New school records headline Tech's second day at the ACC Championships

The Tech men's team sits in a three-way tie for sixth place with 14 points, while the Hokie women's team is in 15th place overall

February 24, 2017

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Numerous sprinters and distance runners on the Virginia Tech track and field teams qualified for the finals of their respective events Friday to headline the second day at the 2017 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Indoor Track and Field Championships held at Notre Dame’s Loftus Sports Center.

The Tech men’s team, ranked No. 21 nationally, sits in a three-way tie for sixth place with 14 points. Virginia leads the event with 39 points. The Hokie women’s team is in 15th place with one point.

Mackenzie Muldoon’s seventh-place performance in the heptathlon and Peter Seufer’s seventh-place finish in the 5,000 provided the Tech men’s team with its only points of the day, but the Hokies will have several potential scoring options in Saturday’s finals.

In the men’s 800, Tech’s Drew Piazza won his heat in a school-record time of one minute, 47.71 seconds to qualify for the finals. The Danvers, Massachusetts native broke teammate Neil Gourley’s time of 1:48.10 set at last year’s ACC Indoor Track and Field Championships to record the fastest time overall in Friday's prelims. Patrick Joseph also won his heat and qualified for the finals with a career-best time of 1:49.79. Owen Buck and Kevin Cianfarini also raced in the event, but did not qualify for the finals, as only the top time in each of the five heats advanced along with the next three best times. Buck finished fourth in his respective heat, while Cianfarini placed sixth.

Also, the Hokies’ Greg Chiles qualified for the finals in the 400-meter dash, finishing first in his heat. The Chesapeake, Virginia native eclipsed a new season-best time of 46.98 seconds to reset his own program record in the 400 for the third time this season. Of note, he shaved .44 seconds off his previous mark set at the Music City Challenge on Feb. 11 and recorded the fifth-fastest time in Friday's prelims.

Michael Davenport, in addition to Chiles, qualified for the finals in the 200-meter sprint. The top eight times advanced, as Chiles and Davenport each recorded personal bests to place fourth (21.20 seconds) and fifth (21.26 seconds), respectively, overall.

Additionally, two Hokies qualified for the finals in the men’s mile. The top two in each of the three heats advanced along with the next four best times. Vincent Ciattei won his heat, finishing in 4:07.89 for the 10th-fastest time overall. Diego Zarate placed second in his section and recorded a personal-best time of 4:05.25 for the third-fastest time of the day.

Lastly, Aaron Simpson qualified for the finals in the 60-meter hurdles. The top eight advanced, and Simpson’s time of 8.09 seconds was one of those eight, putting him in the finals.

In addition, the Tech men’s team will have its pole vault contingent competing tomorrow, along with its 4x400 relay team and seven competitors in the 3,000-meter run.

On the women’s side, Hanna Green led the Hokies in the 800-meter run, finishing the race in 2:05.60. Green, the reigning ACC champion, easily won her heat and recorded the fastest time overall in Friday's prelims. Rachel Pocratsky and Laurie Barton also won their heats, advancing to Saturday's finals. Shannon Quinn and Sarah Edwards both ran in the event as well, but failed to qualify for the finals, with only the top time in each of the four heats advancing along with the next three best times.

In the mile, Tessa Riley recorded the fourth-fastest time in the event, finishing with a personal-best time of 4:47.18 to qualify for the finals.

Courtney Blanden also qualified for the finals in the women’s 200- and 400-meter dashes, recording personal bests in both events. Blanden had a career-best time of 23.69 seconds in the 200 and recorded the sixth-fastest time overall on the day. She also tallied a lifetime-best time of 53.59 seconds in the 400, shaving off .79 seconds from her pervious mark of 54.38.

Lastly, the Hokies’ Erica Hjerpe and Olivia Privitera finished 13th and 14th, respectively, in the pole vault competition with a height of 3.81 meters (12 ft., 6 in.). Both finished with the same mark, but Hjerpe reached that mark in fewer attempts to take 13th place overall.

The third and final day of the Championships will begin at 11 a.m. on Saturday. The Hokies will hit the track at 11 a.m., with Eszter Bajnok competing in the triple jump event.

Of note, the ACC Network will begin its coverage of the Championships at 12:30 p.m. Former Olympic decathlon gold medalist Dan O’Brien will serve as the color analyst, reprising the role he first filled at the 2015 ACC Outdoor Championships. He also will be joined by veteran ESPN play-by-play announcer Shawn Kenney.

Admission is free to the 2017 ACC Indoor Track & Field Championships, and fans can follow @VT_Track on Twitter for updates and additional information.

PERSONAL BESTS

200

Greg Chiles (21.20)

Michael Davenport (21.26)

Courtney Blanden (23.69)

400

Greg Chiles (46.98)

Brandon Thomas (47.75)

Matthew Baker (49.11)

Shannon Quinn (57.02)

Courtney Blanden (53.59)

Arlicia Bush (54.54)

800

Catherine Stone (2:08.88)

Sarah Edwards (2:11.17)

Patrick Joseph (1:49.79)

Owen Buck (1:51.08)

5,000

Sara Freix (17:27.74)

Peter Seufer (14:09.24)

Jack Joyce (14:32.94)

Mile

Tessa Riley (4:47.18)

Diego Zarate (4:05.25)

Andrew Goldman (4:08.87)

High Jump

James Carver (2.03 meters)

Heptathlon

Mackenzie Muldoon (5,166 points)

Pole Vault

Mackenzie Muldoon (4.40 meters)

1,000

Mackenzie Muldoon (2:44.94)

For updates on Virginia Tech track & field, follow the Hokies on Twitter Follow @VT_Track