Pitt
ACC Indoor Championship Meet
Three Panthers Qualify for ACC Finals
2/26/2016 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field
RESULTS | CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL
BOSTON--At the conclusion of the preliminary events, the University of Pittsburgh men's and women's track and field team qualified three runners to compete for an ACC title tomorrow, including juniors Desmond Palmer and Christopher Tate who each qualified for two events. In a meet filled with challenging competition, the Panthers set personal records throughout the day and climbed closer to breaking longstanding school records.
"Overall, on the men's side we had a strong day. Most of the people we wanted to make through to the finals made it through. We have a lot of scoring opportunities tomorrow it just depends on how high they're going to score. We can possibly have a better meet than we had last year on the men's side," head coach Alonzo Webb said.
Palmer qualified for finals in the 60-meter hurdles (8.09) and the 400-meter dash (47.89). Joining Palmer in the 60h will be junior Ashad Johnson-Conley, who ran a season best time of 8.16. To qualify for this event, the top time in each heat received an automatic berth in the finals, while the field was completed by the next five top times. Palmer and Johnson-Conley are seeded seventh and eighth, respectively.
Competing alongside Palmer in the 400m finals is Christopher Tate who ran a 48.22 to qualify. Tate enters finals as the fifth seed whereas Palmer enters as the third seed. Tate will also be competing in the 200m finals as the number two seed with his time of 21.72. For both events, the top eight times determined who was eligible to advance.
In the distance events, although failing to qualify for finals, sophomore Melanie Vlasic (4:49.10) and freshman Miranda Salvo (4:53.11) both recorded career best times in the one mile. Vlasic's time now sits as the second best time in school history.
Recording the second and third best times in school history for the 5,000m are Gillian Schriever (16:35.29) and Hillary Boxheimer (16:38.32). Both times were personal bests and Boxheimer crushed her personal record by 18 seconds. For the men, freshman Andrew Koryak set a career best in the 800 meter with a time of 1:55.59.
Events that will be contested tomorrow that did not have preliminary rounds today are the men's and women's shot put, triple jump, 3,000m and 4x400 relay teams.
Competition concludes tomorrow at the Reggie Lewis Center, with finals starting at 12 p.m. Closing ceremonies and awards will begin tentatively at 4:20 p.m. Coverage will air on ESPN3 and live results can be found by clicking here. Be sure to follow @Pitt_TF_XC on Twitter and Instagram for updates throughout the weekend.
