Jan. 31, 2015
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The University of Notre Dame track & field program completed competition on Saturday at the Razorback Invitational, with another school record falling as the Irish faced a who’s who of the best teams in the country.
The Irish women finished tied for seventh place in the scored meet, tied with Purdue with 43 points. No. 5 Arkansas (111 points) won the invitational, and No. 1 Florida (84), LSU (81), No. 3 Texas A&M (70) and Iowa State (51) rounded out the top five.
The Irish men placed 11th out of 12 teams, scoring 21.5 points. The third-ranked Razorbacks (85.5 points) again took the top spot on the men’s side, followed by No. 2 Florida (85), No. 4 Texas A&M (84), No. 9 LSU (81.5) and Oklahoma (70).
Saturday’s performance marked a turnaround for the Irish after a Friday in which both men’s and women’s teams were at or near the bottom in the team standings.
“We started off very slowly on Friday night,” head coach Alan Turner said. “We looked like a deer caught in the headlights. ââ’¬¦ I had a stern talk with the team and basically told them, there is no way in the world you can compete with the nations’s elite teams by just going through the motions.
“Today the team responded and competed like I know they are capable of. “
For already the third time this season, freshman Jessica Harris has inked her name in the Irish record books, this time besting the school’s mark in the 800 meters. Her time of 2:06.91 bested teammate Danielle Aragon’s time of 2:07.58 set in 2013. Harris placed fifth in the event, but based on national times entering the day, her race would place her among the top six in the country, and is the best in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Junior Molly Seidel also notched a stellar day, winning the women’s invitational mile with a personal record of 4:42.76. Seidel, who normally runs the longer 3000 meters, would rank among the top 15 in the country in the mile based on times entering the day.
Also on the women’s side, senior Jade Barber grabbed third place in the 60-meter hurdles in 8.32; junior Margaret Bamgbose claimed fourth in the 400 meters with a time of 53:35; and the Irish 4×400-meter relay team of Parker English, Payton Miller, Jordan Shead and Bamgnose placed third with a time of 3:38.17, the 10th-fastest time in the country. In the shot put, senior Emily Morris placed fourth with a throw of 15.66 meters.
On the men’s side, senior Chris Giesting, who set the Irish 200 meter record on Friday, placed third in the 400 meters with at time of 45.98, which would be among the top four times in the nation entering the day. Giesting also helped the Irish 4×400-meter relay team to a second-place finish to Texas A&M, which missed the NCAA record by 0.03 seconds. Giesting, along with Eric Ways, John Rutkowski and Harvey Smith, ran the event in 3:09.90, good for the ninth-best time nationally and sixth-best in school history.
In the 3000 meters, junior Michael Clevenger also ran a personal best of 8:06.49 in an eighth-place finish. His time is currently second in the ACC.
The Irish return to action next week when they host the annual Meyo Invitational at the Loftus Sports Center. The event will span Friday and Saturday and feature the famous Meyo Mile. To keep up to date on Irish track & field action, follow @NDXCTF on Twitter, and like Notre Dame Cross Country/Track & Field on Facebook.
Women’s Events
Team Scores
1. Arkansas (111 points)
2. Florida (84)
3. LSU (81)
4. Texas A&M (70)
5. Iowa State (51)
6. Stanford (48)
7. Purdue (43)
7. Notre Dame (43)
9. Oklahoma (35)
10. Oklahoma State (34)
11. Tulsa (13)
12. Florida State (6)
400 meters
4. Margaret Bamgbose, 53.35
16. Parker English, 56.17
17. Jordan Shead, 56.23
22. Payton Miller, 56.63
800 meters invitational (finals)
5. Jessica Harris, 2:06.91*
13. Danielle Aragon, 2:10.23
16. Samantha Murray, 2:12.29
19. Jamie Marvil, 2:12.59
22. Ashlyn Rambo, 2:14.30
25. Rachel Rhodes, 2:15.70
31. Alexis Daugherty, 2:19.24
Mile invitational (finals)
1. Molly Seidel, 4:42.76
15. Emily Frydrych, 4:56.19
18. Karen Lesiewicz, 4:59.00
3000 meters
14. Sydni Meunier, 9:43.18
17. Taylor Driscoll, 9:44.75
60 meter hurdles (semifinals)
6. Jade Barber, 8.49
60 meter hurdles (finals)
3. Jade Barber, 8.32
4×400 meter relay
3. Notre Dame, 3:38.17
Margaret Bamgbose, Parker English, Jordan Shead, Payton Miller
Shot Put
4. Emily Morris, 15.66m
13. Lena Madison, 12.45m
Triple Jump
9. Mary Esther Gourdin, 12.14m
Men’s Events
Team Scores
1. Arkansas (85.5 points)
2. Florida (85)
3. Texas A&M (84)
4. LSU (81.5)
5. Oklahoma (70)
6. Purdue (52)
7. Stanford (46.5)
8. Iowa State (43)
9. Oklahoma State (38)
9. Tulsa (38)
11. Notre Dame (21.5)
12. Florida State (10)
400 meters
3. Chris Giesting, 45.98
17. Harvey Smith, 48.36
28. Eric Ways, 49.12
30. John Rutkowski, 49.20
800 meters
12. Billy Dolan, 1:53.91
13. Patrick O’Connell, 1:54.01
15. Grant Koch, 1:54.07
21. Andrew Stone, 1:56.49
Mile
15. Christopher Quinn, 4:11.32
21. Timothy Ball, 4:14.09
3000 meters invitational (finals)
8. Michael Clevenger, 8:06.49
23. Jake Kildoo, 8:21.98
4×400 meter relay
2. Notre Dame, 3:09.90
Chris Giesting, Eric Ways, John Rutkowski, Harvey Smith
Heptathlon
5. Brent Swanberg, 5047 points
60 meters (7th, 7.58)
High Jump (3rd, 1.94m)
Long Jump (3rd, 6.69m)
Shot Put (7th, 11.64m)
1000 meters (4th, 2:29.90)
60 meter hurdles (6th, 8.69)
Pole Vault (6th, 4.30m)
By Joanne Norell, Media Relations Assistant
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