Atherley Wins Pentathlon at Power 5 Invitational
ANN ARBOR, Mich. – The University of Miami track and field program had several impressive performances on the opening day of the Power 5 Invitational, including a victory in the women’s pentathlon.
The Hurricanes got the meet started with a pair of top-three finishers in the women’s pentathlon, led by 2017 ACC champion Michelle Atherley’s victory with 4,096 points. The junior opened the day with the fastest time in the 60m hurdles, winning section 3 at 8.56 seconds. She posted a season-best mark of 12.13m to finish second in the shot put and was second in the long jump with a mark of 5.70m. Atherley closed out the pentathlon with a third-place finish in the 800m, posting a time of 2:17.53.
Amy Taintor finished third in the pentathlon with 3,917 points. The senior won the pentathlon long jump with a season-best mark of 5.88m and was fourth in the 800m with a time of 2:18.54.
“I was really happy for Michelle,” Miami director of track and field/cross country Amy Deem said. “Just to see her come back and do what she did this weekend was good. She feels great and I am really excited about what she’s going to do, not only the rest of indoor, but also outdoor. And then Amy is right there with her.”
Miami also had success in the men’s 5000m, as Sean Grossman broke his own school record with a time of 14:22.62 that shaved nearly 20 seconds off his previous best. Fellow senior Nathan Kuck finished 10th with a time of 14:30.33 that ranks second in school history.
“Sean is always running well and it’s good to see him in his senior year continue to get better,” Deem said.
Gian Piero Ragonesi was second in the men’s open weight throw with a mark of 17.77m, while Michael Holdship was sixth with a throw of 15.22m. Zakiya Rashid was second in the women’s open weight throw with a mark of 18.28m, while Debbie Ajagbe was third with a throw of 17.78m and Sherry Lubin finished sixth with a personal-best throw of 17.28m.
The Canes had several student-athletes excel in the running events, as Miami earned six spots in Saturday’s finals thanks to strong performances on the track in the preliminaries on Friday.
“I’ve been saying it all along that the marks hopefully will come, but I feel like the kids are competing,” Deem said. “It may not be pretty, but they’re getting to the finals. When you do that, you have a opportunity to get better. I really feel like each meet, we are getting better and better and with a young team that’s what you want.”
Tiara McMinn won Heat 1 of the women’s 60m hurdles with a time of 8.40 seconds to earn an automatic qualifying spot in Saturday’s final. Stefani Kerrison, who was second in Heat 1, also advanced to the finals with a season-best time of 8.61 seconds.
The Canes had two women advance to Saturday’s 60m final, as Alfreda Steele earned an automatic qualifier spot with her Heat 2 victory (7.45 seconds) and Symone Mason’s time of 7.56 seconds earned her one of the eight finalist spots.
“I’d like to see Alfreda and Symone run well and step up in the 60 tomorrow,” Deem said. “I think they’re ready for it and I am looking for that from them.”
Brandon Taylor and Myles Valentine headlined the Miami men in the 60m preliminaries on Friday. Taylor won Heat 1 with a time of 6.84 seconds to move on to Saturday’s final, while Valentine’s win in Heat 2 with a time of 6.74 seconds earned him a spot in the final.
“I think Myles Valentine is very close to doing what he did last year,” Deem said. “I am looking forward to watching him run in the final.”
Samantha Gonzalez set a facility record while winning section 2 of the women’s 400m with a time of 54.79 seconds. Anna Runia finished second to Gonzalez with a time of 55.24 seconds, while Erin Ford won section 1 of the women’s 400m with a time of 57.76 seconds.
“I’m very happy with Samantha Gonzalez’s performance,” Deem said. “Just really getting back on track and she really looked strong and confident tonight. There were a lot of positives.”
Isaiah Taylor (22.04) and Brandon Taylor (22.05) finished nearly even in their heat of the men’s 200m, while Breon Mullings posted a time of 22.64 seconds in the same event.
Saturday’s action kicks off at 11 a.m. with the women’s high jump and the running events begin at noon with the women’s 60m hurdles final.
Click HERE for live results of all the action at the Power 5 Invitational. The complete meet schedule is available HERE.
Following this weekend’s action at Michigan, the Canes will head to Clemson for the Tiger Paw Invitational on Feb. 9-10.
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