Air Force Academy
Aztec Invitational
Air Force Wraps up Action at Aztec Invitational
3/29/2015 12:00:00 AM | Track and Field
SAN DIEGO, Calif. - Three improvements were made to the Academy record book today (March 28), as the Air Force track and field wrapped up competition at the Aztec Invitational in San Diego. Freshman Carina Gillespie and sophomore Stephanie Robb impacted the 800-meter run, while senior Erica Carson added her name to the program's all-time standings in the 400-meter dash.
Crossing the finish line in a time of 2:11.12, Gillespie recorded the eighth-fastest 800-meter time in Academy history, en route to the top collegiate finish and the fourth-fastest overall time in the full 32-runner field at the SDSU Sports Deck. Finishing second in her heat, Robb clocked the program's ninth-fastest time (2:13.38) to place ninth in the overall field.
With a career-best 25.60, Carson improved her #8 standing on the all-time list of the 400-meter dash.
The Falcons earned one event title during today's competition, as senior Joey Uhle took first in the pole vault with an outdoor debut of 17'5". Uhle paced the Falcons to a pair of top-four finishes on that event, as junior Dylan Bell finished fourth in his outdoor debut with a mark of 16'3¼".
Sophomore Matt Dorsey was the top collegiate finisher in the men's 800-meter run, finishing second overall with a time of 1:52.28. Air Force placed three within the top five of that race, as junior Grant Caswell and freshman Zac Petrie finished third (1:52.44) and fifth (1:53.34), respectively, in the full field.
The men earned top-three finishes in both relays, while those members accounted for several top-10 marks in their individual events.
The 4x400-meter quartet of freshman Jamiel Trimble, classmate Tyler Koss, junior Jordan McCool and senior Jake Spuller finished second in a time of 3:16.98, while Spuller and Trimble joined sophomores Chandler Myers and Zach Johnson for a third-place time of 41.22 in the 4x100-meter race. Individually, McCool finished fifth in the 400-meter hurdles (54.03), while Koss placed sixth in the dash at that distance (49.06). Johnston added a seventh-place time of 21.85 in the 200-meter dash and Trimble finished ninth in the 110-meter hurdles (15.02).
McCool and Koss paced the Falcons to a pair of top-eight finishes in the two 400-meter events. Senior Siotame Latu clocked a hurdles time of 55.43 to finish seventh, while sophomore Garrett Newman placed eighth in the sprint with a time of 49.37.
Junior Grant Hamilton picked up a pair of fourth-place finishes on the field, recording those placements during his season debut in the shot put (56'8¾") and discus throw (170'9"). Freshman Jackson Spalding joined Hamilton among the top-10 of the discus throw, tossing a 156'8" to finish ninth.
Air Force accounted for top-10 finishes in three additional field events. Freshman Donny Crabill finished sixth (183'4") and sophomore Taylor Hulslander took seventh (182'3") in the javelin throw, while freshman John Reynolds and senior Kyle Gartrell placed sixth (47'11¼") and eighth (47'4½"), respectively, in the triple jump. Sophomore Taylor Smith and senior Kobi Rex recorded matching clearances of 6'4¼" - the fifth-best height of the day - to finish sixth and 10th, respectively, based on attempts.
On the women's side, Robb and Gillespie ran the first two legs of the 4x400-meter relay that placed sixth with a time of 4:01.48. The pair was joined by senior Morgan Malone and sophomore Sydney Rohlwing, who earned a top-10 placement in the 400-meter hurdles (1:03.98, seventh). Fellow sophomore Cydnee Reese rounded the out Air Force's list of top-10 finishers, as she finished sixth in the discus throw with a toss of 156'9".
The Falcons return to action next weekend (April 3-4), when they travel back to California for the annual Stanford Invitational in Palo Alto.
Players Mentioned
