Bulldog Track & Field starts indoor season strong at Appalachian State Invitational

RESULTS (PDF)

BOONE, N.C. – In their first indoor meet since February 2020, the UNC Asheville track & field teams posted several stellar performances at the Appalachian State Invitational to kick off the 2021-22 season. Overall, Asheville had 20 podium finishes, broke six indoor school records, and recorded multiple marks that rank among the top-five best the Bulldogs have ever produced during an indoor campaign across several events.

Three of the four indoor records broken for Asheville in Boone came from the women's team. Claudia Prieto set new Bulldog benchmarks in both the long jump (5.81-meters) and triple jump (12.38-meters). Prieto also shined in the 55-meter dash, with times of 7.20 and 7.11 in the prelims and finals, respectively. Both of those times rank among the top-five ever tallied by a Bulldog.

The other two school records that fell in Boone both came in the shot put. Sophomore Raina Jackson began her second season in Asheville on a high note breaking the school's indoor record in the shot put (12.78-meters). On the men's side, Solomon McDonald, who broke Asheville's shot put outdoor record last spring, now owns the top mark during the indoor season with a throw checking in at 18.06-meters.

Beyond the broken school records, Asheville showed plenty of depth throughout the two-day meet. In the women's 800-meter run, the Bulldogs posted the top three fastest times in Ashleigh Patterson (2:24.36), Ava Nkadi (2:25.17), and Amanda Orban (2:29.03). The tandem of Zac Weas and Nick Roberts finished first and second, respectively, in the 55-meter hurdles after placing the same way during the prelims. Weas (7.85) slightly edged Roberts (7.86) in the finals, and those two times are the third and fourth fastest by a Bulldog. Asheville also had multiple podium finishes in the men's 3000-meter and one-mile runs.

Finally, Asheville showcased its depth in the 4x300-meter relays. The foursome of Elyse Myles, Jerralee Testa, Khadeesha Crumbly, Raven Thurman finished second with a time of 2:49.62, and the quartet of Anthony Mason, Isaac Teasley, Jalen Anderson, Bryson Riddick matched that second-place nod in the men's race, clocking in at 2:19.61. Both of those relay times set new program records in the 4x300m.

Those performances listed above were not the only stellar outings by Bulldogs. Teasley tallied the second-fastest time ever by a Bulldog in the 300-meter dash, clocking in at 35.31. Jack Choiniere, meanwhile, became the third Asheville student-athlete to eclipse 16 meters in the weight throw with a toss of 16.36-meters. Furthermore, Choiniere would have broken Asheville's indoor shot put record with his best toss of 16.65-meters, but McDonald's mark mentioned earlier slightly topped it.

Maya Dulaney also had a near record-breaking day in Boone in the 55-meter hurdles. Overall, Dulaney placed sixth, but her times of 8.56 in the prelims and 8.58 in the finals both rank near the top of Asheville's all-time list in the event. Only Laura Lewandowski's (2004) time of 8.50 has been faster than Dulaney's two times on Saturday in the program's history.

Asheville will return to action on January 14-15 when it competes at the ETSU Track & Field Invitational in Johnson City, Tennessee.

Bulldog Track & Field starts indoor season strong at Appalachian State Invitational

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Players Mentioned

Jalen Anderson

Jack Choiniere

Khadeesha Crumbly

Maya Dulaney

Raina Jackson

Anthony Mason

Solomon McDonald

Elyse Myles

Ava Nkadi

Amanda Orban

Ashleigh Patterson

Claudia Prieto

Bryson Riddick

Nick Roberts

Isaac Teasley

Jerralee Testa

Raven Thurman

Zac Weas