May 13, 2016
By Lizzie Mikes
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Anthony Shivers, who previously sat third on the University of Notre Dame track and field all-time top performers list, moved up to first and shattered the school record in men’s hammer throw in the first event contested at the 2016 ACC Outdoor Track & Field Championships. His third-place performance set the tone for his teammates throughout the day, many of who advanced to Sunday’s finals races or had personal bests.
“Today was a pretty good day for us,” head coach Alan Turner said. “Anthony Shivers had a great day, breaking the school record in the weight on his third throw, but Nick [Hauser] came back and broke that brief record on his fifth throw. Then, Anthony on his sixth and final attemp, breaks Nick’s record and moves up to third place and first team All-ACC. His new record is 65.06m, whereas his previous best was 58.37m. I am so happy for him and Nick, these two guys have really responded well to Coach Adam Beltran’s training.”
Anthony Shivers broke the men’s outdoor hammer throw school record Friday at the ACC Outdoor Championship.
The field team began the day early, with track runners not starting until the early evening. Shivers, who finished third in the men’s hammer competition with his 65.06m throw, earned first team All-ACC honors and was followed by Nick Hauser, who finished seventh (62.55m). Lena Madison competed in the women’s hammer event, finishing 14th with her 51.99m mark.
Multi-eventers Brent Swanberg (decathlon) and Carly Loeffel (heptathlon) were both in action throughout the day, with Loeffel putting up several strong scores. She finished third in the 200m (25.16) for 872 points and sixth in the 100m hurdles (14.30) for 936 points, but it was her first place finishes in the high jump (1.73m, 891 points) and shot put (13.38m, 753 points) that helped her finish the day in first with 3,452 points.
Carly Loeffel had a great start in the women’s heptathlon competition Friday.
“Carly is having a very good heptathlon competition,” stated Turner. “We knew she was going to do very well in the high jump and shot put, she was a state champion high jumper in high school and has thrown the shot very well. For her to win tomorrow, she has to have a solid javelin [throw]. The young ladies behind her are better javelin throwers, but if the javelin goes well, Carly could win. She is a good long jumper, and a pretty good 800m runner. She is on pace to break the ND heptathlon record of 5,509 points, and that should get her into the NCAA Championships in June.”
Swanberg also had a good outing in the first half of the men’s decathlon, with his highest finish coming in the shot put. He earned 701 points in the 100m, 760 points in long jump, 671 points in shot put, 705 points in high jump and 701 points in the 400m race. Overall, he stands in sixth heading into Saturday, with 3,538 points.
In the first track event of the evening, graduate student Kaila Barber made a definitive statement with her 58.23 time in the 400m hurdles. Not only did she win her heat, she posted the fastest qualifying time of the day and will appear in Sunday’s finals. Joining her will be Jordan Shead, who crossed the finish line fourth (59.60). Mikaila Chamblee clocked in at 1:03.04, good for 15th overall.
Another strong senior women’s sprinter, Margaret Bamgbose won her heat of the 200m dash (23.52) and advanced with the second-fastest time of the day behind Miami’s Shakima Wimbley (23.01). Allison Bartoszewicz (24.46) came in fifth in her heat, followed by Kyla Lewis (24.51), but neither advanced to Sunday’s final. Other women’s runners in action Friday included Rachel DaDamio, who raced in the 1500m (4:32.96) and Sydney Foreman, who finished seventh overall in the women’s 10,000m race (35:41.41).
On the men’s team, Drake Stimson (400m hurdles) and Billy Dolan (1500m) both earned qualifying times to advance to Sunday. Stimson’s preliminary time of 52.82 has him seeded seventh, while Dolan’s time of 3:48.59 has him 12th in the standings.
Aaron Dunn also ran in the 400m hurdles, clocking in at 55.58, and Alex Groesch sprinted across the finish line in 21.97 in the men’s 200m dash. Chris Marco, who has raced sparingly in the regular outdoor season – raced across in 3:50.38 in the 1500m race. The men’s team is currently fifth in the team standings with eight points, while the women are 11th, with two points.
“The goal for tomorrow is to get as many people in the finals as possible,” said Turner on his team’s goals and expectations heading into Saturday’s events. “We lost some points were were expecting from Alexa Pellettier in the 10,000m, but she started to cramp up badly and had to drop out. We will expect Indi Jackson to be in the top four in the shout put in field events tomorrow, and hopefully we can have either Brett Whalen (Javelin) or Emily Carson (Long Jump) crack the top eight and get us a few points.
“Conference championship track meets are won in the preliminaries; you have to be in the final to score, and many times the hardest part is making the final,” he commented. “In the finals, e are concerned about place and points. It’s all about who can you finish ahead of. Hopefully, we finish ahead of people tomorrow and that will let us know where we stand for Sundays finals, and where we can finish as a team.”
Saturday’s events start with the women’s javelin competition at 10 a.m. ET and will continue throughout the day with a total of 16 events being contested. A full recap will be posted to und.com, but to keep up with the Irish, follow them on Twitter (@NDXCTF) or on Facebook.
— ND —
Lizzie Mikes serves as Media Services Coordinator at the University of Notre Dame. A 2013 graduate of Johnson & Wales University, she oversees credential management and is the athletic communications director for Fighting Irish men’s and women’s swimming and diving and track and field. She has assisted with numerous NCAA postseason events hosted by Notre Dame, and is heavily involved in the day-to-day tasks of the athletic communications office.