May 17, 2003
ATLANTA – Junior sprinter Amandi Rhett placed first in the 100 meters, took third in the 200 meters and led the Jackets’ women’s 4×100-meter relay team to a school record performance Saturday on day two of the Georgia Tech Invitational at George C. Griffin Track.
After running11.40 in the final of the 100 meters to earn the victory, Rhett won her heat of the 200 meters and took third overall with a career-best of 23.44. In the women’s 4×100 relay, Rhett anchored the team of Dana Rogers, Andriane Lapsley and Jessica DeFreitas to a time of 44.35, easily surpassing the previous school record of 44.70 set at this year’s Yellow Jacket Invitational.
Rogers also had a season-best time of her own with a mark of 13.56 in the prelims of the 100-meter hurdles. She went on to finish third in the final with a time of 13.76.
On the men’s side, junior Brendon Mahoney led the Jackets with a season-best mark of 1:49.89 in the 800 meters to finish second. Mahoney took first in the 1500 meters Friday. Tech’s men’s 4×400-meter relay team of Brian Ford, Sharif Azim, Nate Smiga and Bryan Swarn also clocked a season-best late Saturday with a time of 3:08.13. In the open 400 meters, Swarn was seventh (46.95) and Azim took ninth (47.44).
Other runner-up finishes for the Jackets came from sophomore Ian Brewer in the hammer throw (199’6.00″) and freshman Chaunte Howard (5’10.00″) in the high jump. In other field event action, junior Michael Massey was fifth in the high jump, while freshman Simone Parker was ninth in the women’s discus. In the triple jump, Shanta Smith placed seventh for the women, and Brian Fraser was eighth in the men’s event.
Rhett, Rogers, Mahoney and both the men’s 4×400-meter relay and women’s 4×100 squad each improved qualifying marks for the Jackets’ next meet, the 2003 NCAA East Region Championships. The first-ever NCAA regional competition is set for May 30-31 in Fairfax, Va. Tech’s men’s and women’s teams own a combined 25 qualifying marks.
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