Akron Hosts Al Campbell Invitational

Friday, February 18

Akron, Ohio

University of Akron

Al Campbell Invitational

February 17 | Track & Field

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AL CAMPBELL INVITATIONAL - MEET INFORMATION (PDF) | MEET SCHEDULE (PDF) | ACCEPTED ENTRIES | LIVE STATS

AKRON, Ohio - The University of Akron men's and women's track and field teams will welcome a six-team field to the Stile Athletics Field House for the Zips' final tune-up before the Mid-American Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships, Feb. 25-26, as the squad hosts the Al Campbell Invitational on Friday, Feb. 18.

REMEMBERING COACH AL CAMPBELL: This marks the third year that Akron's final indoor meet of the regular season has been named in honor of the late Zips' track and field coach Al Campbell. Formerly the Zips Invitational, the meet was dedicated with Campbell in attendance at the 2019 Campbell/Wright Invitational.

Akron's final home outdoor meet was named in his honor in 1996 before later being billed as the Campbell/Wright Invitational in 2003.

Campbell, who passed away in December of 2019, spent over 30 years as a coach and educator at the University of Akron, while also coaching women's teams at Walsh University for nearly 20 years.

A four-year letterwinner for the Zips in track and cross country, Campbell earned his bachelor's degree in education from Akron in 1964.

A graduate of Garfield High School in Akron, Campbell first burst onto Akron sports scene as a freshman in 1960 when he garnered first-place finishes, while establishing course records, in the initial two races of his Zips' career. In 1960, Campbell won the Touchdown Club Award as the Most Valuable Runner as a freshman. It was an honor Campbell was to receive in all four years of varsity competition – an achievement reached by no other Akron runner before or since.

Campbell was a member of three undefeated track teams that captured the Ohio Conference Championships in 1961 (9-0), '62 (8-0) and '63 (8-0). The latter two seasons the Zips captured the NCAA Mideast Regional title as well. By the time Campbell concluded his career with another MVP Award in track he owned the records in the 2-mile, 3-mile and 4-mile events.

UP NEXT: The University of Akron men's and women's track and field teams return to competition this weekend hosting the Al Campbell Invitational.

Akron will welcome competitors from Buffalo, Central State, Northern Kentucky, Xavier and Youngstown State. The first of 28 events get underway with the men's high jump, long jump and weight throw along with the women's long jump, pole vault and shot put at 7 p.m. and runs through the men's and women's 4x400 relays that are scheduled to begin at 9:30 p.m.

Live stats from the Al Campbell Invitational will be available at GoZips.com.

NATIONAL RANKINGS: The University of Akron track and field teams have garnered recognition for their efforts during the 2022 indoor season as the Zips are rated in the Event Squad rankings released on Feb. 14, 2022, as part of the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field National Rating Index.

Akron ranks 11th nationally in the women's pole vault as well as rating among the top 20 in five different events.

The Zips also rated 12th in the men's triple jump, 15th in the men's 400 meters, 16th in the men's weight throw and 19th in the women's long jump.

The Akron women and men are ranked eighth and 10th, respectively, in the Great Lakes Regional polls.

ZIPS RANK AMONG NATION'S BEST IN 2022 TFRRS RANKINGS: Akron has a trio of student-athletes currently ranked in the top-30 nationally by the Track and Field Results Reporting System (TFRRS) during the 2022 indoor campaign, including, junior Jacqueline Pokuaah (Akron, Ohio), who is 21st in the nation in the women's triple jump (43-0.25/13.11m).

Also rated among the top-30 is sophomore Zarik Brown (Dayton, Ohio) (28th in the men's 400 meters – 46.72) and junior Nuh Andu (Doha, Qatar) (30th in the men's high jump – 7-0.50/2.15m).

CRACKING THE ALL-TIME TOP-FIVE PERFORMANCES: The Zips added a quartet of top-five performances in program history to the record book at the Doug Raymond Invitational and Grand Valley State Big Meet last weekend.

Jacqueline Pokuaah broke the school record in the women's triple jump with a career-best mark of 43-0.25 (13.11m).

Sophomore Blake Lucius (Crestline, Ohio) posted the fourth-fastest time, 1:48.93, in the men's 800 meters at the Grand Valley State Big Meet on Feb. 11, while senior Hannah Long (Pacific, Mo.) recorded the fifth-best time, 4:50.45, in the women's mile.

