/
.
Vanessa Fabrizio Breaks School Record in the 800m
Story Links
Feb. 14, 2015
AMES, Iowa & ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The Virginia women’s track and field team concluded strong performances Saturday at the Iowa State Classic and the Don Kirby Elite Meet. Vanessa Fabrizio (Denver, Colo.) broke her own 800m school record to headline a day of impressive results in Ames.
“Improvement and confidence is what we want to have each meet,” said head coach Bryan Fetzer. “I would say that was accomplished this week. Our field event group has been a mainstay all indoors. Its’s exciting to see the progress.”
Fabrizio broke her school record, set in 2012, with a 2:07.24 in the 800m. It was the seventh different school record broken this year by the Cavaliers.
“Vanessa put together a solid race,” said Fetzer. “It’s exciting for her run a lifetime best two weeks prior to ACC’s. The confidence should be there because the legs are speed are there.”
Christine Bohan (Avon Lake, Ohio) finished second in the shot put with a mark of 52′ 10.75″, the second-best mark in school history and just shy of the school record of 53-feet.
“Christine’s improvement has a lot to do with her confidence and mental approach,” said Fetzer. “As a freshman she was essentially learning a new skill, but she is such a great athlete that is was a matter of time before it clicked.”
The Cavaliers had three of the top five finishers in the women’s 60m. Jordan Lavender (Nashville, Tenn.) was second in 7.52, edged by .001 of a second. Peyton Chaney (Belleville, Ill.) was third in 7.57, moving her into seventh all-time at Virginia. Tori McKenzie (Chatham, Va.) was fifth in 7.75.
Iona Lake (Norwich, England) moved into the top-five all-time at Virginia with her performance in the 3000m, crossing in a time of 9:24.30.
Virginia closed out competition in Ames with a third-place finish in the 4x400m relay. Chaney, Lavender, Fabrizio and Chimere Ezumah (Gardena, Calif.) crossed the line in 3:41.93, the fifth-best indoor time in school history.
At the Don Kirby Elite Meet in Albuquerque, the Cavalier pole vaulters had another strong performance. Sarah DeVita (Ridgewood, N.J.) and Bridget Guy (Greensburg, Pa.) both cleared 12′ 8.25″, a mark that was just half an inch shy of the school-record mark set by Guy last week. It moved DeVita into second all-time at Virginia. Katie Freix (Chantilly, Va.) had a PR of 12′ 2.5″, the fifth-best overall mark in school history and second-best by a freshman.
The Cavaliers will return to action on Feb. 21 as they send athletes to compete in the 4x400m relay at the Alex Wilson Invitational at Notre Dame.