Collegiate Times

Three different Hokies earned All-American honors for their performances this past weekend at the 2007 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Sacramento, Calif.

Freshman Queen Harrison earned All-American status in two separate events — the 100-meter and 400-meter hurdles — providing the Virginia Tech women’s team with its only team points in the entire meet.

 “The week was very long,” Harrison said. “Running every day from Wednesday — Saturday was tough. The California sun really takes a lot out of you. I’m used to running in hot, humid conditions in the south, but this was a different kind of heat.”

Harrison advanced smoothly through her first event, the 100-meter hurdle competition with a time of 13.07 seconds in the first two rounds. In the finals, Harrison improved on her previous time and set a new personal record of 12.98 seconds. Her fifth-place finish earned four points for the women’s team.

Kristi Castlin, another freshman, also advanced to the finals in the 100-meter hurdles and finished ninth.

Harrison also reached the finals in the 400-meter hurdles. Her third place finish earned the team six points, while also setting a new Tech record in the event. Her time of 55.81 seconds in the finals ranks third best all-time by anyone 19 or younger.

“As a whole, the week was very outstanding and productive,” Harrison added. “I’m just glad my body picked such a great time to run personal bests. Being a freshman naturally made nationals a lot more special. For me to go out there, new to the conditions, my surroundings, competing at that level of competition, and still being able to excel was very special.”

In a statement, head coach Dave Cianelli said, “Queen had an outstanding weekend. I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that over the whole meet, she had one of the finest hurdling performances in American junior history.”

As for her future goals, Harrison mentioned hope for a NCAA title in either hurdle distance, while also expressing aspirations for the 2010 Olympics in China. Harrison also has a more immediate goal of qualifying for the Junior Pan American Games at the USA Junior Championships.

The other two Hokies earning All-American honors over the weekend were underclassman shot putters Justin Clickett and Brittany Prior. 

Clickett’s best preliminary throw of 18.9 meters qualified him for the finals in fifth position. Clickett improved on all but one final round throw, and was eventually able to improve on his preliminary distance. His sixth throw traveled 19.11 meters and was good enough for sixth place, his longest throw of the season. The sixth-place finish earned the men’s team its only three points of the championships.

On the women’s side, Prior finished the preliminary round in third place with a throw of 16.56 meters, good enough to reach the finals.  In the finals, however, Prior never got it going, with her best throw traveling 16.19 meters, placing her
ninth.

Virginia Tech men pole-vaulters Adam Bingaman and Joe Samaniuk also successfully qualified for the finals in their last attempt as seniors. Each of them cleared the preliminary qualifying mark of 5.15 meters, but were unsuccessful in adding to that height during the final round.

On the women’s side, ACC champions Ashley Early and Erin Mahony both failed to hit the qualifying height.

Coach Cianelli believes that this year’s performances are a promising sign for the future of the program. “It’s important to remember that we’re still a young group. We have a lot of people coming back next year, and I think we’ll be even more formidable on the national level.”