Track and Field Collects Four Automatic Marks in Tucson

Friday, March 15

Tucson, AZ

Grand Canyon

Willie Williams Invitational

Shavine Hodges

Track and Field Collects Four Automatic Marks in Tucson

3/16/2013 3:14:00 PM | Track and Field, Women's Track and Field

Strong showing for GCU in first outdoor meet of season

The Grand Canyon University men's and women's track and field teams wrapped up action at their first outdoor meet today at the Willie Williams Classic hosted by the University of Arizona in Tucson, Ariz. Today's action saw the Antelopes nab four automatic qualifying marks to this year's NCAA Division II Outdoor National Championships.

GCU clinched their first automatic berth to the NCAA championships as their 4x100-meter women's relay squad of Brianne Kee, Samantha Bogatz, Petra Fanty, and Shavine Hodges posted an automatic time of 45.29 seconds en route to winning the event. Their time also stands as the second best among Division II relay squads this season.

The women's 4x400-meter relay Fanty, Lilian Martinez and Hodges collected an automatic qualifier in the event with a time of 3:42.12. That relay team was also the top finisher at today's meet and owns the second-fastest time in the country.

Fanty picked up a provisional time in the event with 54.61 seconds, which is the third-best nationally.

Amy Hop punched her ticket to the NCAA championships with a mark of 3.95 meters (12 feet, 11.5 inches) in the women's pole vault, the best mark in the country. The 'Lopes claimed four of the top five spots today, as Lauren Graham posted a provisional mark at 3.84 meters (12 feet, 7.25 inches) to take second and stand in second nationally among pole vaulters. Lindsey Wright finished third and Bailey Lindsey was fifth.

Dario Horvat was just .02 seconds from another automatic mark for the 'Lopes with a time of 10.32 in the men's 100-meter dash, finishing first in the event. Fred Taylor was 20 seconds behind his teammate (10.52 seconds) to claim second place. Horvat and Taylor own the top-two marks in the country with their times today.

The men's 4x100-meter relay team of AAron Hill, Taylor, Lance Parker, and Horvat just missed the automatic time (by .26 seconds) and won the event with a time of 40.39 seconds, the fastest relay in Division II this season.

The men's 4x400-meter relay squad of Josh Ralston, Oliver Smith, Ramon Cooper, and Stephan Bullard posted the top time in the event with a provisional mark of 3:11.86, the second-best mark in the country.

Tyler Sipes won the men's 110-meter hurdles with a provisional time of 14.34 seconds, the third-best mark in the country.

Smith finished third in the men's 400-meter dash with a provisional time of 47.32 seconds, the second-fastest time in the country.

Bullard was the top-finisher in the men's 800-meter run with a time of 1:51.77, a provisional qualifying mark and the fastest among Division II athletes this season.

Brandon Childs won the men's pole vault with a provisional mark of 4.70 meters (15 feet, 5 inches), the seventh-best mark in the nation. The 'Lopes also claimed the second (Eric Frawley) and third (Andrew Peterson) spots in the event.

Amber Yingling and Jessica Yates finished first and second in the women's triple jump with provisional leaps of 12.10 meters (39 feet, 8.5 inches) and 11.91 meters (39 feet, 1 inch), respectively. Their marks also stand as the fifth and 10th-best nationally.

Vanessa Levy placed fourth in the women's discus throw with a mark of 46.13 meters (151 feet, 4 inches), a provisional qualifier and the best in the country.

Other top-five finishers included: Callie Davis in the 100-meter hurdles (fourth), Parker in the 100-meter dash (fifth), and Robert Matthew in the men's triple jump (fifth).

From yesterday's action, Parker's time of 21.44 seconds in the 200-meter dash stands as the fourth best nationally, while Cooper's 52.75 seconds in the 400-meter hurdles is the fourth-fastest. Hodges and Bogatz ran the second and third-fastest 200-meter dashes yesterday. Kee and Yingling picked up the top-two long jumps in the country.

GCU will next be in action when they travel to Irvine, Calif., for the Spring Break Invitational on March 22 and 23.