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CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Three Hokie throwers - freshman Annjulie Vester (women’s hammer throw), junior All-American Alexander Ziegler (men’s hammer throw) and redshirt junior All-American Matthias Treff (men’s javelin throw) - claimed individual titles as Virginia Tech began competition at the 2012 Atlantic Coast Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships Thursday at Lannigan Field on the campus of the University of Virginia.

Virginia Tech’s men stand in first place with 28 points after three events scored, four points clear of Florida State and Virginia. The Hokie women are fourth with 10 points after two completed events. Virginia leads the women’s team race with 19 points.

Treff, last year’s NCAA runner-up in the javelin, made his season debut in the event and won his second straight and third career ACC title on his sixth and final attempt with an ACC Championship Meet and Lannigan Field facility record throw of 245-0 (74.68m). That mark ranks in the top-10 in Division I entering the weekend.

Treff battled Virginia’s Andy Fahringer and Wake Forest’s Ben Lincoln throughout a strong javelin competition. Treff established the early standard after the first round (237-9, 72.48m), only to see Fahringer take the lead after round three (242-2, 73.82m) heading into the finals. Lincoln (240-3, 73.23m) actually over took Treff for second place after the fifth round, but Treff came up big on his last throw, jumping from third to first. Fahringer (244-7, 74.56m) almost caught Treff on the last throw of the competition, but Treff’s mark stood up by six inches.

Tech went 1-2 in the men’s hammer with Ziegler winning and junior All-American Denis Mahmic finishing runner-up.

Ziegler, the defending national champion in the hammer throw, ended matters early as he won the competition on his first toss with a Lannigan Field record mark of 229-11 (70.09m). Ziegler’s win was his first ACC hammer title and third overall individual conference victory as he also won the indoor weight throw in 2010 and 2011. The Hokies have won six of the last eight titles in the men’s hammer throw at the outdoor conference meet, including four straight. Mahmic added eight big team points for Tech as he finished second with a season best mark of 208-0 (63.39m).

Vester started off the day with a victory for Tech in the women’s hammer throw with a personal best mark of 196-5 (59.87m) on her second attempt. Tech has now claimed five of the past six ACC crowns in the women’s hammer.

Sophomore Scott Campbell is in eighth place with 3,388 points after day one and five events of the decathlon. Campbell started off the day with a personal best time of 11.01 in the 100 meters, which earned him 858 points, third among the competitors in the 11-man field. He then posted a mark of 22-0.75 (6.72m) in the long jump, good for 748 points. Campbell followed with marks of 30-7.75 (9.34m) in the shot put and 5-8 (1.73m) high jump, which scored 446 and 569 points, respectively. Campbell, a native of Salem, Va., finished the day with a time of 51.05 in the 400 meters and scored 767 points.

Tomorrow, Campbell will compete in the second day of the decathlon which consists of the 110 meter hurdles, discus throw, pole vault, javelin throw and 1500 meters.

In the men’s 10,000 meters, redshirt sophomore Leoule Degfae ran personal best time of 30:21.25 to finish 10th, while freshman Brayden Burleigh ran 30:44.71. Sophomore Stephanie Cario clocked a personal best 36:41.55 in the women’s 10k.

Action at Lannigan Field resumes tomorrow with the decathlon at 12 noon and the heptathlon at 1 p.m. Field events begin at 3 p.m. with the women’s pole vault, women’s shot put and women’s long jump. Running events begin at 4 p.m. with the preliminary rounds of the men’s and women’s 1500 meters.

Fans can get all the information for the 2012 ACC Outdoor Track & Field Championships at:
http://bit.ly/2012ACCOTF

For updates on Virginia Tech track & field, follow the Hokies on Twitter (@VT_Track).