– A win in the women’s 4x400m Championships of America at the Penn Relays was the highlight of a split weekend for Duke track and field, which also saw the Blue Devils compete at the Charlotte Invitational.
Overall, Duke totaled two event wins, seven podium finishes and 15 top-five placements across the two meets.TOP PERFORMANCES:
The Duke women’s 4x400m relay delivered the standout performance of the weekend, turning in the second-fastest time in program lore en route to collecting the program’s second all-time event win at the Penn Relays. Comprised of Megan McGinnis, Julia Jackson, Aliya Garozzo and Lauren Tolbert, the Blue Devil quartet parlayed a strong push across the final two legs into the first-place finish, clocking 3:27.77 – nearly two seconds faster than the runner-up.
Over in Charlotte, sophomore Riley Newport notched the first win of his collegiate career via a personal-best showing in the men’s 800m. Newport finished strong, jumping four spots up the leaderboard across the final 400 meters to notch the victory via a time of 1:49.66.
Rookie Peyton Hollis and junior Jonathan Horn earned runner-up in the women’s 800m Invite and men’s pole vault, respectively, at the Charlotte Invitational.
Horn registered a personal best of 5.18m (17 feet), with the performance highlighted by a first-attempt clearance on his final height of the competition and a second-attempt clearance on the opening bar. Hollis crossed the finish line in 2:08.22 and picked up her second consecutive top-two finish in as many meets.
Garozzo notched another podium finish at the Penn Relays – this one coming in the women’s 400m hurdles. The graduate student sprinted 57.01 seconds, placing third overall.
The Blue Devils rounded out their weekend in Charlotte with a pair of third-place finishes from sophomore Gemma Tutton and freshman Amber Wimbish.
Wimbish, who also took part in the women’s 800m Invite, notched a personal best of 2:08.46. Tutton represented the Blue Devils in the women’s pole vault and tallied a mark of 4.17m (13-8.25 feet), clearing the opening bar on the first attempt and the second on the second attempt.
