Cavalier Men Lead Competition Following Opening Day of ACC Championships

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CLEMSON, S.C. – Senior All-American Meghan Briggs led the Virginia track and field team on the opening day of the 2010 Atlantic Coast Conference Championships at Clemson’s Rock Norman Track & Field Complex by winning her third-straight javelin title. The Cavaliers also picked up three other All-ACC honors as sophomore Andy Fahringer finished runner-up in the javelin and redshirt sophomore Ryan Collins and senior Trey Miller claimed a second and third place finish in the 10k, respectively.

Briggs opened the day by becoming the fourth Cavalier to win at least three conference titles in the javelin and just the second person in ACC history to win three-straight. Former Cavalier All-American Julia Solo won four-straight conference titles from 1986-89. Virginia has dominated the javelin in throughout the history of the conference championships, claiming a league record 16 titles in the event, while the rest of the conference has combined to win 12.

“Running for a third ACC championship, it really meant a lot to me to win it because it’s my senior year,” Briggs said. “There was the pressure of having a target on my back after winning the last two years and with it being my last year, you want to make a statement before you leave the University. For me, for this meet, it was about mental toughness. Words can’t describe how amazing it felt to have that one big throw, especially after having an average series of previous throws.”

After a foul on her fourth throw and sitting in third place, Briggs rebounded to heave a season-best mark of 171’ 10” to jump into the lead and hold on for the win. Clemson’s Stephanie Wachna finished runner-up with a mark of 160’ 8”.

Sophomore Tara Karin also competed in the event for the Cavaliers, earning a fifth-place finish with a personal-best throw of 143’ 4”.

On the men’s side, sophomore Andy Fahringer threw a personal-best 222’ 9” to earn runner-up honors and his first All-ACC distinction in the event. His mark also moved him into fourth on Virginia’s all-time program records.

In addition, Fahringer finished sixth in the discus with a personal-best throw of 165’ 0”. On the women’s side, sophomore Erin Wykoff and freshman Emily Vannoy both scored, with Wykoff finishing fifth with a personal-best throw of 159’ 8” and Vannoy was sixth with a throw of 157’ 4”.

In track events, Collins battled with NC State’s Ryan Hill throughout the final stretch of the 10,000m, but it was Hill that claimed victory with a time of 29:32.28, edging Collins by less than three seconds. Collins crossed the line in a personal-best 29:35.10, marking the program’s fifth-best time of all-time and his second-straight all-conference honor in the event. Miller kicked it in with a time of 29:40.71 to earn his first-ever All-ACC honor.

The Cavalier men conclude the final day of events in the lead with 25 points. Duke currently sits second with 16 points, while Wake Forest and Florida State are tied for third with 14.

On the women’s side, Virginia sits second following three scored events with 21 points. Host Clemson leads the action with 29 points, while Duke and Georgia Tech are tied for third with 11 points.

Events will begin tomorrow with the finals of the women’s long jump and the men’s shot put at 11 a.m. Preliminary events on the track will begin with the men’s 1500m at 3 p.m., with the finals of the women’s 3000m steeplechase wrapping up the second day of competition at 7:10 p.m.