May 5, 2007
Complete Results
FAIRFAX, Va. -
With only two meets left before the NCAA East Regional Championships in Gainesville, Fla. in three weeks, junior Brian Hay maximized his final few chances to qualify for the regional meet, running the best time of his career in the 110-meter hurdles at the Patriot Open Invitational on Saturday at George Mason Stadium to qualify for regionals.
In the preliminary heats, Hay crossed the finish line in 14.12 seconds to set a new personal best in the event, topping his previous high of 14.29 seconds set last season. In the finals, Hay finished second with a time of 14.54 seconds, trailing only Ricardo Melbourne, a former George Mason star competing as an unattached athlete, who finished the race in 14.15 seconds.
Freshman Michael Pachella was on the cusp of qualifying for the NCAA East Regional Championships in the 800-meter run. The Ogdensburg, N.J. native placed first in the event with a time of 1:50.88, the best of his young career. The time was only 48-hundredths of a second off qualifying the freshman for the regional meet. Pachella will get one more shot at qualifying for regionals when he competes at the IC4A Championships in Princeton, N.J. next weekend.
A trio of women placed third in their respective events at the meet. Sophomore Ryann Hendricks recorded the best mark of her career in the long jump during the outdoor season, leaping 5.81 meters to top her old mark of 5.80 meters. She has already qualified for next weekend's ECAC Championships in the event.
In the 100-meter hurdles, freshman Asia Odum placed third with a time of 14.74 seconds. In the preliminary rounds, Odum ran a time of 14.80 seconds. Also finishing in third place at the meet was Amy Yocum, who ran a time of 4:57.46 in the 1500-meter run.
George Mason's men's track and field team will compete at the IC4A Championships next weekend, while the women's team will compete at the ECAC Championships. Both meets will be held at William Weaver Track and Field Stadium in Princeton, N.J. beginning on Friday, May 11 and ending on Sunday, May 13.
