University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Battle Of The Blues
Carolina Takes On Michigan & Duke In Battle Of The Blues Friday
April 5, 2018 | Track & Field
DURHAM, N.C. - The University of North Carolina track and field teams will take on Duke and Michigan in the third-annual Battle of the Blues Friday at Duke's Morris Williams Stadium. The meet is scheduled to get underway with the field events beginning at 2:30 p.m. and with the track events beginning a 4 p.m. The final race of the day, the men's 4x400, is scheduled for 7:55 p.m.
The Battle of the Blues was originally scheduled for Saturday, April 7, but due do to anticipated inclement weather the meet was moved to Friday afternoon when the forecast is calling for sun and temperatures in the low 70s.
With the meet being a three-way scored event, individual event winners will be awarded five points, followed by three, two and one point for second through fourth place, respectively. In relay events, a first-place finish will earn five points, while a second-place showing will be awarded three points.
"It is always exciting when we can have some scored competition," head coach Harlis Meaders said. "The Battle of the Blues, in its third year, has really been a great meet. You've got three of the best schools in the country coming together for early-season team competition, which is always a lot of fun for our kids. The University of Michigan has a fantastic program, and they will bring down a large contingency, and of course Duke is our conference rival. So, anytime we get a chance to go head-to-head against those guys in a scored competition is fun."
The Tar Heels with have athletes competing in nearly every event as both teams, men and women, look to bring home their first Battle of the Blues titles.
Notably, Friday will be the season debut for three-time 400-meter hurdles All-America Kenny Selmon in the event, and redshirt-freshman Marcus Krah, the 2016 IAAF World U-20 110-meter hurdles champion, will be making his collegiate debut for the Tar Heels.
"I'm excited to see those guys make their season debut," Meaders said. "It will be Marcus's first race over the 110-meter hurdles for us at the collegiate height. I'm excited, and I am sure those kids are excited also to get started. And of course, both of those kids are really accomplished. So, it should be a lot of fun for us."
Coming off of the Raleigh Relays, the Battle of the Blues will be the final local competition for the Tar Heels and one of the only opportunities for Carolina fans to see most of the team competing in their primary events this season.
"It's a great opportunity for those fans that want to see us in action to come on over," Meaders said. "I know it is hard to go to the dark side sometimes, but it will be a great opportunity to see our kids in uniform."
HOW TO FOLLOW
Admission to the Battle of the Blues is free for all fans.
The meet will also be streamed live on the ACC Network Extra through ESPN3 and the WatchESPN app. All of the track events will be available to watch via the streaming service beginning at 4 p.m. through 8 p.m.
Live Results will be provided by FlashResults.com — https://bit.ly/2GAN2CR
A full schedule of events, heat sheets and a link to live results are also available at GoHeels.com.
Fans can follow @unctrack_field on Twitter and Instagram for updates throughout the meet. UNC Track & Field is also on Facebook. A recap of performances and results will be posted on GoHeels.com following the conclusion of each day of competition.
LAST TIME OUT
The Tar Heels are coming off of a big weekend at the Raleigh Relays. Last Friday, senior Caroline Alcorta ran the second-fastest 10,000 meters in UNC history, finishing in 33:54.23 in her first time ever racing at the distance. Junior Morgan Ilse won her section of the women's 1,500 meters and finished 10th of 136 competitors with a personal-best time of 4:20.57. Daniel McArthur also captured his second victory in the men's shot put this season, throwing for 58-10 ¾ (17.95 meters).
On Saturday, several other Tar Heels also achieved lifetime bests in their respective events. Most notably, redshirt-junior Alex Cooke threw for 188-5 (57.43 meters) in the women's hammer to set a new personal best in the event by nearly two meters and take fourth in the competition. Redshirt-sophomore Jared Martin also set a new lifetime best, throwing for 186-5 (56.82 meters) in the men's javelin.
IN THE RANKINGS
Heading into the fourth meet of the season, the Tar Heels hold 11 top-five times/marks in the ACC, nine top-25 times/marks in the east region and nine times/marks that rank top-50 in the country.
Players Mentioned
