Despite the bitter cold, rain and wind, the men and women of the NC State track and field team earned ACC qualifying marks and broke new personal bests this weekend.
Raleigh Relays, the team’s only home meet of the outdoor season, encompassed two days of competition among college and high school participants at Paul Derr Track.
“This is a great event for NC State University and the City of Raleigh,” head coach Rollie Geiger said. “We got through Friday in the rain and cold. We wanted to get ACC qualifying marks and place near what will normally get us to regionals. It is all preparation.”
Preparation certainly paid off for the Wolfpack. The team has only just begun the outdoor season and has already secured 17 ACC qualifying marks.
NC State junior Alexis Perry won the women’s 100-meter hurdles with a time of 13.17, a mark that ranks second both nationally and in school history. Perry went on to place first in the women’s long jump.
The Durham native also ran with sophomores J’Den Williams and Paisley Simmons and freshman Tiana Patillo to win their heat and place second in the 4×100 women’s relay with a time of 46.75.
On the men’s side, junior Jonathan Addison continued his high performance level, finishing third in the men’s 100-meter final with a new personal best of 10.49.
“Jonathan Addison sprinted very well,” Geiger said.
His teammate, sophomore Will Krehnbrink, placed fourth in men’s 400-meter final.
In the field competitions, redshirt freshman Joshua Davis created a new personal best, as well as clinching an ACC qualifying mark, with his hammer throw of 181’1.00.”
Freshman Javonne Antoine finished second in the triple jump and recorded a new personal best of 40’6.25.”
Distance running was certainly the Wolfpack’s strong suit at Relays.
Redshirt senior Kenyetta Iyevbele placed third in the women’s 1500 meter, but it was the 5000 meter races that put the Pack on top.
“That was probably the best 5000 we’ve ran in the program,” Geiger said.
Wesley Frazier ran unattached for NC State and placed first, with redshirt sophomore Samantha George, junior Erika Kemp and senior Joanna Thompson right behind her at second, third and fifth, respectively. Frazier’s time, 15:45.31, was enough to break a record set in 2003 by UNC-Chapel Hill.
Frazier’s younger sister, Ryen, is a Wolfpack track and field commit and demonstrated her strength in the 3200 meter with an impressive time of 10:05.44. She held the lead for most of the race.
Graham Crawford, a redshirt junior, placed second in the men’s 5000 meter with a time of 13:52.05, just .70 behind the leader.
“Everything is very competitive these days,” Geiger said. “We had a good night on Friday, but it is really about what happens at the ACC championships in mid-May. We are running in Tallahassee, which is a challenge for distance runners. Regionals are in Jacksonville, so the conditions there will certainly not be the same conditions we had here Friday night. They have some challenges coming up.”
The weather certainly plays a key role when it comes to outdoor season.
“It’s very difficult in the sprints and jumps with the rain and cold,” Geiger said. “We had to cancel the pole vault until the next day. I watched one of the distance throwers fall in the circle. It’s a very challenging situation for some of the events.”
The Relays saw a number of unattached or redshirt competitors. There are a number of reasons for this, but Geiger explains it’s simply for the experience and not a lack of talent.
“At times, we’ll redshirt just for developmental purposes,” Geiger said. “A home meet like this where they don’t have to travel, no expenses have been paid by the athlete to participate, gives them an opportunity to race and those opportunities are very few.”
The team will split into different groups to participate in next weekend’s meets in Jacksonville, Florida, Palo Alto, California and High Point.
