Virginia Travels to Navy Invitational II on Saturday
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Virginia men’s and women’s track and field teams will travel to Navy this Saturday (Feb. 1) to compete in the Navy Invitational II at the Wesley A Brown Field House in Annapolis, Md.
How to Follow
Fans can follow the action through live results, linked at VirginiaSports.com. Updates throughout the day will be provided on the team’s official Twitter account (@UVATFCC).
The Competition
• The Cavaliers will send 50 competitors to the Navy Invitational II.
• In addition to the Cavaliers, the meet will feature Howard, Maryland, Morgan State, Mount St. Mary’s, Navy and competitors from the Reebok Boston Running Club.
• The competition is the third of the year for Virginia, who opened the season with back-to-back meets in Blacksburg, Va.
• The Midshipmen have two competitors who hold a top-10 national ranking in an event this season as Clayton Thompson ranks fourth in the heptathlon (5,501) and Jack Broophy ranks eighth in the mile (3:59.98).
Hoos Pacing the Nation
• Virginia ranks in the top-20 nationally in four events including both distance medley relays.
• The men’s DMR team of redshirt senior Matthew Novak (Glen Allen, Va.), junior Jordan Willis (Williamsburg, Va.), senior AJ Ernst (Marblehead, Mass.) and redshirt senior Ari Klau (West Harford, Conn.) ran a time of 9:47.33 at the Virginia Tech Invitational, recording the third-best time in the nation this season.
• Also at the Virginia Tech Invitational, the women’s DMR team of redshirt junior Olivia Sargent (Yardley, Pa.), sophomore Sydney Coppolino (Somerdale, N.J.), junior Madelin Rennyson (Lynchburg, Va.) and junior Kiera Bothwell (Springfield, Va.) captured a time of 11:43.99. The team’s performance ranks 14th nationally.
• Individually, freshman Derek Pekar (Ventura, Calif.) had a standout performance at the Hokie Invitational in the heptathlon. Pekar recorded a score of 5,354, sixth-best in the NCAA, to finish first in the event. His mark also leads the ACC.
• In the 400m, senior Anna Jefferson (Warren, Mich.) captured a time of 53.74. Her time ranks 14th nationally.
Hoos Climbing the Rankings
• After only two competitions, the Cavaliers have 13 marks that rank on the team’s top-10 all-time list.
• The men’s team has had three athletes earn a spot on the program’s all-time best-list as Pekar leads the team with the second-best heptathlon score (5,354) in school history.
• Sophomore Owayne Owens (Montego Bay, Jamaica) ranks ninth in the triple jump (15.54m; 51’0″), while sophomore Kane Aldrich (Naples, Fla.) is tied for eighth in the pole vault (4.90m; 16’0.75″).
• Senior Alexis Woodley (Chesapeake, Va.) leads the women’s team after topping her school record from 2018 in the 60m hurdles (8.31) at the Hokie Invitational.
• Junior Brittany Jones (Bloomfield, Conn.) recorded the third-best shot put mark in school history (15.97m; 52’4.75″) as freshman Jada Seaman (Pikesville, Md.) ranks third in the 200m (23.93) and Jefferson ranks fourth in the 60m dash (7.40).
• Seaman also ranks in UVA’s top 10 in the long jump, tying for ninth (6.09m; (19’11.75″), while junior Khyasia Caldwell (Pocono Summit, Pa.) ranks seventh in the event (6.12m’ 20’1″).
• Freshmen Maya Maloney (Boise, Idaho) and Riley Larsen (Point Pleasant, N.J.) rank fifth (3.90m; 12’9.5″) and eighth (3.70m; 12’1.5″), respectively, in the pole vault.
• Senior Andrenette Knight (Morant Bay, Jamaica) ranks 10th in the 400m dash and sophomore Alix Still (Aberdeenshire, Scotland) ranks 10th all-time in the pentathlon (3,575).