Freshman Fegor Clifford (Delta State, Nigeria) rounded out the performances crossing the line in the women's 400 meters in 55.53 at the Doug Raymond Invitational on Feb. 12, the fifth-fastest effort in indoor program history.

NAME	EVENT/DATE	RANK – MARK
Fegor Clifford	Women's Triple Jump – Jan. 14	No. 5 – 40-3.50 (12.28m)
Charles Sanders	Men's 400 Meters – Jan. 14	No. 5 – 47.10
Zarik Brown	Men's 400 Meters – Jan. 21	No. 2 – 46.72
Jacqueline Pokuaah	Women's Triple Jump – Jan. 21	No. 3 – 41-4.25 (12.60m)
Jacob Ondash	Men's Mile – Jan. 29	No. 2 – 4:04.45
Zarik Brown	Men's 60 Meters – Jan. 29	No. 3 – 6.70
Blake Lucius	Men's 800 Meters – Jan. 29	No. 5 – 1:50.58
Milton Wilson	Men's Weight Throw - Feb. 5	No. 1 - 69-0.50 (21.04m)
Hannah Long, Varvara Lissichkina Makenna Heimlich Beth Arentz	Women's DMR - Feb. 4	No. 1 - 11:33.91
Amya Clarke	Women's 60 Meters - Feb. 5	No. 2 - 7.44
Jacob Ondash	Men's 3,000 Meters - Feb. 5	No. 3 - 8:11.99
Charles Sanders	Men's 400 Meters - Feb. 5	No. 5 - 47.08
Jacqueline Pokuaah	Women's Triple Jump - Feb. 12	No. 1 - 43-0.25/13.11m
Blake Lucius	Men's 800 Meters - Feb. 11	No. 4 - 1:48.93
Hannah Long	Women's Mile - Feb. 11	No. 5 - 4:50.45
Fegor Clifford	Women's 400 Meters - Feb. 12	No. 5 - 55.53

A WEEK AGO: Akron's Jacqueline Pokuaah garnered a school-record mark in the women's triple to headline the Zips' performances on the final day of the Doug Raymond Invitational hosted by Kent State on Saturday, Feb. 12.

For Doug Raymond Day One recap (click here)
For Doug Raymond Day Two recap (click here)

Akron registered a pair of victories as part of six overall personal-best marks to highlight the Zips' efforts at the Grand Valley State Big Meet on Friday, Feb. 11.

For Grand Valley State Big Meet recap (click here)

AKRON TO HONOR 19 ZIPS ON SENIOR NIGHT: Akron will honor 19 student-athletes competing in their final indoor meet as a Zip throughout the Al Campbell Invitational on Friday, Feb. 18, including a special Senior Night recognition before the start of the meet.

Those Zips being honored include; junior Zoi Balamouti (Heraklion, Greece), senior Hesham Eldesouky (Nasr City, Egypt), junior Sara Foster (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio), senior Tyler Grine (Fremont, Ohio), junior Lizzy Gurko (Northfield, Ohio), redshirt juniors Jacob Hutcherson (Uniontown, Ohio) and Ryan Kilhoffer (Johnsonburg, Pa.), sophomore Sophia Leto (Mt. Orab, Ohio), seniors Varvara Lissichkina (Karaganda, Kazahkstan), Hannah Long, Jacob Ondash (Hiram, Ohio) and Matthew Perison (Kent, Ohio), junior Kassandra Roemer (Kaiserlautern, Germany), seniors Jace Roundtree (Vandergrift, Pa.), Lindsey Scarton (Berea, Ohio), Jayce Shaffer (Lawrenceville, Ga.) and Alyssa Thomas (Green, Ohio), redshirt junior Milton Wilson (Streetsboro, Ohio) and junior Carlyn Zahner (North East, Pa.).

LISSICHKINA EARNS MAC ATHLETE OF THE WEEK HONORS: Varvara Lissichkina was honored by the Mid-American Conference as the Women's Track Athlete of the Week, the league announced on Wednesday, Feb. 16.

Lissichkina was recognized by the league for the first time this season, while the Zips garnered weekly conference accolades for the fifth time in 2022.

Lissichkina bested the field in the women's 800 meters crossing the line in a league-best time of 2:09.49 at the Grand Valley Big Meet on Friday, Feb. 11.

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