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Results

BLACKSBURG, Va. - Led by Tech’s distance runners and pole vaulters, the Hokies collected five first place marks on the second day of the Virginia Tech “Doc Hale” Elite Meet in Rector Fieldhouse.

On the No. 4 men’s team, the Hokies placed first in the mile by Neil Gourley, 3,000-meter run by Thomas Curtin, and unseeded pole vault by James Steck. The women’s team followed suit with Hanna Green’s 800-meter run and Emma King’s unseeded pole vault.

Tech’s distance runners led the Hokies to start day two, beginning with the mile. For the men, Gourley and Daniel Jaskowak finished 1-2 in 3:59.58 and 4:04.89, respectively. Gourley’s sub-4 minute mile makes him just the second Tech athlete to record a time under four minutes, ranking second in program history.

On the women’s side, freshman Jennifer Fleming fought from behind, taking the lead in the final turn to clinch a first-place finish in section two with a time of 5:02.23. Rachel Pocratsky placed ninth overall with her first sub-5 minute mile, 4:56.57.

The Hokies’ mid-distance runners continued the success with four top-10 finishes in the women’s 800-meter run. All-American Green took the crown in 2:04.15, less than one second off Tech’s program record she set last season. Shannon Morton joins her teammate in VT’s record book with her 2:09.38 finish, placing fifth all-time. Tessa Riley came in sixth and Shannon Quinn in 10th with times of 2:12.97 and 2:14.08, respectively.

The 3,000-meter runners followed suit on the men’s side with five top-10 finishes. All-American Curtain set the “Doc Hale” Elite Meet record with his first-place, 7:55.73 finish. Stuart Robertson came in second, followed by Darren Barlow in fourth with times of 8:22.73 and 8:29.02, respectively. Daniel Rau and Andrew Eason placed seventh and 10th to round out the field of 20.

King and Erinn Schaal led the women’s fielders on day two with first and third place finishes in the women’s unseeded pole vault. Both King and Schaal set new personal bests with King’s mark of 3.85 meters (12-7.5) and Shaal’s 3.70 meters (12-1.5).

The men’s pole vaulters ended the night with a 1-2 finish by Steck and Jeffrey Linta, respectively. Both set new personal bests with Steck’s 5.20 meters (17-0.75) and Linta’s 5.00 meters (16-4.75).

Shanel Burr and Darius Watkins led Tech’s sprinters as they each qualified for finals in the 60-meter hurdles and 60-meter dash, respectively. Burr sprinted a personal best time of 8.47.

The 400-meter dash wrapped up the night with two Hokies in the top-10 on the women’s side. Courtney Blanden and Nora McKiver finished eighth and ninth with times of 57.91 and 57.92, respectively. Chester Hebden led the men’s side with a first place finish in section four to place fourth overall in 49.37. Corey Hackett-Greene joined Hebden in the top-10, finishing seventh in 49.47.

Freshman Emily Miller began the meet for the Hokies, competing in the first ever pentathlon at the Virginia Tech “Doc Hale” Elite Meet. Miller’s second place, 1.66m (5-5.25) finish in the high jump event added 806 points to her 3,044 total.

Tomas Kruzliak and David Prince each recorded top-five finishes in the weight throw and long jump, respectively. Kruzliak posted a 21.18-meter (69-6) to place fourth throw while Prince jumped 7.14 meters (23-5.25) for third place.

Virginia Tech’s “Doc Hale” Elite Meet will conclude tomorrow in Rector Fieldhouse with the field events beginning at 10:15 a.m. and the track events starting at 1:30 p.m.

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