Akron Eyes Strong Marks at Trio of Weekend Meets

Friday, February 8

Boston, Mass.

University of Akron

BU David Hemery Valentine Invitational

Akron Eyes Strong Marks at Trio of Weekend Meets

February 07 | Track & Field

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DAVID HEMERY VALETINE INVITATIONAL: MEET INFORMATION (PDF) | MEET SCHEDULE (PDF) | LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO ($) | ACCEPTED ENTRIES (PDF)

DOUG RAYMOND INVITATIONAL: MEET INFORMATION (PDF) | MEET SCHEDULE (PDF) | LIVE STATS | ACCEPTED ENTRIES (PDF)

TYSON INVITATIONAL: MEET INFORMATION (PDF) | MEET SCHEDULE (PDF) | LIVE STATS | SEC+/WATCH ESPN (FRI) VIDEO | SEC+/WATCH ESPN (SAT) VIDEO | ACCEPTED ENTRIES (PDF)

AKRON, Ohio – The University of Akron men's and women's track and field teams are set to compete in a trio of meets this weekend as the Zips will participate at the David Hemery Valentine Invitational, Tyson Invitational and Doug Raymond Invitational.

UP NEXT: The bulk of the Akron roster will travel to Kent to compete in the Doug Raymond Invitational on Saturday, Feb. 9. Scheduled to take part in the Tyson Invitational in Fayetteville, Ark., will be freshman Victoria Abunaw (Maumee, Ohio), freshman Nuh Andu (Doha, Qatar), redshirt junior Maike Anstett (Karlsruhe, Germany), junior Lucy Bryan (Bristol, England), redshirt sophomore Hesham Eldesouky (Nasr City, Egypt), senior Eboni Hall (Pickerington, Ohio), redshirt sophomore Abby Helminiak (Toledo, Ohio), junior Matt Keim (Bolivar, Ohio), redshirt sophomore Patrick Kimball (Pittsburgh, Pa.), seniors Jordan Latimer (Huber Heights, Ohio), Matt Ludwig (Chardon, Ohio), Terrell McClain (Youngstown, Ohio), Dara Perry (Akron, Ohio), Curtis Richardson (Blacklick, Ohio) and Cole Wigal (Belpre, Ohio), while senior Mackenzie Andrews (Toowoomba, Australia) will race at the David Hemery Valentine Invitational in Boston, Mass.

The Zips will go against a 16-team field at the Doug Raymond Invitational which includes; Akron, Ashland, Ball State, Bowling Green, Buffalo, Central Michigan, Cleveland State, Duquesne, Eastern Michigan, Findlay, Kent State, Louisville, Ohio, Pittsburgh, Toledo and Youngstown State.

The meet will begin with the women's weight throw at noon before the women's 5,000 meters kicks off action on the track at 1 p.m. The men's 4x400 relay will conclude the day's festivities at approximately 6:30 p.m.

Fourteen men's teams and 10 women's squads ranked among the top 25 nationally in the latest United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association NCAA Division I Division I Men's Indoor Track and Field National Rating Index released on Feb. 5 will be featured in a 33-team field at the Tyson Invitational, including; Akron, Alabama, Albany, Arizona, Arizona State, Arkansas, Arkansas Baptist, Baylor, Colorado, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Houston Baptist, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Liberty, Louisiana State, Missouri, North Carolina A&T, Nebraska, Northwestern State, Oklahoma, Paradise Valley CC, Southeast Louisiana, SMU, South Dakota, South Plains JC, UC Santa Barbara, USC and Wichita State.

The men's collegiate pole vault commences field events on Friday, Feb. 8, at 2 p.m. ET, before runners hit the track at 3:30 p.m. ET for the women 60-meter hurdles. Final-day competition on Saturday, Feb. 9, starts with the women's collegiate pole vault at 11:30 a.m. ET before the women's collegiate 200 meters gets underway at 2 p.m. ET.

The David Hemery Valentine Invitational will feature more than 90 teams in its field with Andrews running in the women's mile on Friday, Feb. 8, at 4:30 p.m.

