Jan. 11, 2008
BLACKSBURG, Va. (www.ucfathletics.com) - Senior thrower Virginia Traynor (Miami, Fla.) won her flight in the weight throw using a new technique Friday to highlight a strong opening day by the UCF women's track and field team at the Virginia Tech Invitational. The two-day event, which is taking place at Rector Field House, is the season-opening event for UCF and first-year head coach Caryl Smith Gilbert.
"I am really happy with the progress of Virginia Traynor and our throwers," Smith Gilbert said. "Our sprinters have to focus on being confident and find a way to make practice performances show up in meets. I thought all of our athletes took a big step forward today in coming out and competing under pressure. Each week, we are going to focus on our confidence to work on our goals and make our meet performances equal to what we do in practice."
Traynor, in just her second season throwing the 20-pound weight, utilized a new technique in her turn. Under the direction of first-year throws coach John Ridgway, Traynor now takes three turns before her toss instead of the single-turn method she used last season. The more difficult turn aims to better utilize Traynor's power in her throws. She won her flight and finished seventh overall with a toss of 48-10.75, just two feet shy of her personal-best mark.
"I am proud that Virginia made it to the finals in the opening meet of the season," Ridgway said. "This is only her second year throwing the weight and she laid the groundwork for future success tonight."
Sophomore middle-distance runner Jaclyn Johnson (Valrico, Fla.), in her first collegiate 800-meter race, won her heat and finished 10th overall in the event with a time of 2:27.19. Johnson, who did not compete during last year's indoor season, captured her heat by more than two-and-a-half seconds against the nearest competitor.
Sophomore Feyisara Adaramola (Bronx, N.Y.) just missed qualifying for the finals of the 55-meter dash, recording a collegiate-best time of 7.12 to finish ninth in the event. Sophomore Dione Thomas (Jacksonville, Fla.) improved upon her collegiate-best time in the 55-meter dash by finishing 18th in 7.31, while freshman Samantha Shields (Orlando, Fla.) finished in 7.49 in her first college meet.
UCF's distance medley relay squad finished eighth in a time of 12:42.80, while junior Shantile Blackburn (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and senior Kristen Zieminski (Sarasota, Fla.) each competed in the 500-meter dash.
Freshman Lizzie Harris (Miami, Fla.) recorded a 10th-place finish in the 55-meter hurdles, finishing in 8.22 in the preliminaries, while junior Sheree Carter (Tallahassee, Fla.) was 17th overall.
UCF wraps up its competition in the Virginia Tech Invitational on Saturday with meet activities beginning at 9 a.m. at Rector Field House.
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Virginia Tech Invitational (Rector Field House - Blacksburg, Va.)
Results - Friday, January 11 - Event - (NCAA Qualifying Marks ) - Time
Distance Medley Relay - (Auto: 11:11.00; Prov: 11:32.00)
8. UCF "A" - 12:42.80
Weight Throw - (Auto: 21.00; Prov: 18.75)
7. Virginia Traynor - 48-10.75/14.90m
13. Christina Raphael - 46-5.50/14.16m
20. Jessica Francis - 40-2/12.24m
55-Meter Dash - (Auto: 6.74; Prov: 6.92)
9. Feyisara Adaramola - 7.12 p
18. Dione Thomas - 7.31 p
33. Samantha Shields - 7.49 p
55-Meter Hurdles- (Auto: 7.57; Prov: 7.86)
10. Lizzie Harris - 8.22 p
17. Sheree Carter - 8.32 p
33. Victoria Chin - 8.72 p
41. Mckayla Wimbley - 8.88 p
44. Michelle Ranc - 8.99 p
800-Meter Run - (Auto: 2:05.40; Prov: 2:09.40)
10. Jaclyn Johnson - 2:27.19
500-Meter Dash - (Not an NCAA Championship Event)
29. Shantile Blackburn - 1:20.45
32. Kristen Zieminski - 1:21.31
& - NCAA Provisional Qualifier
^ - NCAA Automatic Qualifier
p - Time came in preliminary event
-UCF-