University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
UVA Invite
Tar Heels Set Season Bests Amid Tough Conditions
April 23, 2016 | Track & Field
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The University of North Carolina track and field teams took on the competition and the weather at the Virginia Challenge and Georgia Tech Invite on Friday. The tracks were a bit wet with thunderstorms throughout the day, but the Tar Heels were still able to compete well.
“The first day of the Virginia Challenge went well for the team,” head coach Harlis Meaders said. “I was excited to see veterans Lizzy Whelan and Kendra Douglas run aggressive smart races. While freshman Tainasha Vines showed considerable improvement in the triple jump and Lauren Moody had a great race in the 800. In the throws Avana Story and Alex Cooke did well in the hammer throw.
“On the men's side O'Neal Wanliss had another very good race in the 800 although he had to do most of the work for the field. Freshman Amari Devaughn had perhaps his best 400m race of the year and continues to get stronger over the last 70m as the year is progressing.
“I was also happy to see senior AJ Hicks start to put more of the pieces together in both the discus and the hammer. Both Nick Futia and Tory Kemp should continue to improve in day two of the multi events.”
Lizzy Whelan ran 2:06.98 in the women's 800 to finish fourth overall. The time is very close to her season best and should set her up well for the upcoming conference championship. Lauren Moody, also competing in the 800, topped her personal best running 2:10.49.
Avana Story finished fourth in the women's hammer with a best throw of 185-7 (56.57 meters). Alex Cooke took fifth at 179-6 (54.72 meters), a season best.
AJ Hicks had two top-10 finishes on the day in the hammer and the discus. Hicks threw 176-8 (53.86 meters) in the discus for sixth and 197-4 (60.16 meters) in the hammer to take seventh. His discus throw was a season best.
Tainasha Vines went 39-3 ¾ (11.98 meters) in the women's triple jump to take eighth overall. That mark is a season best for Vines.
Nick Futia finished the first half of the decathlon with 3,170 points and is in ninth overall.
O'Neal Wanliss ran 1:50.95 in the 800 to finish 15th overall in the field.
Brandon Reddick and Amari DeVaughn finished the 400 in 48.91 and 48.94, respectively.
In Atlanta at the Georgia Tech Invite, Natisha Dixon qualified for the women's 100-meter hurdles final with a time of 13.84.
Both competitions will conclude tomorrow. A recap of performances and results will be on GoHeels.com once the meets have ended.
Players Mentioned
