Claxton Opens Penn Relays As First Ever UAlbany Champion
UAlbany Results
PHILADELPHIA—Thursday marked the opening day of competition for the University at Albany outdoor track & field team at the 2016 Penn Relays Carnival. The Great Danes competed in eight events on the first day.
The first event on the track for UAlbany was the women's 400m hurdles. Grace Claxton placed first overall as the Penn Relay Champion with a new school record of 56.69. She is UAlbany's first-ever champion in the University Championship Division. Last year at Penn Relays, Claxton broke the school record with a time of 58.52. Her current record marks an almost two second improvement. Aderinsola Ajala placed 18th in the 400 hurdles, running 1:01.93 and Paige Vadnais placed 26th with her time of 1:02.78.
For the first time in UAlbany history, the women's 4x100 relay team of Stephanie Osuji, Chanel Smith, Grace Claxton, and Taahira Butterfield placed seventh in the trials, running a collective time of 46.48 to qualify for the Championship Invitation Final on Friday at 1:00 p.m.
The women's 4x400 relay of Aderinsola Ajala, Akua Williams, Stephanie Osuji, and Grace Claxton placed 54th overall in the heat trials, running a time of 4:00.43.
In the college men's 3000m steeplechase championship, Jordan Johnson placed 18th overall, running a personal best 9:17.84 and satisfying the IC4A standard.
Cara Sherman placed 26th in the college women's 5,000 championship race, running a personal best of 17:00.21, which qualifies for ECAC.
In the field events, UAlbany fielded three competitors in the college women's high jump. Freshman Anika Hibbard, who last weekend set the outdoor school record in the event at the Spring Classic with a mark of 5'-9.25”, cleared a height of 5'-5.75” to place eighth overall. Solène Bastien placed 30th with her mark of 5-2.5.
Junior Chinwe Igwe placed 11th overall in the college women's hammer throw with a mark of 164-4, followed by Senior Lauren Lopano in 19th place with a mark of 159-10.
Lauren Lopano also placed 22nd overall in the women's discus with a mark of 134-9.
Competition for the Great Danes will resume at 9:00 a.m. with the men's 400 hurdles championship and the men's discus.
