East Carolina University
Virginia Tech Invitational
Copeland Sets School Record At Virginia Tech
January 19, 2010 | Track & Field
Jan. 19, 2010
BLACKSBURG, Va. - The East Carolina track and field teams opened the 2010 indoor season in earnest at the Virginia Tech Invitational at the Rector Fieldhouse. The field included top squads in North Carolina, Clemson, Arkansas, South Carolina, Wake Forest, Florida State and N.C. State.
Brittany Copeland competed in the 3000m and set a new school record, placing third with a time of 9:45.66. She is currently ranked 10th in the nation in the event.
"By no stretch of the imagination are we where we want to be," head coach Curt Kraft stated. "But at the same time, I was very excited about how some of our athletes performed. We just came off a long Christmas break, which showed in our performances. The highlight of the meet was Copeland, who in addition to setting the school record in the 3000m, turned in a personal record in the mile."
Freshman Tiffany Harris produced a pair of top 15 finishes in the 300 and 400-meter events, clocking in at 39.90 and 58.12 respectively. In the mid-distances, Samantha Lichtner and Brooke Kott found themselves sixth and 11th in the 1000m run as they turned in times of 2:58.21 and 3:04.87. As for the mile run and aforementioned 3000m run, Copeland ran a 4:55.18 in the former before her school-record performance in the latter. Lichtner also garnered a top-10 showing in the 3000m at 10:23.12.
Tynita Butts continued her strong start to the season, ranking fifth (1.70m) and sixth (5.96m) in the high and long jumps, respectively. Camelia Morman also showed well in the triple jump, turning in a mark of 12.27m. Rounding out the women's participation was Charlene Grady, placing ninth in the weight throw with a heave of 14.18m.
As for the men, Antonial Marshall just missed qualifying for the final of the 60m dash, placing 10th in the prelims (6.95). Austin Lewis was right behind his teammate, clocking in at 6.99. Marshall followed up his 60m performance by earning 10th in the 200m with a time of 22.49. Ron Wright, one of 10 team captains this season, finished 11th and seventh in the 300m and 400m as he ran a 35.03 and 49.99.
In the field events, Drew Kanz recorded a sixth-place result in the high jump, checking in at 2.00m. Austin Lewis also found his way into the top 10 in the long jump, picking up seventh-place with a mark of 7.04m. Providing a strong finish to the East Carolina participation in the event, Dennis Aliotta put his great skill and potential on display by finishing fourth in the shot put (16.45m) and sixth in the weight throw (17.14m).
The Pirates continue the indoor season at the UNC Classic, a one-day event scheduled for Jan. 23 at the Eddie Smith Fieldhouse.
