Virginia Men Place Second at ACC Outdoor Championships

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May 16, 2015

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla.–The Virginia men’s track and field team placed second at the ACC Outdoor Championships Saturday (May 16) at Mike Long Track. It is the highest Cavalier finish since 2009 when Virginia tied for first.

Virginia finished with 100 points, second only to host Florida State with 136 points. Virginia Tech was third with 98 points, followed by Clemson (89), North Carolina (67), Duke (53), Syracuse (51), Louisville (40), Notre Dame (37), Pittsburgh (37), Miami (36), NC State (33), Georgia Tech (22), Wake Forest (18) and Boston College (0).

“We were eighth place last year and to move up to second place obviously shows we are going in the right direction,” UVa head coach Bryan Fetzer said. “We were a little disappointed that we didn’t complete all of our goals, but overall we had some great performances.”

Sophomores Filip Mihaljevic (Livno, Bosnia and Herzegoniva) and Jordan Young (Windsor, Ontario) placed 1-2 in the discus and were separated by less than an inch, 60.57m-60.56m (198-8). It is Mihaljevic’s fourth overall ACC title and second this weekend. He won the shot put Friday evening, the indoor shot put earlier this year and the discus in 2014.

Young was named the meet’s Most Valuable Male Field Performer. The discus was Young’s third All-ACC performance of the meet, after placing second in the hammer on Thursday and third in the shot put Friday.

“It is the most satisfying thing knowing that I can help my team out,” Young said. “If it means getting the most points on the field side to help my team, then I am honored to do so.”

“The guys competed outstandingly,” UVa assistant coach Martin Maric said. “It is easier to come from behind as an underdog than it is to be favored and keep that position psychologically. How they defended their seeds of first and second showed a lot of maturity for the upcoming NCAA Championships. I think they are going to do great things in the next few weeks.”

“To score top three in three field events in a power five conference is impressive,” Fetzer said. “He did not execute exactly the way he wanted to, but he scored the most points of any individual in the field and got the job done.”

Sophomore Mike Marsella (Hope Valley, R.I.) earned All-ACC honors in the 1,500 meters, placing third in a time of 3:47.93. Sophomore Henry Wynne (Westport, Conn.) was 11th in 3:49.87.

In the men’s 400 meters, senior Payton Hazzard (Huntington, N.Y.) finished fourth in a school-record time of 45.88. He was sixth-hundredths of a second from second place. Hazzard also placed sixth in the 200m in 21.27, the sixth-fastest time in school history.

Senior Ryan Satchell (Central Islip, N.Y.) achieved fourth in the triple jump with a mark of 15.78m (51-9.25).

“Ryan improved on his season best when he was not a 100 percent, so we are really excited to see what he can do at NCAAs when he is 100 percent,” UVa assistant coach Mario Wilson said. “He has been an constant solid performer for us for all four years and we are going to miss him.”

In the javelin, graduate student Kyle Smith (Leola, Pa.) placed sixth with a throw of 66.59m (218-5), while sophomore Nathan Kiley (Chantilly, Va.) was seventh in the 800 meters in 1:50.81. Junior Devin Brewer (Dumfries, Va.) finished eighth in the 400-meter hurdles in 54.94.

In the final event of the meet, the 4×400-meter relay of freshman Logan Carrington (Leesburg, Va.), Kiley, Brewer and Hazzard placed fourth in 3:08.57.

The ACC Outdoor Track and Field Championships marked the close of the 2014-15 Commonwealth Clash, presented by Virginia 529, the official college savings plan of University of Virginia Athletics. There were two points at stake in the Virginia529 Commonwealth Clash, the new point rivalry series between the University of Virginia and Virginia Tech. With both the Cavalier men and women finishing ahead of the Hokies, Virginia wins the Clash by a final score of 15-7. Learn more about Virginia529 and this new competition at thecommonwealthclash.com.

Next up, the Cavaliers will compete at the NCAA East Preliminary in Jacksonville, Fla., May 28-30.