University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
UNC Asheville
Liberty
Pearson Takes First in 60 and 400 at Liberty
01.24.2009 | Track and Field
LYNCHBURG, VA. - Junior sprinter Natalie Pearson took first place in the both the 60-meter dash and 400-meter dash Saturday afternoon at the Liberty Fast Times Invitational.
Pearson took first in the 60 with a time of 7.60 and first in the 400 at a time of 57.76. . The 57.76 time was the second fastest time in school history.
"Natalie is off to a great start this year," commented UNC Asheville coach Jesse Norman. "She ran great last week and was sensational once again today."
Other highlights on Saturday included great distance running by freshman Sam Maynard. Maynard finished second in the 800 and the mile. He posted a time of 1:59.54 in the 800 and 4:27.40 in the mile.
"I'm really proud of Sam," explained Norman. "Sam ran against some very good competition and was able to find a way to finish in second place."
Andrew Burnette finished seventh in the 800 with a time of 2:01.30. Kent Rankin came in eighth in the mile at a time of 4:33.63. In the 3000 meters, Adam Matthews came in 10th (9:14), while Adam Vick finished 21st (10:03).
Will Beasley took 13th in the long jump with a leap of 6.11 meters. In the shot put, Daniel Corriher came in 14th place (13.13), while Keith Scruggs finished in 20th place (11.86).
On the women's side, Michelle Busse finished fifth in the 800 (2:31). Emma Bussard took an eighth place finish in the mile (5:30)
The Bulldogs had three runners compete in the 1000-meter run. Emma Bussard came in 15th with a time of 3:16. Emily Becker took 20th (3:29), while Allie Shields finished in 24th (3:41).
Senior Morgan Weeks posted a 13th place finish in the shot put (10.17). Emily Pineda took 17th in the shot put (9.73). Rebekah Pineda came in 12th in the weight throw (11.48).
"We showed some improvement in some areas today," said Norman. "We also saw some areas that we need to keep getting better in."
