University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Iowa State Invite
Tar Heels Show Consistency And Improvement At ISU Classic
February 13, 2016 | Track & Field
AMES, IOWA – The University of North Carolina track and field teams competed at the Iowa State Classic on Friday. The Tar Heels showed another day of consistent progress.
“For our first day at Iowa State we saw improvement come across the board as we prepare for the conference meet,” head coach Harlis Meaders said. “AJ Hicks had four of five throws go over 21 meters and showed some consistency. Avana Story improved this week and had some big throws that were just misses. Joey Souza, a freshman from California, had a collegiate PR and showed some signs of good things to come. Paul Haley is improving in the 60-meter hurdles and we could see some extra points coming from that in the multis. Kenny Selmon continues to improve on his second time out in the 60-meter hurdles. The biggest thing that came from this meet was from the distance events. Mark Derrick ran a 14 second indoor PR in the 3,000, Josette Norris and Logan Carroll had big PRs on the track as well, and Stella Radford ran a great race too. It was nice to see RJ Alowonle back on the track making his season debut in the 200. It was a solid effort from him today.”
AJ Hicks threw 70-5 (21.46 meters) in the men's weight throw to take second overall. Hicks' performance showed great consistency with four of five throws going past 21 meters.
Paul Haley and Kenny Selmon took on the competition in the men's 60-meter hurdles. The pair qualified for the finals and almost matched each other with Haley running 8.094 to take second and Selmon running 8.095 for third.
Avana Story nearly matched her personal best in the women's weight throw with a toss that went 61-4 ¾ (18.71 meters). That throw came on her last attempt and solidified third place.
Joey Souza had a season-best jump in the long jump covering a distance of 23-7 ¼ (7.19 meters). That mark gave Souza a third-place finish.
RJ Alowonle ran 21.70 in the men's 200 to win his heat and finish seventh overall at the meet.
Mark Derrick had a 14 second indoor PR in the 5,000 running 14:14.41. That ranks 8th in the ACC this year. Logan Carroll had a 15 second PR in the men's 5,000 running 14:23.05 to take first in his heat. That time ranks 11th in the ACC this year.
Josette Norris also had a huge PR in the women's 3,000. Norris ran 9:27.87 to finish 13th in a strong field. Stella Radford wasn't far behind at 9:34.24.
The Tar Heels will finish the Iowa State Classic tomorrow. GoHeels.com will have a recap of performances and results following the conclusion of the meet.
Players Mentioned
