Michigan State University
Duke Invitational
Track & Field Wraps Up Action at Duke Invitational
4/8/2023 5:26:00 PM | Track and Field
DURHAM, N.C. - Michigan State track & field wrapped up action at the three-day Duke Invitational on Saturday afternoon at Duke's Morris Williams Stadium. Despite weather delays causing delays and cancellations to the meet schedule, MSU was able to post several top-five finishes and personal bests in Durham.
"The athletes did a good job of managing themselves considering the conditions," said MSU jumps and combined events coach Ceith Creekmur. "The weather is not always going to cooperate, but we ask the athletes to stay engaged, compete against the person next to you, and I think they did that well."
DAY ONE
The men's and women's hammer and discus throws were contested on Thursday. Junior Joshua DeVries used a fifth-round, personal best throw of 64.44m in the men's hammer to place fifth overall, setting a personal best in the event for the third-straight meet. Sophomore Valadian Pallett placed eighth in the women's discus with a personal best of 46.95m, while freshman Colby Morlock placed ninth on the men's side with a third-round throw of 48.77m.
DAY TWO
Weather affected several of Friday's events, causing the cancellation of the long jump and the majority of the heptathlon. Junior Autumn Glover finished third in the 100m hurdles and second in the high jump in the heptathlon before the remaining five events were cancelled.
Action resumed in the afternoon with the B section of the men's pole vault, where freshman Adam Blue claimed runner-up honors in a personal-best clearance of 4.90m. The Spartans claimed two of the top five spots in the women's pole vault, with freshman duo Sophia Mettes finishing second (3.80m) and Natalie Blake placing in a tie for fourth (3.65m). Sophomore Breanne Black tied a personal-best clearance of 3.50m.
DAY THREE
Saturday proved to be the most action-packed day for the Spartans with the sprints and hurdles taking place. Kicking off the day with the 4x100 relays, MSU recorded fourth-place finishes both the men's and women's races, with the women running 47.84 and men turning in a time of 42.02.
Junior Kaia Sheffler posted impressive performances in both women's hurdle races, finishing fourth in the 100m hurdles in a season-best time of 14.05 before returning to the track to finish eighth in the 400m hurdles with a time of 1:05.72.
Sophomore Noah Sage picked up his second-straight win of the season in the men's 400m, running 48.60. In the women's 400m, graduate student Nala Barlow placed 12th with a time of 57.63. In the short sprints, senior Amani Nuels placed sixth in the women's 100m, clocking 12.12, while senior Antonio Postell ran a wind-aided 10.81 to finish fourth in the men's 100m.
MSU ended the weekend's field events with the A section of the men's pole vault and the women's and men's high jumps. Freshman Korin Whitcomb cleared a personal-best 1.66m in the women's high jump and junior Elizabeth Knoll posted a mark of 1.61m to place fourth and sixth, respectively. In the men's high jump, freshman Brady Schultz (third) and junior Tylor Leedom (fifth) both cleared 1.90m.
Graduate student Michael Davenport was MSU's lone athlete in the A section of the men's pole vault, clearing 5.05m for fifth place.
MSU travels to California next week to compete in the Bryan Clay Invitational and Mt. SAC Relays on April 14 and 15.
Players Mentioned
