Atherley Defends ACC Outdoor Heptathlon Title
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Michelle Atherley of the Miami track and field program is once again the ACC Outdoor heptathlon champion.
The senior defended her heptathlon title on Friday after beginning the day with a first-place finish in the women’s long jump. Atherley’s mark of 6.06m made it five straight event wins heading into the javelin. Atherley finished with a throw of 29.18m and dropped to second place for the first time all weekend.
A strong push in the final 100 meters of the 800m run gave the North Port, Fla., native a second-place finish with a time of 2:15.96. Atherley edged out Erin Marsh of Duke for first place and defended her 2018 ACC heptathlon title. Atherley scored 5,855 points to win the event and give Miami 10 team points on the women’s side.
Heading into the final day of the outdoor championships, both the men and women are in 11th place. The women have recorded 17 points, while the men have recorded 12. Florida State’s women currently sit in first with 39 points and Virginia’s men with 77.
Sophomore Kevin Arreaga was next on the podium for the Canes, as the sophomore finished second for the second straight year in the men’s hammer throw. Arreaga’s mark of 69.13m earned the Spain native a silver medal and gave Miami’s men eight team points.
Senior Andreas Christodoulou finish fifth in the men’s decathlon. Christodoulou began the day with a first-place finish in the men’s 110m hurdles with a time of 14.82 seconds. He followed with a fourth-place throw in the men’s discus and a second-place finish in the pole vault with a mark of 4.50m. The Cyprus native closed the day with a second-place performance in the javelin, but did not finish the men’s 1500m run. Christodoulou earned four team points for the men.
The Miami women earned seven points in the shot put after Zakiya Rashid and Debbie Ajagbe both scored with standout performances. Rashid recorded a fourth-place finish with personal-best mark of 15.57m, while Ajagbe finished with a season-best mark of 15.42m to finish seventh. Hannah-Sophia Hall came finished with a mark of 14.23m and Sherry Lubin finished at 13.79m.
Tiara McMinn made a statement in her first appearance of the weekend, as the sophomore registered a personal-best time of 12.96 seconds in the 100m hurdles to advance to Saturday’s final. McMinn’s time ranks as the fourth-fastest time in program history. McMinn will be joined in the final by Atherley, who finished with a time of 13.18 seconds.
Brittny Ellis earned her way to her second final of the championships, finishing third in the women’s 400m dash with her time of 53.57 seconds. Carolyn Brown and Alfreda Steele also made their way to the finals in the 100m dash as the pair finished fourth and seventh, respectively, in the prelims. Brown’s time of 11.38 seconds was the senior’s personal-best time.
Raheem Chambers lit up the track, as the junior ran the fastest 100m dash qualifying time of 10.09 seconds. Chambers’ time is currently Miami’s second-fastest time in program history.
Sophomore Kayla Johnson was the final Cane to advance to Saturday’s finals when she finished third in the 800m run with a time of 2:06.47.
Heading into the final day of the outdoor championships, both the men and women are in 11th place. The women have recorded 17 points, while the men have recorded 12. Florida State’s women currently sit in first with 39 points and Virginia’s men with 77.
