Men's Track and Field 2/22/2013 4:39:00 PM

GORWITZ TOPS BIG SOUTH IN MILE, RADFORD RECORDS FIVE MORE ALL-CONFERENCE SHOWINGS

RESULTS | TEAM STANDINGS

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – In addition to Brian Gorwitz's title in the men's mile, Radford track and field posted four other all-conference performances Friday to conclude competition at the Big South Indoor Track and Field Championships held at the JDL Fast Track.

On the men's side, the Highlanders finished sixth in the team standings with 64 points, five behind fifth-place Winthrop (69). Liberty won its 16th consecutive league title by accumulating 163.5 points.

The women improved on their ninth-place showing from a year ago by finishing eighth with 28 points, 10 behind seventh-place UNC Asheville. Coastal Carolina won its first Big South crown since 2009 by racking up 182 points, 40 clear of runner-up Liberty.

The day got off to a promising start as Gorwitz put on a clinic in the mile run. The Yorktown, Va. native lurked in the middle of the pack for the first 800 meters before he turned on the jets at the end to blitz the field in a personal-best 4:12.63 to capture his first conference title.

The junior, who will have the second-fastest pace in school history for the event once converted to banked-time, becomes the first men's indoor champion since Kyle Morse (weight throw) in 2010. Gorwitz finished nearly two seconds ahead of Campbell's Chris Schulist to stand atop the podium.

Courtni Pannell placed fourth in the women's 60-meter hurdles final with an 8.77 sprint. Her pace becomes the ninth-best in the event's top-10 chart at Radford.

On the men's side, the highly anticipated duel between two of the top-10 competitors in the nation for the event—Milan Ristic of UNC Asheville and Radford's Vincent Wyatt—lived up to its billing.

Ristic edged Wyatt by the slimmest of margins (7.79-7.80) to win his second straight title in the event. Improving on his third-place finish last year, Wyatt's runner-up showing earned him all-conference accolades for the second consecutive season.

With the top-16 times in the nation for each event automatically qualifying for the NCAA Championships in a couple weeks, Ristic and Wyatt are almost locks to be there. Ristic's top time in the event is 7.75, which ranks first in the Big South and is tied for eighth nationally. Right behind, however, is Wyatt's 7.76, which ranks second in the conference and 10th in the nation.

Kaise White recorded the third all-conference finish of the day for the Highlanders in the men's 400 meters. The senior ran a 49.26 to cross the line in third. It marked White's first All-Big South honor in the 400 meters.

Lakei Crews and Joseph Betts represented Radford in their respective sides of the 60-meter dash with sixth-place finishes. Crews was clocked at 7.81 in the women's race, while Betts crossed the line in 7.05 on the men's side.

Betts pressed forward into the 200-meter race, where his season-best time was ranked third in the Big South. The sophomore lived up to his ranking by running a 21.92 (seventh-fastest time at Radford) to place third and earn his second straight all-conference honor in the event. He also placed third last year in the 200 meters.

Gorwitz and Ryan Farnan represented Radford in the men's 5,000 meters during the afternoon session. It was a record-breaking race for the two Highlanders as both improved their career-best times. Farnan placed ninth with the third-best pace (14:56.79) in event history at Radford, while Gorwitz crossed the line in 15:09.98 (fifth-fastest time on top-10 chart) to finish 12th.

Ashlen Veatch and Jazmine Banks finished eighth and 13th respectively in the women's weight throw. Banks' personal-record hurl of 14.90 meters bested her previous PR of 14.82 at the Liberty Open. Veatch tossed a 15.50-meter mark in her first Big South championship appearance.

Curtis Hodge highlighted the men's side for Radford, placing fourth with a 17.74-meter heave.

Earning all-conference accolades in the women's long jump Thursday, Jamiecka Baker finished sixth in the triple jump Friday with her 11.41-meter leap.

Sent out as the closing act to the championships, the group of David Green, Kaise White, Vincent Wyatt and Joseph Betts did not disappoint as they earned all-conference honors in the men's 4x400-meter relay. The quartet completed the distance in 3:21.20 to finish third.

In all, the Highlanders had 17 personal records set, seven all-conference performances established and two school records broken.

Upon completion of the championships, Maggie Wissler and Eric Graves were selected to their respective Big South all-academic teams.

***Note: All times will be converted to banked-time since facility is a flat track, therefore, school record and top-10 times will be adjusted accordingly once posted by the Big South.

Team Results
Men - Team Rankings - 17 Events Scored
1. Liberty – 163.50
2. High Point – 98.5
3. Charleston Southern – 82
4. Gardner-Webb – 81
5. VMI – 69
6. Radford – 64
7. Campbell – 63
8. UNC Asheville – 24
9. Winthrop - 13

Team Results
Women – Team Rankings - 17 Events Scored
1. Coastal Carolina – 182
2. Liberty – 142
3. Charleston Southern – 74
4. Gardner-Webb – 57
5. Campbell – 50
6. High Point – 41
7. UNC Asheville – 38
8. Radford – 28
9. VMI – 25
Winthrop – 25

Men's Most Outstanding Track Performer
Jayshawn Campbell, Campbell

Women's Most Outstanding Track Performer
Erica Peake, Coastal Carolina

Men's Most Outstanding Field Performer
Alex Young, Gardner-Webb

Women's Most Outstanding Field Performer
Tamisha Foster, Charleston Southern
Mychelle Cumings, Liberty

Men's Freshman of the Year
Alex Young, Gardner-Webb

Women's Freshman of the Year
Jessica Gelibert, Coastal Carolina

Men's Scholar-Athlete of the Year
Cabell Willis, VMI

Women's Scholar-Athlete of the Year
Jeanne Stroud, Winthrop

Men's All-Academic
Cabell Willis, VMI
Caleb Edmonds, Liberty
Carson Sears, Gardner-Webb
DeLohnni Nicol-Samuel, Campbell
Tristan Faure, High Point
Eric Graves, Radford
Kurt Hibert, UNC Asheville
Gabe Holguin, Winthrop
Avery Coe, Charleston Southern

Women's All-Academic
Jeanne Stroud, Winthrop
Jenna Moye, VMI
Taylor Cook, Gardner-Webb
Heidi Dean, Charleston Southern
Maggie Wissler, Radford
Jacy Christiansen, Liberty
Mary Lawrence, Coastal Carolina
Kelsey Hunt, High Points
Samantha Robbins, Campbell
Adrian Etheridge, UNC Asheville

Men's Coach of the Year
Mike Esposito, High Point

Women's Coach of the Year
Alan Connie, Coastal Carolina

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