Duke Has Strong Showing At Carolina Challenge

Saturday, January 11

Chapel Hill, NC

Duke University

Carolina Challenge

Duke Has Strong Showing At Carolina Challenge

1/11/2020 8:44:00 PM | Track & Field

RESULTS (PDF)

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – The Duke Track & Field team opened the 2020 season with seven first-place performances at the Dick Taylor Carolina Challenge on Saturday afternoon in the Eddie Smith Field House.

The Blue Devils' day was highlighted by dominant showings in the distance events. In the 3000m, both the men and women placed the event's top two finishers. On the women's side, sophomore Sara Platek placed first with a time of 9:34.10, while senior Lindsay Billings set a new personal record (9:48.18) to finish second. Sophomore Amanda Beach rounded out the top three for the Blue Devils, clocking her own personal record at 10:07.99.

On the men's side, freshman Connor Wells kicked off his collegiate career with a first-place finish of 8:35.20, while fellow newcomer Rory Cavan placed second with a time of 8:44.07.

Both squads placed three of the top five finishers in the mile run. In the women's race, junior Michaela Reinhart (4:50.11) placed first while junior Leigha Torino (4:57.59) and freshman Samantha Schadler (5:03.51) finished second and third, respectively. Senior Matt Wisner paced the men with a first-place time (4:13.63), and sophomore Matt Politis (4:19.58) placed fourth and junior CJ Ambrosio (4:19.65) fifth to round out the top five.

The Duke men performed well in the 800m run, with freshman Luke Spurrier (1:55.06) placing first in his collegiate debut and Wisner clocking third at 1:56.74. Sophomore Virginia Capeheart finished second in the women's 800m with a time of 2:23.12.

In the women's 60m hurdles, sophomore Lauren Hoffman and freshman Halle Bieber placed third and fourth, respectively, with Hoffman posting a time of 8.74 and Bieber clocking 8.81.

A pair of Blue Devils placed in the top five of the women's 200m, as junior Simi Gbadegesin (25.65) finished third and freshman Maya Provencal (25.76) placed fourth.

Junior Ben Beatty highlighted the field events for the Blue Devils, recording the third-best mark in program history in the men's weight throw with a toss of 17.53. Beatty notched a personal record in the process, surpassing his previous mark set at the Hokie Invite last year. Freshman Aiden Felty, meanwhile, recorded a 16.48 mark in the shot put in his Duke debut.

The Blue Devils had multiple strong performances in the women's high jump, as freshman Elasia Campbell (1.75) placed first and senior Cassie Martin placed second while tying a personal record at 1.71. Both marks qualified Campbell and Martin for the ACC Indoor Championships. Freshman Hannah Kelly cleared 1.61 to place fourth for Duke. On the men's side, freshman Beau Allen also qualified for the ACC's with a 2.07 mark, placing him second in the event.

Senior Esteban Suarez joined those qualifying for the ACC Indoor Championships in the pole vault, where he cleared 16-2.75 (4.95).

Sophomore Isabel Wakefield tallied a personal record of her own in the women's long jump with a mark of 5.75, good for fourth-place in the event. Sophomore Natalie Simmons (5.45) also set a personal record in the event. On the men's side, freshman Ezra Mellinger secured third place in his first collegiate event, marking in at 7.02.

Duke closed out the day strong in the women's 4x400m relay, placing first with a time of 3:49.68. The performance was led by a blazing 55.0-second run in the second leg by senior Brittany Aveni.

"Today was a good start to the indoor season at UNC, highlighted by strong performances from our seniors and freshman," said Director of Track & Field Norm Ogilvie. "The senior group was led by Brittany Aveni with a strong leg in the 4x400m, Matt Wisner taking first place in the mile and Esteban Suarez qualifying for ACC's in the pole vault. The freshmen had a very impressive day, led by Connor Wells and Rory Cavan placing 1-2 in the 3000m, while Elasia Campbell and Luke Spurrier were able to win their event."

The Blue Devils return to action next weekend, traveling to Blacksburg, Va., to compete in the Hokie Invite Jan. 17-18.

#GoDuke