Jan. 12, 2007
Results
BLACKSBURG, Va. -
On the first day of the Virginia Tech Invitational from Rector Field House in Blacksburg, Va. on Friday night, senior Ryan McCoy finished first in the triple jump with a mark of 15.28 meters (50 ft. 1.75 in.).
The jump qualifies McCoy for the IC4A Championships in early March. Teammate Michael Wade finished ninth in the event with a leap of 14.19 meters (46 ft. 6.75 in.).
Also excelling for the Patriots' men's team were the distance medley relay team, which finished fourth with a time of 10:14.23, and sophomore Mutsa Nyakabau, who narrowly missed qualifying for the IC4A Championships in the 500-meter dash with a time of 1:05.60.
The women got a record-setting performance from Murielle Ahoure. The sophomore came within one-hundredth of a second of the George Mason school record in the 55-meter dash.
In the preliminary round of the 55-meter dash, Ahoure finished second to Charlotte's Shareese Woods with a time of 6.92 seconds, which was good enough to reach both the ECAC and NCAA provisional qualifying standards. The Bristow, Va. native topped herself in the semifinals of the event, crossing the finish line first, clocking in at 6.85 seconds, the second-fastest time in George Mason history, just one-hundredth of a second off the school record of 6.84 seconds, set by Sherri' Funn in 1982.
Ahoure is one of eight sprinters that will run in the finals of the event, slated for tomorrow at 12:45 p.m. She will run against Woods, Virginia Tech's Patrice Potts, Hampton's Francena McCorory, Hampton's Yvette Lewis, Virginia Tech's Shell Green, Virginia Tech's Britni Spruill and Charlotte's Lamarra Currie.
Another sophomore excelled on the first day of action for the women's team. Ryann Hendricks reached the ECAC qualifying standard in the triple jump at the second consecutive meet, finishing in 13th place with a leap of 11.70 meters (38 ft. 4.75 in.).
The Virginia Tech Invitational continues tomorrow from Rector Field House at noon with the women's shot put, men's long jump and the women's mile. The final event, the men's 4x800-meter relay, is scheduled for 5:10 p.m.
