Spartans Compete In First Track & Field Meet of Season at Appalachian Invite
12/5/2008 12:00:00 AM | Track and Field
Dec. 5, 2008
BOONE, N.C. - Complete Meet Results
The USC Upstate track and field team traveled to Boone, N.C., on Friday to take part in the Appalachian Invite hosted by Appalachian State, competing against several schools such as Virginia Tech, Charlotte, Gardner-Webb, Appalachian State, ETSU, and Winthrop among others. The 2008-09 Spartan squad, peppered with many new faces, finished well in their first outing of the season, as many Spartan athletes established new personal records and results.
"We're glad to get the track and field season started and underway," said USC Upstate head track and field coach Jimmy Stephens. "We look forward to having a successful indoor season as well as measure our results and improvements on the Appalachian State course again when we return in January to the Appalachian Limited."
Perrish Goggins, last year's Atlantic Sun Conference Freshman of the Year, led the way for the Spartans in the field events, competing in the high jump, long jump and 55-meter dash. Goggins earned a ninth-place finish of 25 in the men's long jump event, recording a jump of 22-01.50 (6.74 meters). Teammate Marc Wartenberger also competed in the long jump, earning an 18th-place finish with a jump of 20-05.25 (6.23 meters).
Both Goggins and Wartenberger also competed in the high jump for the Spartans and finished within the top-ten places. Goggin's jump of six feet and six inches earned him a fourth-place finish, while Wartenberger finished with a six foot jump, which was good for eighth-place. Angie Varnum was the sole woman to compete in the high jump for the Spartans, posting a jump of 4-08.25 (1.43 meters).
Sophomore James Miles put together an impressive day with new record throws for the Upstate track and field team. Miles' shot put throw of 47-07.00 (14.50 meters) helped him record a ninth-place finish of 34 athletes competing and represented a new personal record for Miles as well as a new school record. Wartenberger posted a 31st-place finish with his shot put throw of 36-05.00 (11.10 meters). Miles was the only Spartan to compete in the men's weight throw event, where he also finished highly, earning a 17th-place finish and defeating five conference opponents from ETSU. Miles' throw reached 43-10.50 (13.37 meters) and was also a new school record.
In the women's shot put action, the Spartans were represented by sophomore LaTerrica Blocker and senior Kayla Speed. Blocker finished 18th with a throw of 31-11.50, (9.74 meters) while Speed finished with a distance of 30-00.75 (9.16 meters), both setting new personal records. Speed also competed in the women's weight throw, achieving a new personal best with a throw of 36-02.25 feet (11.03 meters).
Sophomore Justin Crawford returned to action in the pole vault event, joined by newcomer Terry Squibbs. Crawford cleared 14 feet while Squibbs topped 13 feet and a quarter inch.
"It was a good field opener for us," said Stephens. "We had some good showings in the throws and jumps and I'm happy how we came out, especially seeing many of our returning athletes set new personal bests and our newer athletes adapt to the swing of things, including Angie Varnum in the jumps and Terry Squibbs in the pole vault."
The Spartans also saw success within the indoor track facility as well, as many freshmen and newcomers gained some crucial experience.
"We treated today as a workout for our distance runners to help see where we are," said assistant coach Ed Schlichter. "We wanted to introduce the newcomers to track and field and give them a sense of a full college meet, so that when we return in January we can have a quick transition."
A variety of names and faces competed for the Spartan squad on the track. Perrish Goggins and Graham Long competed in the 55-meter dash for the men, while Mike Meissner, Mack Reed and Long represented the Upstate in the men's 200-meter dash. Meissner topped the Spartans' in the 200-meter dash with a finish of 23.79 seconds, followed by Long with 24.47 and Reed with a time of 24.56.
For the women, Melissa Billups competed in both the 200- and 400-meter dashes, while Ashley Moore also ran the 200-meter dash and Adrienne Singletary running the 400-meter dash. DeNeal Cotton and Mack Reed earned consecutive finishes in the 400-meter dash with respective times of 55.43 seconds and 55.51 seconds.
The Spartans tried some new combinations in the day's last event, the 4X400-meter relay. For the women, Caroline Chelulei, Emily Tangwar, Joan Tangwar and Lauren Walker posted a finish in 4:26.18, followed by foursome Jemeli Sang, Nicole Yancey, Jillian Finney and Maria Ruvalcaba Trigueros, who posted a finish of 5:08.25. For the men, Derek Winslett, Joe Holzinger, Mike Meissner and Mack Reed formed a team in the relay and finishing right before teammates Matt Henderson, James Jackson, Conrad Goeringer and Graham Long.
The Spartans will resume their season and return to Appalachian State on January 17th for the Appalachian Limited.
