Cavalier Men and Women Place Third in Distance Medley Relay
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – Despite consistent rainfall blanketing Franklin Field, the Virginia men’s and women’s track and field teams finished competition at the second day of Penn Relays on Friday (April 28). Both the men’s and women’s distance medley relay teams logged third-place finishes while the women’s 4×100 meter squad secured qualification to the finals tomorrow (April 29).
The Cavalier women’s 4×100 meter relay team took to the track to start the day. A team consisting of Kayla Bonnick, Jada Seaman, Jada Pierre and Sarah Akpan combined to post a time of 45.64 to lead their heat and earn an automatic place in the women’s championship section tomorrow (April 29) at 1:10 p.m.
The Virginia men’s and women’s Distance Medley Relay teams turned in impressive performances as well amongst a strong field of teams. The women kicked things off as a team of Anna Workman, Alahna Sabbakhan, Esther Seeland and Margot Appleton posted a time of 10:58.05 placing third in the event behind Stanford and Oklahoma State. An impressive 1600-split of 4:33.89 from Margot Appleton powered the team to the finish moving up two places into the top three. The Cavalier time ranks second in program history, missing the Virginia record by less than a second.
The men’s posted an impressive performance of their own. Wes Porter led things off in the 1200-meter leg followed by Alex Sherman in the 400, Gary Martin in the 800 and Conor Murphy anchoring the final 1600. At the finish line, Murphy edged Matthew Payamps of Georgetown and Anthony Camerieri of Ole Miss to secure another third-place finish for the Cavalier program as the men’s team posted a time of 9:35.60. The men’s time stands as the third-fastest outdoor DMR in program history.
Penn Relays began Thursday (April 27) as Virginia’s Sophie Atkinson led the way for the Cavaliers running her second consecutive personal best in the 5000 meters posting a time of 16:12.68 shaving two seconds off a previous best that was set just one week prior.
Up Next:
The Cavaliers return to Franklin Field tomorrow (April 29) for more action at the Penn Relays. Virginia will return to Lannigan Field Sunday (April 30) to host the Virginia High Performance where the program will honor its graduating seniors.