GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Freshman Matthew Smith placed second in the 800m to lead the Furman outdoor track and field teams Saturday at the Virginia Challenge at Lannigan Field in Charlottesville, Va. With over 1,700 athletes competing, the track and field meet was the largest on the East Coast.
Smith posted a personal-best time of 1:48.93, which ranks 27th on the NCAA East Preliminaries qualifying list.
Furman also competed at the UofSC Open at the Sheila and Morris Cregger Track in Columbia, S.C., on Saturday. The Paladins recorded nine top-20 finishes at the meet.
The Paladin men placed three runners among the top ten in the 3,000m Steeplechase. Freshman Foster Wilfong won the event with a time of 9:18.10, followed by junior Josh Powers in second place at 9:24.63. Freshman Casey Burr turned in a sixth-place finish with a time of 9:57.71.
Junior Mac Roberts recorded a fourth-place finish in the 1,500m, crossing the line in 3:55.35, while freshman Nick Goldstein placed 12th in the event at 4:03.77. Junior Jonah Dill posted a time of 15:43 for 20th place in the 110m high hurdles.
On the women's side, freshman Kaylie Armitage turned in a time of 4:35.75 for fifth place in the 1,500m, and sophomore Kylie Wittman was 12th in the event with a time of 4:45.53. Sophomore Beth Donnelly finished 20th in the 800 at 2:18.78.
The Paladins will compete at the SoCon Championships in Birmingham, Ala., April 30-May 1.
Virginia Challenge
Men
800m
2nd Matthew Smith 1:48.93
UofSC Open
Men
100m
29th Adrian Gonzalez 11.74
1,500m
4th Mac Roberts 3:55.35
12th Nick Goldstein 4:03.77
24th Ethan Vargas 4:09.00
110m High Hurdles
20th Jonah Dill 15.43
3,000m Steeplechase
1st Foster Wilfong 9:18.10
2nd Josh Powers 9:24.63
6th Casey Burr 9:57.71
Women
400m
39th Monica Seitz 59.70
50th Sammy Trone 1:03.47
800m
20th Beth Donnelly 2:18.78
34th Callie Harper 2:24.17
1,500m
5th Kaylie Armitage 4:35.75
12th Kylie Wittman 4:45.53
400m Hurdles
28th Caroline Nguyen 1:10.40
4x400m Relay
22nd MacDevette, Trone, 50.86
Nguyen, Seitz