Virginia Opens Outdoor Season Against William & Mary, George Mason
WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – The Virginia women’s track and field team opened the season at the W&M Triangular on Saturday (March 16) at Zable Stadium against William & Mary and George Mason.
“It was an outdoor opener,” director of track and field Bryan Fetzer said. “It really was an opportunity to get off Grounds at the end of our spring break. We’re in a heavy training phase, so it is more about competing and working on technical aspects than performance. However, we did have some people start the outdoor campaign on a strong note so that’s something to be excited about.”
In the field events, senior Jade Baker (North Richland Hills, Texas) and sophomore Brittany Jones (Bloomfield, Conn.) finished 1-2 in the hammer throw. Baker recorded a mark of 56.02m (183’9″) to win the event as Jones captured a throw of 49.54m (162’6″) to place second.
Virginia swept the triple jump and long jump as redshirt senior Mia Barron (Minnetonka, Minn.) and freshman Zoe Rice (Ashburn, Va.) recorded the top-two marks in the triple jump. Barron reached 11.88m (38’11.75″) as Rice recorded a jump of 11.61m (38’1.25″) to place first and second, respectively. Senior Kelly McKee (Lenexa, Kan.) recorded a mark of 6.05m (19’10.25″) on her opening jump in the long jump to win the event.
Freshman Thelma Kristjánsdóttir (Reykjavik, Iceland) finished first in the shot put. She recorded a mark of 13.57m (44’6.25″) on the final attempt to capture first. She also topped the women’s discus, recording a mark of 50.25m (164’10”). Freshman Sadey Rodriguez (Laredo, Texas) opened her collegiate career with a second-place finish in the discus, throwing 48.29m (158’5″).
On the track, junior Alexis Woodley (Chesapeake, Va.) and senior Ciara Leonard (Elkins Park, Pa.) finished 1-2 in the 100m hurdles. Woodley ran a time of 13.97, while Leonard finished with a time of 14.01.
Junior Anna Jefferson (Warren, Mich.) recorded a pair of first-place finishes, topping the 100m dash with a time of 11.88 and the 200m dash with a time of 24.69.
Sophomore Hannah Moran (Salem, Va.), freshman Helena Lindsay (Yokohama, Japan) and sophomore Kiera Bothwell (Springfield, Va.) finished 1-2-3 in the 5000m run. Moran captured a career-best time of 17:09.25, while Lindsay ran a time of 17:12.84 and Bothwell ran a time of 17:13.06.
Redshirt freshman Halle Hazzard (Commack, N.Y.) ran a time of 56.75 to win the 400m dash, while sophomore Madelin Rennyson (Lynchburg, Va.) ran a time of 2:13.63 in the 800m run for the top time in the event.
“Anytime we can compete in our home state is a positive,” Fetzer said. “It allows for a large portion of our student-athletes’ parents to have the opportunity to make a short drive to see them compete.”
The Cavaliers will return to action March 29, sending a split squad to the Raleigh Relays in Raleigh, N.C., and the Fred Hardy Invitational in Richmond, Va.