THIS WEEK IN AKRON TRACK AND FIELD WITH HEAD COACH DENNIS MITCHELL:

NATIONAL RANKINGS: The University of Akron men's track and field squad stands at No. 23 in the latest United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association NCAA Division I Division I Men's Indoor Track & Field National Rating Index released this week.

The Zips' men's squad is rated sixth in the most-current Great Lakes Regional ratings, while the women's team checks in at No. 9.

The Zips are the top-rated Mid-American Conference team ranked in the men's national poll.

In the Event Squad rankings released on Feb. 4, Akron is ranked second nationally in the women's pole vault and among the top 15 in five different events.

Akron is rated third in the men's pole vault, fourth in the men's long jump, eighth in the men's high jump and 15th in the men's 5,000 meters. Additionally, the Zips are ranked 20th in the women's triple jump.

ZIPS AMONG NATION'S BEST IN LATEST TFRRS RANKINGS: Akron currently has six student-athletes ranked in the top-25 nationally by the Track and Field Results Reporting System (TFRRS), including Matt Ludwig, who is second in the nation in the men's pole vault (19-1.50/5.83m).

Also rated among the top-25 is Jordan Latimer (sixth in men's long jump – 26-0.25/7.93m), Lucy Bryan (seventh in women's pole vault – 14-4.50/4.38m), and Terrell McClain (13th in men's long jump – 25-7.75/7.80m), Eboni Hall (20th in women's pole vault – 13-9.25/4.20m), and Curtis Richardson (22nd in the men's high jump – 7-1.50/2.17m).

The Akron men's and women's teams are ranked No. 11 and No. 17, respectively, in the latest Collegiate Indoor Dual Meet Rankings as compiled by Jesse Squire for Track and Field News.

CRACKING THE ALL-TIME TOP-FIVE PERFORMANCES: The Zips garnered a school record a week ago as part of three overall top-five program marks.

Jordan Latimer established an indoor program record mark of 26-0.25 (7.93m) to earn the victory in the men's long jump at the Akron Invitational on Feb. 2.

Equally impressive in the men's pole vault was sophomore Andre Bollam-Godbott (Brunswick, Ohio), who turned in the second-best performance in indoor program history in the men's 5,000 meters on Feb. 1 crossing the line first in 14:40.41.

Mackenzie Andrews won the women's 800 meters in the fourth-fastest time in indoor program history on Feb. 2, registering a time of 2:08.13.

A WEEK AGO: A week after setting the University of Akron indoor men's track and field record in the long jump, Jordan Latimer upped his own school-record mark soaring 26-0.25 (7.93m) to win the men's long jump and spark the Zips' efforts on the final day of the 15th Annual Akron Invitational on Feb. 2 at the Stile Athletics Field House.

Latimer's performance stands as the sixth-best mark in the NCAA this season. Terrell McClain and Hesham Eldesouky recorded marks of 25-7.25 (7.80m) and 23-9 (7.24m) to finish second and third, respectively, in the men's long jump.

Lucy Bryan earned the victory in the women's pole vault surpassing a season-best mark of 14-4.50 (4.38m), the sixth-highest jump in the NCAA this season. Abby Helminiak finished third in the event with a career-best indoor mark of 13-7.75 (4.16m).

Mackenzie Andrews won the women's 800 meters crossing the line in a career-best indoor time of 2:08.13.

Matt Ludwig eclipsed 17-9.75 (5.43m) to earn the victory in the men's pole vault.

Curtis Richardson won the men's high jump with a clearance of 7-1.50 (2.17m), narrowly missing equaling his career-best mark of 7-1.75 (2.18m) set at the 2018 MAC Indoor Championships. Nuh Andu established a career-best indoor mark of 7-0.25 (2.14m) to place second.

The men's 4x400 relay of sophomore Andrew Wahl (Northfield, Ohio), freshman Amir Willis (Cincinnati, Ohio), freshman Sam Janson (Dayton, Ohio) and freshman Zach Robinson (Pickerington, Ohio) took home the title posting a time of 3:17.31.

