School Records Fall As Track & Field Wraps Up Strong Showing At UVA Challenge

Friday, April 16

Charlottesville, VA

Pitt

Virginia Challenge

School Records Fall As Track & Field Wraps Up Strong Showing At UVA Challenge

4/18/2021 9:35:00 AM | Track & Field

Virginia Challenge Results

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA – The Pitt track and field team had their best showing of the outdoor campaign this weekend at the Virginia Challenge as they were able to break a pair of school records and notch multiple victories at Lannigan Field. In all, the Panthers posted 12 program top-10 marks during the weekend.

Senior Felix Wolter had the most dominant performance of the weekend for the Panthers as he was able to break the school record in his first decathlon at Pitt. The Munich, Germany native won eight of the 10 events to post a score of 7,950 points which marked the second best score in the NCAA this season and the eighth best in the world.

Wolter opened up his weekend with five wins in five events on Friday as he claimed gold in the 100m dash, long jump, shot put, high jump and 400m dash while also posting four personal record marks on the day. On Saturday, Wolter closed out his runaway victory with three more victories, discus, pole vault and 1500m.

In all, the German posted three top-10 marks in program history through his 10-event weekend. His long jump distance of 24-11.75 (7.61m) marks the third best in program history, his clearance of 15-11 (4.85m) in the pole vault ranks third in program history and his high jump height of 6-6.75 (2.00m) marks the sixth best in program history.

Fellow senior Noah Walker notched a school record of his own on Friday night as he launched a personal best throw of 185-8 (56.60m) in the discus to claim third place (second among collegiate competitors). His mark broke Andrew Wells' seven year old school record by more than five feet and marks the sixth best throw in the ACC this season.

Kollin Smith continued his impressive outdoor campaign this weekend with a pair of victories for the first time in his Pitt career. Smith opened up action with a victory in the long jump on Friday as he posted a big PR leap of 25-4 (7.72m), the second best jump in program history in the event. The Upper Marlboro, MD native was then able to secure the victory in the 110m hurdles on Saturday as he posted a season-best time of 14.16 seconds, the eighth fastest in the ACC this season. His weekend was not over just yet as he helped the Panthers 4x100m relay squad add a silver medal as they finished in 41.00 seconds, the 10^th fastest time in program history.

Junior Eddita Pessima secured her first career outdoor victory on Saturday in the 100m hurdles as she crossed the finish line in 13.72 seconds. Fellow Panther Jazmyn Potts posted a fourth place finish in the same race with a personal best time of 14.31 seconds.

Ally Brunton once again improved her time in the 800m run on Saturday as the senior finished the race in 2:08.17, the fourth fastest time in program history and the fastest since 2000 for Pitt. She also claimed 15^th place in the 1500m run with a time of 4:22.68.

In the men's 5000m run, Pitt had a pair of athletes post top-10 marks as Jack Miller crossed the finish line with a personal record time of 14:22.44, the eighth fastest in program history, while Luke Henseler finished in 14:29.06, the 10^th fastest in program history in the event.

Nikki Scherer continued her strong outdoor campaign with a fifth place finish in the 400m dash in 55.44 seconds while Ade Jones-Roundtree posted a fifth place finish in the 200m dash in 21.33 seconds. Lydia Bottelier notched a fifth place finish of her own in the high jump as she cleared a height of 5-5 (1.65m).

Matt Thompson had the best showing of his career in the 400m hurdles as he posted a top-10 finish in the talented field with a time of 53.56 seconds, the ninth fastest time in the ACC this year. Fellow Panther Kaneisha Raymond also notched a top-10 finish in the 400m hurdles as she finished with a personal record time of 1:02.08, the 13^th fastest time in the ACC this year.

In other field events, freshman Ilse Steigenga posted a top-10 finish in the long jump with a leap that cleared 19-4.25 (5.90m) which marked the eighth best jump in program history in the event. Shannah Mallett improved her personal record in the hammer throw with a toss of 173-10 (52.99m), the fifth best in program history, while Antoinette Gyles posted a hammer throw of 157-9 (48.09m), the 10^th best in program history.

The men's 4x100m relay squad had their best showing of the season on Saturday afternoon as the quartet of Smith, Jones-Roundtree, Lonzell Feagin and Matt Wilson notched a second place finish in 41.00 seconds. The time marks the 10^th fastest in program history in the event for the Panthers.

NEXT UP

Pitt will have a week off before returning to the track for their final regular season meet of the outdoor campaign as they travel to Lexington, KY to compete in the Kentucky Open from April 30 – May 1.

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