TALLAHASSEE, Fla. / RALEIGH – Junior distance runner Billy Carlton and sophomore thrower Tahir Hines headlined a record-breaking day for the Georgia Tech men’s and women’s track and field teams from the opening days of the FSU Terry Long and Raleigh Relays on Thursday.
Carlton lined up in the final section of the men’s 3000m steeplechase, competing in the event for the first time this season after running the third-fastest Tech time at 8:42.86. He started well but truly found his way as the race grew on, running the fastest final 400m split of any racer at 1:03.54 to come home and break the program record in Raleigh.
The new Tech standard now stood at 8:38.49 in the 3000m steeplechase and the record now belonged to Carlton. This becomes not only the fastest Tech time, but unearths Eric Smith’s legendary 8:39.40 time set back in 1987.
In Tallahassee, the meet began with the men’s hammer event as Hines was fresh off improving his personal best from just a week ago. He opened the day with a 58.87m throw before setting a brand new PB at 60.77m on his second effort. He entered another level, somehow improving on each attempt with a 60.93m third throw and a 61.01 fourth effort, his first 200ft career hammer throw.
The magical session was punctuated emphatically as he launched his final attempt over three meters clear of all his previous attempts, securing a 64.50m throw to secure the Tech record. He cleared Ian Brewer’s record from 2003 by six feet.
The Jackets continued to put some of its own records under some pressure in Raleigh as Taylor Wade clocked a sub-14 minute 5000m time at 13:59.47 for the third-fastest time in program history. Joey Sandel ran the longest event on the slate with a 29:45.32 in the men’s 10,000m to become the fifth-fastest runner in the event for the Jackets.
Tech continued its strong start to the spring in the field events as Kendall Ward earned her first event win of the outdoor season with a 1.67m clearance on her first attempt in the women’s high jump. Omar Arnaout finished second in the men’s competition with a 1.90m effort.
Sophomore hurdler Sarah Noel ran a 1:01.89 to grab a hold of second place in the women’s 400m hurdles as fellow sophomore Aaron Jones hit 52.50 in the same event for the men to finish fourth. Alexander Arrambide ran a 3:46.45 in the men’s 1500m.
Georgia Tech will finish both meets tomorrow afternoon with 10 running events for the Jackets at the FSU Relays while continuing long distance runs in Raleigh.
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.
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