Troy University Athletics
Trojans Win 12 Medals In Opener
1/24/2010 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - The Troy University women's indoor track and field team finished their season-opening meet with 12 medals, wrapping up the opening weekend at the Blue Raider Invitational hosted by Middle Tennessee on Saturday.
"We did well today at the meet," Troy assistant coach Chip Brundage said. "We had a lot of veterans who stepped up to the challenge and performed well. It was a great start to the season for a young team, and with some minor improvements we should produce better results in upcoming meets this season."
Senior Tiphanie Baker won a pair of medals in the throw competitions, walking away with a bronze in the shot put and silver in the weight throw. She finished third in the shot put with a distance of 41'6" (12.64 meters) to finish behind a pair of throws from Middle Tennessee. Meanwhile, in the weight throw she finished second with a throw of 59'1" (18.00 meters) to finish behind Middle Tennessee's Brittany Cox by three feet.
The Trojans were able to finish second through fourth in the weight throw, with Brynn Forsythe picking up a bronze medal in her first collegiate meet. She finished with a throw of 56'7.50" (17.25 meters) to edge out teammate Nicole Studstill who finished with a throw of 43'4.50" (13.22 meters).
The Trojans took two medals in the first even of the day, the high jump, when newcomer Veronica Bryant cleared 5'4" (1.62 meters) to finish second just four inches away from a gold medal. Teammate Kapri Hockaday finished with a bronze medal with a jump of 5' (1.52 meters) to claim her first medal of the indoor season.
In the long jump, Ariel Cavazos finished with a silver medal with a jump of 17'11.50" (5.47 meters) as she is trying to replace two-time All-Region selection Agata Cichoszewska.
On the track, the Trojans won a gold medal in the 4x400-meter relay with a time of 3:59.81. They defeated the team from Alabama A&M, who finished second by 10 seconds.
Meanwhile, the Trojans won their first medal of the season when Luv Dean crossed the line in a time of 1:00.67 to finish third in the 400-meters. The bronze medalist finished just one second out of first and three seconds out of a gold medal in her first collegiate meet.
"Tiphanie came out this first meet of the season and set a new school record," Brundage said. "We had a lot running times on the all-time list, which is impressive for the first meet of the season. As a coaching staff we are excited with our team as a whole for our first meet."
In the 55-meter hurdles, Latoya Ragland looked to kick off the new year with the way she ended last season at the top of the conference. She finished third in the 55-meter hurdles with a time of 8.16 seconds, after running third in the prelims at a time of 8.03 seconds. She finished behind Middle Tennessee's Cherice Robertson, as the gold medalist was an unattached participant. Naquita Rowe finished third overall in the collegiate division with a time of 8.63 seconds in the same race.
In the 55-meter dash, Simone Pugh finished fourth overall but second among collegiate runners with a time of 7.24 seconds after running a time of 7.21 seconds in the prelims. Teammate Ja-Courteny Alexander finished third among collegiate runners, although she finished fifth overall with a time of 7.29 seconds after running a time of 7.27 in the prelims.
The Trojans return to action next weekend at the UNC Open, hosted by the University of North Carolina. The meet will be January 29-30 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
A list of the complete results can be viewed by clicking on the link above. For more information on Troy University athletics, make sure to visit TroyTrojans.com, your source for up-to-the minute information on all things Troy.
