LYNCHBURG, Va. – Duke track and field turned in another solid day of competition as the Blue Devils notched seven event wins Friday at the Liberty Open.
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TOP PERFORMANCES:
- Sophomore Maya Collins picked up the first Blue Devil win of the day, doing so in the women's 60-meter dash. Collins hit the tape in 7.40 seconds to edge out junior Mia Edim (7.43).
- Beck Wittstadt was the next Duke athlete to join the winner's circle. The graduate student turned in a personal best of 2:20.82 to earn first place in the men's 1,000-meter invite, improving his own school-record time.
- The Blue Devils swept the podium in both the women's 200 meter and 400 meter races.
- In the 400m, seniors Julia Jackson and Lauren Tolbert, along with graduate student Lauren Phillips, claimed the top three spots. Tolbert led the way with a mark of 52.86 seconds - No. 9 in the NCAA, Jackson finished in 53.94 seconds to finish runner-up and Phillips took third after stopping the clock in 55.55 seconds.
- Sophomore Braelyn Baker set the pace in the women's 200m and secured the victory with a season's best of 23.43 seconds – the ninth-fastest mark in the NCAA at the time of the race. Collins (23.69) finished runner-up and posted her second top-three placement of the day, with Edim coming in in third at 23.97 seconds.
- Duke finished atop the field in the women's 800m Invite courtesy of strong races from graduate student Bailey Goggans and sophomore Amber Wimbish. Goggans recorded a time of 2:08.44 to win the event while Wimbish's time of 2:08.56 was good for second.
- The Blue Devils closed out their slate of track events with a victory in the women's 4x400m relay, as Duke's 'A' quartet of Jackson, Baker, Phillips and Tolbert hit the line in 3:38.06. The mark was four seconds faster than the event runner-up – Duke's 'B' relay (3:42.74). comprised of rookie Taylor Aska, Wimbish, Goggans and Edim.
- The tandem of senior Allison Neiders and junior Gemma Tutton turned in strong showings in the women's pole vault, culminating in top-two placements for Duke. Tutton secured the win following a clearance of 4.21m (13-9.75 feet) and Neiders checked in at No. 2 with a mark of 4.06m (13-3.75 feet).
- Sophomore Andres Langston and junior Michael Scherk secured runner-up finishes in the 400m and 60-meter hurdles, respectively. Langston dashed a career best of 47.49, while Scherk clocked 7.98 seconds.
- Seniors Gianna Locci and Jeremy Kain and sophomore Nathan Levine also earned spots on the podium with third-place showings in their respective events.
- Locci took part in the women's long jump and flew out to 5.74m (18-10 feet) on her fifth jump. Kain represented the Blue Devils in the men's mile and finished his race in 4:08.59. Levine competed in the men's high jump and tallied a mark of 2.00m (6-6.75 feet) to finish in a tie for third.
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UP NEXT:
Duke returns to Lynchburg for the Liberty Brant Tolsma Elite Invitational set for Jan. 30-31.
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