Hokie ClubTALLAHASSEE, Fla. - The Virginia Tech men’s and women’s track & field teams will have their sights set on a ACC Championship tomorrow as both teams are set to kick off the 2015 ACC Indoor Track & Field Championships.
The men's team is fresh off of the 2015 ACC Indoor Track & Field Championship title and will look to repeat at the outdoor meet.
Several Hokies rank atop the ACC in their respective events including the national leader in the women’s javelin throw, Irena Sediva. Sediva’s throw of 190’04” (58.02m) not only leads the conference and the nation, but also bests the nearest competitor in the ACC by over 16 feet.
Jaka Muhar leads the ACC list in the men’s javelin throw with a mark of 229’11” (70.08m). Several competitors in the conference are within striking distance, which should make for an interesting competition.
Chris Uhle leads the way in the men’s pole vault. Earlier this season, Uhle hit a height of 17’9” (5.41m) and that mark still stands among the ACC leaderboard. The Hokie pole vault crew has four competitors ranked in the conference’s top 10 and that does not include Torben Laidig, who will be competing for the first time in a Hokie Uniform since last summer. Last season, Laidig claimed the indoor title and was runner-up to teammate Stephan Munz at the outdoor meet.
That’s it for Hokies that lead the conference in their respective events, but that doesn’t mean that some other competitors won’t make noise at the meet.
The women’s 800 race is will be one of the most competitive fields of the entire meet. Hanna Green, who claimed the indoor title in the 800, currently ranks second in the conference behind Clemson’s Natoya Goule. Green was able to claim the indoor title by outkicking Goule on the home stretch.
Tomas Kruzliak, the two-time defending ACC Champion in the men’s hammer throw and the 2013 National Champion in the same event, will be competing. Kruzliak currently ranks second in the conference, but it would most definitely not be an upset to see him walk away with the title.
Marek Barta currently ranks third in the conference in the men’s discus throw with a mark of 193’1” (58.85m).
Tech is also deep in the 3000-meter steeplechase. Stuart Robertson, Darren Barlow and Daniel Jaskowak rank fourth, fifth and sixth in the conference and have been steadily improving times in several distances throughout the season.
Thomas Curtin who won the outdoor title in 2013 in the 5000-meter race will be looking to accomplish the same feat this season. In addition, Curtin took home the 3000-meter title at this year’s indoor meet.
Several other Hokies are poised to post top performances as well. Live results and live video via ESPN3 will be available. See below for the full list of Tech athletes competing tomorrow:
Men’s Hammer Throw (Finals) - Tomas Kruzliak
Women’s 400 Hurdles (Prelims) - Christine London, Nora McKiver
Men’s 400 Hurdles (Prelims) - Austin Kolko, Alexander Merritt
Women’s 200 (Prelims) - Ama-Selina Tchume
Men’s 200 (Prelims) - Alex Ellison, Dante Price, Darius Watkins
Women 1500 (Prelims) - Katie Kennedy, Shannon Morton, Katarina Smiljanec, Amanda Smith
Men’s 1500 (Prelims) - Juan Campos, Neil Gourley, Ashkan Mohammadi
Women’s 10,000 (Finals) - Abigail Motley, Madalyn Nuckols, Sarah Rapp
Men’s 10,000 (Finals) - Andrew Gaiser
All entries are preliminary and are subject to changes or additions this evening.