East Carolina Hosts Second Annual Bill Carson Invitational
April 09, 2015 | Track & Field
Heat Sheets
| Schedule of Events
GREENVILLE, N.C. -- The East Carolina track and field team is set to host the second annual Bill Carson Invitational Friday, April 10 and Saturday, April 11. The Pirates welcome Charlotte, Coastal Carolina, High Point, South Carolina and UNC Wilmington to Minges Family Field at Bate Foundation Track and Field Facility.
East Carolina kicks off the Bill Carson Invitational with field events Friday, April 10 at 10 a.m. The meet will conclude Saturday, April 11 beginning at 11 a.m. with the field events, while the track events are slated to start at 11:30 a.m. Bleacher seating is available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Fans are encouraged to bring lawn chairs for extra seating.
"To say that our teams are excited [to host] would be an understatement," Head coach Curt Kraft said. "We have waited for one long year to get to this point once again. After hosting the inaugural Bill Carson Invitational last year, we are very excited to be here again this year.
"At our team meeting tonight, we talked about how nice it is to sleep in our own beds and be able to wake up the next two mornings and be able to compete in front of our own fans, administration and parents," Kraft continued. "There is nothing like competing in your own facility and on your own turf."
The Pirates have gotten off to a strong start this outdoor season as they have won several events, set numerous personal records and have moved a handful of student-athletes into the ECU record book.
"The expectations for our teams this weekend are very high," Kraft explained. "I expect us to compete at a very high level with a lot of excitement and enthusiasm. It wouldn't surprise me if we set school records and lifetime PRs. I would really like to see people come out and show support for our men's and women's track and field teams this weekend."
East Carolina has nine student-athletes on the roster that are current school record holders. On the men's side, Avion Jones, Henry Johnson and Dylan Spadaccini all hold outdoor field event records, while Tania Minkins, Tyshonda Hawkins, Aiesha Goggins, Kayla Padgett, Lauren Lubarski and Jasmine Thompson each own at least one women's outdoor record.
Jones has been on point in the high jump as he is the school-record holder in the event. He set the standard a year ago with a clearance of 2.21-meters (7' 3") and is coming off of a 2.06-meter (6' 9") effort for an eighth-place finish at the Florida Relays last weekend.
Johnson is the school-record holder in the pole vault after posting a career-best mark of 5.17-meters (16' 11.5") last season. Spadaccini is the decathlon record holder as he racked up a personal-record 6,506 points in 2014.
Minkins, Hawkins and Goggins are sprinters who hold school records in the 100-meter, 200-meter and 400-meter dash, respectively. Minkins and Hawkins set their records a year ago with times of 11.46 and 23.29, respectively. Goggins set the standard in the 400-meter dash with a time of 51.94 in 2011.
Padgett, Lubarski and Thompson have made names for themselves in the field as Padgett owns three school records in the shot put, discus and hammer, while Lubarski set the standard in the javelin in 2013 with a mark of 48.32-meters (158' 6") and Thompson tallied 4,486 points in the heptathlon to set the record a year ago.
Despite not having set an outdoor school record in 2015, the Pirates continue to reach new heights with PRs in their inaugural season in the American Athletic Conference. With each meet, ECU prepares for the conference meet which will be held in Storrs, Conn., May 14-17.
Prior to competing in the league championships, East Carolina will see action at the Virginia Challenge April 17-18 and at the Penn Relays April 23-25.
East Carolina will then send its top performers to the NCAA East Preliminaries May 28-30, before setting its sights on the NCAA Outdoor Championships June 10-13.
Players Mentioned
