Friday, February 08, 2008

BOONE, N.C. (Feb. 8, 2008) - The ETSU track and field team made the short one-day trip over to Boone, and competed in the ASU Limited Open Friday afternoon inside the George Holmes Convocation Center.

The Buccaneer men's team highlighted the day in many events; especially in the mile run, throws, and high jump.

A combination of ETSU distance runners strung together a solid showing in the men's mile run. Junior Jeff Crane (Taylors, S.C.) finished second with a season-best time of 4:20.78, while sophomore Kenneth Rotich (Nairobi, Kenya) was right behind his teammate in fourth. Rotich, who was making his debut in the event, crossed the line in 4:24.67.

Once again sophomore Jarrod Burton (Bastian, Va.) was busy tearing it up in the throwing events. Burton recorded a third-place finish in the weight with is mark of 55-07.50 (16.95m). The Virginia native also made his second appearance in the shot put this season, and finished fifth (48-10; 14.88m).

Rounding things out on the men's side was freshman Andrew Houston's (Crossville, Tenn.) strong effort in the high jump. The Crossville, Tenn. native posted a leap of 6-02 (1.88m), placing him third overall in the event.

On the women's side, sophomore Zachlynn Blackburn (Tazewell, Va.) was again making highlights in both throwing events. Blackburn began the afternoon with a second-place performance in the weight throw, with a heave of 50-09.25 (15.47m). Then, the Tazewell, Va. native finished the day with a personal best showing in the shot put. Blackburn finished third overall with her mark of 42-01.50 (12.84m).

On the track, junior Judy Johnson (Knoxville, Tenn.) and sophomore Vicki Currie (Dumfries, Scotland) turned in respectable times in their events. Johnson tied her season best in the 55-meters, with her time of 7.14 (finishing fifth overall). Currie, competing in the 1,000-meters, also finished fifth ending in 3:04.17.

Next weekend a select number of Buccaneer track and field athletes will make the trip to Fayetteville, Ark. to compete in the Tyson Invitational.

For more information on the track and field squad, visit www.ETSUBucs.com.