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UM senior Michelle Atherley won the women’s heptathlon at the Hurricane Alumni Invitational on April 9-10. Photo credit: Michael Mok
The UM men and women’s track and field teams refused to be embarrassed on their home turf this weekend, dominating virtually every event on April 9th and 10th in the Hurricane Alumni Invitational at Cobb Stadium.
Senior Michelle Atherley got the Canes off to a strong start on Friday, winning her first four events in the women’s heptathlon. First, she ran a time of 13.18 seconds in the 100m hurdles. Atherley then turned her attention to the field events, where she leaped 1.75m for the high jump and threw 12.99m for the shot put. She closed out the day by running a staggering 23.94 second 200m dash, a personal best.
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After a 10-month break, the Canes are back on the track.
Last March, the team was in Albuquerque, New Mexico preparing for the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships when the coronavirus pandemic ended its season.
Despite the long break, the team is looking strong. In their second indoor meet of the year, the Canes brought home two first-place finishes and displayed a talented group of young runners.
The team traveled north to Clemson, South Carolina for the weekend to compete in the Clemson Bob Pollock Invitational, where Florida State, Georgia Tech and Auburn were among the teams competing.
On the women’s side, graduate student Alfreda Steele and sophomore Jacious Sears finished one-two in the 60-meter dash prelims. The pair bested their qualifying times in the final with Steele posting a time of 7.26 and Sears 7.30. They finished second and third overall, only behind Florida State’s Jayla Kirkland (7.25).