Blue Devils Set for Charlotte Invitational

Friday, April 23

Charlotte, NC

Duke University

Day One at Charlotte Invitational

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Blue Devils Set for Charlotte Invitational

4/22/2021 4:04:00 PM | Track & Field

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DURHAM, N.C. – Facing one final regular season road test before the regular season home finale and the ACC Outdoor Championships, the Duke track & field program heads out for a two-day trip to the campus of UNC Charlotte for the Charlotte Invitational.

Women's track & field enters the meet as the No. 17 team in the nation according to the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) for the second straight week. Duke will compete against the host Charlotte, Appalachian State, Davidson, Marshall, South Carolina, USC Upstate, Wake Forest and Winthrop.

FIELD EVENTS
Friday:

Kicking off competition for the Blue Devils is freshman Moorea Mitchell in the women's hammer at 3 p.m. Mitchell has tallied her first- and second-best marks in the event in back-to-back weeks and is looking to best her Tobacco Road Challenge mark of 52.09m (170-11 feet) that ranks fourth in program history.
The other field event with Duke representatives on day one is the men's javelin, as graduate student Kiegan Lenihan and sophomore Luke Jackson will compete at 3:30 p.m.
Lenihan enters the event fresh off a season-best of 67.34m (220-11 feet) to take first at the Tobacco Road Challenge. That marks checks in at 21st in NCAA East Regional qualifying.

Saturday:

A crowded day of field events gets started at 11 a.m. with Duke athletes competing in the women's high jump, men's shot put and men's long jump.
In the high jump, senior Erin Marsh returns to lead the field. Marsh currently holds the 12^th-best clearance in the nation, after setting the third-best mark in Blue Devils history at 1.79m (5-10.5 feet) in the heptathlon at the Tobacco Road Challenge.
Senior Ben Beatty opens his day in the shot put, with eyes on improving his season best of 16.79m (55-1 feet) set last weekend at the Virginia Challenge.
Sophomore Ezra Mellinger will be the lone representative in the long jump. Mellinger set a personal best of 7.42m (24-4.25 feet) at the Tobacco Road Challenge that ranks fourth in program history.
The early afternoon features a packed schedule including the women's shot put, women's pole vault, women's long jump, men's high jump and men's discus.
Sophomore Kinsie Huggins will compete in the shot put, looking to continue a breakout season in which she earned her first top-three finish and the fourth-best throw in program history at 14.03m (46-0.5 feet) at the Tobacco Road Challenge.
Last weekend's first and second place finishers in the women's pole vault are back, as graduate student Julia Valenti and sophomore Brynn King will look to repeat their success. Valenti set a personal best mark of 4.06m (13-3.75 feet) to win the event at the Virginia Challenge, while King notched an outdoor personal best of 3.96m (12-11.75 feet).
Heptathlete and graduate student Zoe Hughes is back in action for the first time following her second-place finish in the heptathlon at the Tobacco Road Challenge. Hughes is the lone representative for the Blue Devils in the long jump.
Sophomore's Davis Howell and Keith Williams are set to compete in the high jump. Williams set a personal best of 1.98m (6-6 feet) at the Tobacco Road Challenge.
Beatty will conclude his day in the men's discus, returning to the event after setting a personal best of 45.41m (149-0 feet) at the Tobacco Road Challenge.
Williams will return to action in the triple jump, looking to best his mark of 13.20m (43-3.75 feet) set at the Tobacco Road Challenge.
Graduate students Evan Lee and Harry Lord will wrap up the day in the field in the pole vault. Lord is making his season debut in the event, while Lee is looking to best his fifth-place finish at the Raleigh Relays of 4.69m (15-4.5 feet).

TRACK EVENTS
Friday:

Track events open at 7:15 p.m. with the women's 1500m. Junior Rylee Bowen and freshman Kelli Wilson will compete in their first 1500m of the season, with Wilson making her debut in the event.
Bowen will be back in action in the 800m as well, joined on the men's side by junior Devin Connell, who is seeking to set a personal best in the even for the third consecutive meet.
The Blue Devils will see two competitors in the 3000m steeplechase, with sophomore Ryan Thompson and freshman Victoria Patterson set to run at 8:10 p.m.
Senior Sara Platek and sophomore Caroline Howley will compete in the women's 5000m. Platek is back in action for the first time this outdoor season to compete in the event she won a silver medal at the ACC Indoor Championships in, while Howley holds the best time in the event by a Blue Devil this season at 17:35.72.
Sophomore Connor Wells and freshman Ben Armentrout will wrap up the day in the men's 5000m. The duo were the sole finishers in the event at the Tobacco Road Challenge, with Wells taking the top spot with a time of 14:43.87.

Saturday:

Lord and Lee will start the day's track events with competition in the 110m hurdles at 1:15 p.m.
The women's 110m hurdles features one of the deepest fields in the event, as Marsh will compete in the event with graduate student and school record holder Cha'Mia Rothwell, as well as Hughes, junior Kate Kutzer and freshman Brianna Smith.
Rothwell currently holds the 16th-best time in the nation and 10th in NCAA East Regional qualifying, while Marsh ranks 38th in the country and 19th NCAA East Regional qualifying.
Graduate student Iman Sule and sophomore Carly King are back in action in the 400m after not competing in the Virginia Challenge. Sule and King set personal bests at the Tobacco Road Challenge and will be joined by first time 400m competitor and freshman Hailey Williams.
Freshman Maya Provencal is competing in the 100m dash at 2:30 p.m. Provencal is coming off a personal best of 11.82 seconds at the Tobacco Road Challenge.
Graduate student Connor Atkinson has already had a historic season, setting the third fastest mark in program history in the 400m hurdles and will be back in action this weekend in the same event.
Graduate student Danielle Okonta and junior Nikki Merritt will compete in the women's 400m hurdles. Merritt has improved her 400m hurdles personal best for three straight meets and is just 0.21 seconds away from entering the top-five all-time.
The final event of the day is the busiest for the Blue Devils, with two men and eight women set to compete in the 200m.
Hughes, Kutzer, Marsh, Provencal, Rothwell, Smith and Williams are back in the women's event and joined by junior Kelcie Simmons. Freshmen Alejandro Rodriguez and Job Trahan will headline the men's event.