Track Opens Outdoors at Hurricane Invitational
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The University of Miami track and field program opens its 2018 outdoor season this weekend at the Hurricane Invitational.
The Hurricanes are set to welcome 21 different collegiate teams, including Boston University, George Mason Michigan, Notre Dame, St. John’s and Virginia, to Cobb Stadium for a two-day meet set to begin Friday at 1 p.m. with the men’s discus. The pole vault, hammer throw and high jump will complete the field events on Friday, while the men’s and women’s 5000m will be the only events on the track on the opening day of competition.
Saturday’s action begins at noon with the women’s shot put, men’s javelin and men’s and women’s long jump, while the action on the track kicks off at 1 p.m. with the women’s 4x100m. The men’s 4x400m relay will close the meet Saturday at 4:50 p.m. Saturday’s competition will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra beginning at 1 p.m. and can be viewed by clicking here.
Miami will be led by veterans and newcomers alike, as the women’s team will look to see freshmen Alfreda Steele, Tiara McMinn, Kayla Johnson and Debbie Ajagbe continue to build off their indoor success while veterans like Kristina Knott, Anna Runia, Samantha Gonzalez, Zakiya Rashid and Amy Taintor will look to start off the outdoor season with a strong showing.
On the men’s side, seniors Gian Piero Ragonesi, Jaalen Jones and Sean Grossman, as well as juniors Myles Valentine and Isaiah Taylor, provide leadership and experience. Freshmen Hasani Knight and Kevin Arreaga are two young Canes to watch as they kick off their first collegiate outdoor season.
The Hurricane Invitational will be the first of four meets held at Cobb Stadium this season. Miami will also host the Hurricane Alumni Invitational on April 6-7 and the Hurricane Collegiate Invitational on April 14 before serving as host to the 2018 ACC Outdoor Championships on May 10-12.
Following this weekend’s action, the Hurricanes will travel to Los Angeles to compete at the Power 5 Trail Blazer Challenge on March 23-24. The two-day meet will feature the only five Power 5 track and field programs in NCAA Division I that have a female head coach: Miami, Tennessee, Ohio State, Ole Miss and the host USC Trojans. To view the complete Miami Track and Field schedule for the 2018 season, click here.
Miami Entries
Men
100m: Hasani Knight Christopher Moree, Daniel Ferguson-McAllister
200m: Myles Valentine, Christopher Moree, Isaiah Taylor, Daniel Ferguson-McAllister
400m: Ibrahim Dodo, Luca Bhalla
1500m: Taj Bland
5000m: Sean Grossman, Nathan Kuck, Adam George, Andrew Garvey, Dylan Sykes, Matthew Wiefels
110m HH: Andreas Christodoulou
4x100m: Isaiah Taylor, Breon Mullings, Myles Valentine, Jaalen Jones, Hasani Knight
4x400m: Myles Valentine, Ibrahim Dodo, Jaalen Jones, McKinly Brown, Breon Mullings, Andreas Christodoulou, Luca Bhalla, Christopher Moree
High Jump: Tristan Schultheis
Pole Vault: Andreas Christodoulou
Shot Put: Gian Piero Ragonesi
Discus: Gian Piero Ragonesi
Hammer Throw: Kevin Arreaga
Javelin: Andreas Christodoulou
Women
100m: Symone Mason
200m: Anna Runia, Samantha Gonzalez, Tiara McMinn, Erin Ford, Isabella Gentil
400m: Kayla Johnson, Isabella Gentil
5000m: Anne den Otter, Abby Kettle, Emma Langlois, Simone Vreeland, Daria Pietropaolo
100m HH: Amy Taintor
4x100m: Kristina Knott, Symone Mason, Tiara McMinn, Alfreda Steele
4x400m: Samantha Gonzalez, Tiara McMinn, Anna Runia, Kayla Johnson, Symone Mason, Amy Taintor, Kristina Knott, Alfreda Steele, Erin Ford
High Jump: Tiara McMinn, Erika Voyzey, Celine Thompson, Kyra Maryland
Long Jump: Amy Taintor, Darlene Charles
Triple Jump: Darlene Charles, Niara Hill, Peyton Russell
Shot Put: Debbie Ajagbe, Sherry Lubin, Zakiya Rashid
Discus: Debbie Ajagbe, Sherry Lubin
Weight Throw: Zakiya Rashid, Debbie Ajagbe, Sherry Lubin
For all the latest information on the Miami Hurricanes, follow the official Twitter feed, @MiamiHurricanes, or “Like Us” on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/MiamiHurricanes. Follow @CanesTrack on Twitter for specific news on UM track and field and cross country. The program is also on Instagram.
