Romero Wins Gold, Virginia Closes Out ACC Championships
DURHAM, N.C. – The Virginia men’s and women’s track and field programs finished off the final day of competition at the ACC Outdoor Track and Field Championships where Claudio Romero led the way as he repeated as ACC Champion in the discus on Saturday.
Romero entered the Discus competition as the clear favorite to win. The reigning champion in the event owned the top mark in the field at 67.02m (219’10”) which ranks second in the NCAA.
The Chilean lived up to his high standard as he uncorked the farthest throw in the history of the ACC Championships reaching 66.21 meters (217’2”) and secured the gold medal for the second-consecutive season. The mark also stands as a Morris Williams Stadium record.
Jacob Lemmon placed seventh in the discus to pitch in two points of his own as the Cavaliers took 13 total points from the event.
A trio of Wahoos combined to score a total of 13 points on the women’s side of the discus as well. Ashley Anumba placed third as the graduate transfer hurled the disc a distance of 53.58m (175’9”) to earn first team All-ACC honors. Maria Deaviz (52.46m / 172’1”) and Thelma Kristjansdottir (51.43m / 168’8”) finished fifth and sixth to make second team All-ACC.
On the track Wes Porter once again showed his prestige as a runner for the Cavaliers in a thrilling 1500-meters. The sophomore stand-out sat in fifth as the pack rounded the corner entering the bell lap. Porter held his move until the final 200 meters when he shifted into the outside of the pack and blazed to the finish line to take the silver at 3:42.44. Following in fifth place for the Hoos was Ka’eo Kruse who helped his team lock down 12 total points in the event.
On the women’s side of the 1500-meters, Mia Barnett tallied points for her team and secured second team All-ACC honors with a fourth-place finish at 4:12.23.
After setting a personal-best time in the 400-meter prelims on Friday, Jordan Willis turned in another spectacular showing in the finals.
Coming down the final straightaway, Willis found himself in a battle with Florida State’s Dae’Qwan Butler and Sean Watkins. With a nod across the finish line, Willis edged Watkins by .04 seconds at 45.70 to take the silver medal and record the fastest time in Virginia history.
In the 800-meters Conor Murphy tallied two points for the Hoos with his seventh-place finish and a personal-best time of 1:48.51 that ranks eighth in Virginia History. Sydney Coppolino crossed the finish line at 2:07.45 to finish eighth.
Alex Sherman picked up a point for the men in the 400-meter hurdles. After earning the final qualifying spot on Friday, the freshman raced to a personal-best time of 52.42 seconds. The time ranks fifth all-time amongst UVA freshmen.
In the women’s 200-meter dash Jada Seaman took seventh place as she crossed the finish line with the clock reading 23.44.
In the high jump Bex Hawkins delivered a sixth-place finish as she reached a height of 1.73 meters (5’8”) to secure 2.5 points for the Cavaliers and second team All-ACC honors.
The UVA women’s 4×100 team of Zoe Rice, Jada Seaman, Alix Still and Kayla Bonnick won their heat with a season-best time of 45.15 and placed fifth overall in the event.
The men scored a point in the 4×100 as a quartet of Tavares Kelly, Alex Sherman, Jay Pendarvis and Jordan Willis clocked in at 40.83 seconds.
In the 4×400 the women’s team of Anzhelika Parenchuk, Emily Alexandru, Alahna Sabbakhan and Keara Seasholtz won their heat with a season-best time of 3:42.46 and placed seventh overall.
Running on the men’s side of the 4×400 Jay Pendarvis, Alex Sherman, Nigal Davis and Jordan Willis also put down a season-best for the Hoos as they combined for a time of 3:09.69 and a sixth-place finish.
Earlier in the week Virginia won two more ACC titles in the throwing events. Ethan Dabbs became just the fourth competitor ever to win the ACC javelin title in three consecutive seasons while Maria Deaviz won her first Outdoor ACC title in the shot put.
Team Scores
The Virginia men placed third overall with 83 points. It is the third time in as many seasons that the Cavaliers have finished in the top-three at the ACC Championships. Florida State won the men’s competition with 149 points.
The Cavalier women placed seventh collecting 54.25 points. Miami claimed that championship.
The Smithfield Commonwealth Clash
The Smithfield Commonwealth Clash, originally called the Commonwealth Challenge (2005-2007), has been a part of the UVA-Virginia Tech rivalry since 2014. It is an all-sports points-based program with the Commonwealth Clash trophy presented to the winning school each year for its dominance in head-to-head competitions.
The Virginia women secured a point in the competition as they finished one place ahead of the Hokies. On the men’s side Virginia Tech takes the point as their runner-up finish edges the Cavaliers.
From Director of Track & Field Vin Lananna:
“Yeah, it was a great meet. Our teams did an excellent job in all event areas. Overall, we got a real sense of what a championship team looks like and we will be back next year”
Up Next:
The NCAA Regional Championships will be held in Bloomington, Ind. from Thursday, May 26 through Saturday, May 28.