St. John's University Athletics
St. John's University
Penn 8-Team Select
St. John's Places Fifth at Penn 8-Team Select
1/21/2018 12:00:00 AM | Women's Track and Field
QUEENS, N.Y. - The St. John's track and field team finished fifth with 38 points on Saturday night at the Penn 8-Team Select at Ocean Breeze in Staten Island, N.Y.
Facing off against some of the top competition in the Northeast, the Red Storm once again used Saturday's meet as an opportunity to stretch its depth and as a measuring stick against other top programs.
"We had a very solid meet in all events with a number of personal & seasonal best being posted," St. John's head coach Jim Hurt said. "Another good week of practice will have us ready for the Columbia Challenge at the Armory."
Erica Graham provided the biggest highlight of the meet for the Johnnies, capturing the gold medal in the long jump with a 5.68-meter score. The senior, who sat out last weekend's meet, looks to be returning to form as the former BIG EAST champion won the event by 0.1 meters.
After capturing BIG EAST Women's Field Athlete of the Week honors, Nyla Woods put together another solid performance in the weight throw. The senior finished with a throw of 18.11 meters to post a second-place mark.
Coach Hurt was also pleased with freshman Leah Anderson and junior Torisha LaForce, who both competed in the 200-meter and 400-meter runs. Anderson finished fifth in the 200-meter (25.24) while LaForce finished sixth in the 400-meter (57.61) to each score for the Red Storm.
Scoring in a trio of meets was freshman Antonia Frazier who saw action in the long jump, high jump, and 60-meter hurdles. Frazier finished fifth in the 60-meter hurdles (9.04), seventh in the high jump (1.50 m), and eighth in the long jump (5.13 m).
Another highlight for the Johnnies was the 4x400-meter relay led by Kafi Ottley, Jasmine Burkett, Anderson, and LaForce. The group finished second in the event with a time of 3:54.19, finishing just behind the winners from Penn.
The Red Storm saw Amarys Berry (13.52 m, 4th), Jennifer Odoemene (15.09 m, 5th), and Bernadette McGowan (13.96 m, 6th) all rounded out the scoring in the shot put and weight throw, respectively. Berry's throw of 13.52 meters in the shot put was an ECAC qualifier.
St. John's will prepare for its first two-day meet of the season next weekend with the Columbia Challenge from the New Balance Track and Field Armory.
For all the latest news on the St. John's Track and Field team, log on to RedStormSports.com and follow the team (@StJohnsXCTF) on Twitter. You can join the conversation with #SJUTF. If you would like to be added to the St. John's track and field mailing list, send an email to stjcommunications@stjohns.edu with the subject line "T&F Mailing List."
Players Mentioned
