Golden Eagles have three weeks to prepare for OVC Indoor Championships
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CARBONDALE, Ill. – Senior distance runner Leah Bradley notched two top ten finishes to lead Tennessee Tech in the SIU Invitational on Friday and Saturday in Carbondale, Ill.
Bradley finished eighth of 32 competitors in the mile, posting a time of 5:25.76, and placed ninth of 44 runners in the 800 meter with a time of 2:25.69. Both times set new indoor personal bests for Bradley, a native of McDonough, Ga.
Bradley led a strong field of Golden Eagles in both the mile and the 800 meter, the two events in which Tech enjoyed the most success at the meet, their final event of the indoor season prior to the OVC Championships on Feb. 24-25.
Four Tech runners finished in the top half of the mile field, including Kara Webb, Traci Jones and Rebecca Cline. Webb finished 11th and posted a time of 5:26.96, setting a new personal best, while Jones placed 12th with a time of 5:38.21 and Cline was 14th, coming in at 5:40.71, also setting a personal best. Brittney Brown also set a personal best in the mile with a time of 5:53.90.
In the 800 meter, four Golden Eagles also finished in the top half of the field, led by Bradley and followed by Emily Weinzetl, Jenna Philpott and Kara Webb. Weinzetl placed 15th out of 44 runners with a time of 2:27.93 while Philpott came in 21st at 2:31.19 and Webb followed closely behind in 22nd with a time of 2:31.39. Weinzetl and Webb set new personal records in the event, as did Elizabeth Mitchell with a time of 2:39.15 and Kathryn Forbes at 2:40.51.
In addition to success in the distance events, Tech also got a top performance from Lacy Yslas in the shot put. Yslas threw a distance of 37 feet, 1 inch, setting a new personal best for both indoor and outdoor competition and placed 12th of 27 throwers.
Other Golden Eagles set new personal records on the day, including Justin Phillips in the 60 meter (8.32), Elisa Tanksley in the 200 meter (28.75), Emily Williams in the 3,000 meter (11:35.47), Brittney Brown in the 3,000 meter (11:43.92) and Meghan O'Donoghue in the 3,000 meter (11:46.35).
Two Golden Eagles – Erin Keyes and Haley Grinder – competed collegiately for the first time. Keyes competed in the high jump, posting a leap of 4 feet, 11 inches, while Grinder ran in the 60 meter with a time of 9.06 seconds and the 200 meter, finishing in 30.07 seconds.
Tech now has three weeks to prepare for the OVC Indoor Championships, hosted by Tennessee State in Nashville on Feb. 24-25.