Dara Perry placed second in the women's 60-meter finale crossing the line in 8.54, while Victoria Abunaw and freshman Jasmyn Allen (Twinsburg, Ohio) finished fourth and fifth with times of 8.65 and 8.72.

Patrick Kimball placed second in the men's 60-meter hurdles in a time of 8.13, while redshirt sophomore Jace Roundtree (Vandergrift, Pa.) posted a career-best indoor time of 8.18 to finish third.

Willis collected a career-best mark of 21.77 to come in second in the men's 200 meters.

Junior Marcques Gibbs (Darby, Pa.) finished second in the men's triple jump with a mark of 48-5.25 (14.76m).

Running career-best indoor times of 8:38.61 and 8:41.22 to place second and third in the men's 3,000 meters were redshirt sophomore Jacob Ondash (Hiram, Ohio) and freshman Jake Wickert (Medina, Ohio).

Redshirt sophomore Brandon Hochbein (Sarver, Pa.) and freshman Mitch Hoerig (Strongsville, Ohio) captured the 1,000 meters with a career-best time of 2:49.18.

Hochbein and Hoerig culminated the men's heptathlon posting seven-event cumulative career-best scores of 4,710 and 3,416 to place third and sixth, respectively.

Redshirt freshman Milton Wilson (Streetsboro, Ohio) won the men's weight throw in the Blue Division with a career-best mark of 55-3.75 (16.86m), while redshirt freshman Jacob Hutcherson (Uniontown, Ohio) placed third with a career-long throw of 53-2.25 (16.21m).

The Zips finished first, second and fourth, respectively, in the women's triple jump in the Blue Division as freshman Zoi Balamouti (Heraklion, Greece), junior Tanea Cousins (Chillicothe, Ohio) and freshman Shayla Webb (Clay, N.Y.) registered marks of 37-8.75 (11.50m), 37-5 (11.40m) and 35-7.25 (10.85m).

Sophomore Leah Recker (Findlay, Ohio) garnered a runner-up finish in the women's mile in the Blue Division with a time of 4:48.73.

A YEAR AGO: A star-studded field highlighted the opening night of the Tyson Invitational hosted by the University of Arkansas as Matt Ludwig and Jordan Latimer turned in strong performances to lead the Zips' efforts.

Ludwig was the top collegiate finisher in the men's pole vault invitational event placing second eclipsing 18-5.50 (5.63m), while in the men's long jump invitational, Latimer placed fourth with a mark of 25-4.50 (7.73m).

Lucy Bryan registered a sixth-place showing in the women's pole vault invitational eclipsing 14-1.75 (4.31m) against a field that featured five of the top-six vaulters in the country.

Placing fifth and sixth, respectively, in the men's high jump invitational with identical marks of 6-9.50 (2.07m) were Cody Stine and Curtis Richardson.

In the women's pole vault, Abby Helminiak earned a sixth-place finish surpassing 13-1 (3.99m).

Dara Perry ran a then school-record time of 8.38 en route to winning the women's 60-meter hurdles to highlight the Zips' performances at the Kent State Qualifier on Feb. 10, 2018.

Akron received six first-place finishes on the afternoon and 13 top-three performances.

Senior Abigale Wilson (Carrollton, Ohio) added the recorded a mark of 52-3.75 (15.94m) in the women's shot put to place second.

Sophomore Noah Williams (Hilton, N.Y.) finished first in the men's 400 meters crossing the line in 47.34. His effort represented the fourth-fastest time in indoor program history.

Junior Haley Hess (Curtice, Ohio) rounded out Akron's winning efforts claiming the women's mile in a career-best time of 4:59.10.

AKRON TRIO EARNS MAC ATHLETE OF THE WEEK HONORS: University of Akron track and field seniors Mackenzie Andrews and Jordan Latimer along with junior Lucy Bryan were honored by the Mid-American Conference as its Track and Field Athletes of the Week, the league announced on Tuesday, Feb. 5.

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