the 200-meter dash, taking third, and finished sixth in the 60-meter dash.
In the 400-meter dash, senior Asia Dunlap placed seventh with a time of 56.76, just 0.43 shy of ASU’s record.
The 4x400-meter relay team had something to celebrate, as they snagged the school record by nearly two seconds. The team of Dunlap, Breahna Morrison, Shenita Martin, and Alston finished in 3:49.39, ASU’s new school record.
In the 3000-meter run, Sarah Williamson ran a personal best of 10:11.02, taking eighth place.
Freshman Chelsea Farr had another strong performance, clearing 12-9.50 in the pole vault, placing second.
“My performance this season has been incredibly shocking to me because I came to Appalachian expecting to only add 4 or 5 inches in the first year onto my high school career best of 11’9.” Farr said.
Coach Weaver is excited at the prospect of the freshman possibly heading to nationals due to her performance.
“So she could be at the junior nationals, if we could take her to Indiana later on in June,” Coach Weaver said.
“The team performed very well overall and it was great being able to cheer them on as well as having their support while I was vaulting.” Farr said.
The Mountaineers will next be in action this weekend, Feb. 10 and 11, in Birmingham, Ala. They’ll take on conference opponent Samford, among other schools in the Birmingham Invitational.
Story: LEIGH ROBERTS, Senior Sports Reporter
Photo: OLIVIA WILKES, Photo Editor |
