Lexington, Va. – Senior Hunter Watkins hit a NCAA provisional mark in the men's javelin throw to lead Mansfield in what was a very successful opening weekend for the Mountaineer track & field teams.
Ryan Clifford continued his dominance to start the day for Mansfield in the men's 3K-steeple, hitting a PSAC qualifying mark with a time of 9:34.34. Clifford's time was also good enough for a new personal best in the event and was nearly four seconds better than the next closest runner.
Clifford finishes the weekend compiling first-places finishes in both the 3K-steeple and the men's 5K on Friday afternoon, hitting PSAC qualifying times in both events.
Caden Fisher followed Clifford by setting a new personal best in the men's 110-meter hurdles at 17.22 seconds. Fisher's season long friendly competitor Nicholas Auchenbach was not to be outdone as he took part in the men's 400-meter hurdles. Auchenbach placed second at 56.27 seconds, a PSAC qualifying time.
Vince McNeil and Ayla Rohl both joined in on setting new personal bests in their respective events. McNeil hit a time of 12.46 seconds in the men's 100-meter dash while Rohl followed with a time of 2:50.53 in the women's 800-meter run.
Senior Jenny Bellefluer saw her first action of the outdoor season, finishing fourth in the women's 100-meter dash in a field of 40 competitors at 12.98 seconds, narrowly missing a new PR and PSAC qualifying time.
Senior Hunter Watkins started his 2019 outdoor season with a bang, hitting both a PSAC and NCAA provisional mark in the men's javelin throw with a distance of 59.7-meters. It was the fifth best throw of Watkins career.
Mansfield will continue its outdoor slate when by traveling to Richmond, Va. for the Fred Hardy Invitational on March 28th, another group of Mountaineers will also travel to the Raleigh Relays hosted by North Carolina State University on March 29th and 30th.
