April 13, 2013
BATON ROUGE, La. – The Arizona State University track and field team wasted no time getting back into business after its electric weekend as the Sun Angel Classic, with both teams taking third at the Battle on the Bayou in Baton Rouge, La., on Saturday.
Competing in a rare regular season scored meet, the No. 8 Sun Devil women finished just five points out of second out of the four teams in action with 134 points despite competing without their distance teams.
The No. 17 ASU men’s squad, also competing without its distance team, finished with 119 points and was just five points behind second-place Penn State.
LSU won both the men’s and women’s competitions.
In the first running event of the day, the women’s 4x100-meter relay team of Keia Pinnick, Asiah Gooden clocked a new season’s best time of 44.77 in a runner-up finish that tentatively ranks in the top-20 nationally and was the first of numerous impressive marks that included Pinnick on the day.
Pinnick would go on to set personal bests in both the 100-meter and 400-meter hurdles, clocking a time of 13.33 in the high hurdles that improved upon her standing at No. 7 in ASU history in the event. She would go on to win the intermediate hurdles in 57.06, matching a meet record and moving into sixth on ASU’s all-time top-10 in the event.
The time would tentatively rank in the top-10 nationally this season, barring results from other competitions this weekend.
Pinnick wasn’t done there as she rejoined Herring, Tate and Sarah Geren to post a new season’s best time of 3:35.16 in the 4x400-meter relay in the final event of the day.
Tate would also compete in the open 400-meter dash, finishing third in 53.35.
Junior Anna Jelmini set a new meet record with her winning throw in the women’s discus and a mark of 59.25m (194-05) to lead an ASU sweep in the event with Alex Hartig taking second with her throw of 50.96m (167-02).
Jelmini would also go on to take second in the shot put with a throw of 16.88m (55-04.75) to cap of a great throws day that also saw Chelsea Cassulo set the meet record in the hammer throw with a mark of 67.30m (220-10).
In the women’s long jump, senior Christabel Nettey obliterated the meet record with her winning leap of 6.53m (21-05.25), despite passing on her final two attempts.
Teammate Constance Ezugha posted her best mark of the season in the same event with a jump of 6.07m (19-11.00).
Shaylah Simpson gave ASU another victory in the women’s pole vault with a clearance of 3.89m (12-09.00)
The men’s side saw some impressive performance out of the sprint crew, leading off with a time just of their season best in the 4x100-meter relay as Devan Spann, Will Henry, Ryan Milus clocked a time of 39.69 to finish second – eight hundredths of a second behind the victors out of LSU.
Milus and Spann would each go on to clock season’s bests in the 200-meter dash, finishing second and third respective in slightly wind-aided times of 20.95 and 21.01.
Milus also took third in the 100-meter dash with a time of 10.45m.
Cameron Taylor clocked a new career-best in the 110-mete hurdles as the top collegian in the field and a time of 14.18 while Will Henry also logged a new season best in the 400-meter dash in 46.67.
Derick Hinch gave the Sun Devil men of of their two victories the day, taking the pole vault with a best clearance of 5.26m (17-03.00). Jordan Clarke also won the men’s hammer throw with a toss of 62.45m (204-11) to also pick up a win.
The Sun Devils will send a small contingent to the Mt. SAC Relays next weekend as the 2013 outdoor season rolls along, before welcoming Arizona and Northern Arizona to Tempe for the annual Double Dual the following weekend.