May 4, 2012
TAMPA, Fla. – Notre Dame men’s track and field competitor Andrew Hills won the hammer throw, while women’s track and field freshman Gabby Gonzales placed second in the 10,000m run to highlight day one of the 2012 BIG EAST Outdoor Track and Field Championships for the Irish at USF Track and Field Stadium in Tampa, Fla. Both teams sit in fourth place heading into day two, with the men accumulating 16 points and the women 13 points on day one.
Hills won the hammer throw with a toss of 58.05m (190-05 ft) to get Notre Dame on the board with 10 points. The victory was the second in a row for the Irish in the event, as John Belcher won the event last year.
The Irish picked up three points in the men’s 3,000m steeplechase as Joe Miller (9:09.04) and Kelly Lynch (9:10.21) finished seventh and eighth, respectively.
On the women’s side McKinzie Schulz picked up the first point of the championships for the Irish, finishing eighth in the 3,000m steeplechase in 10:28.56.
Freshman Gabby Gonzales turned in an impressive race for the Irish in the 10,000 meters, earning all-BIG EAST accolades with a second-place finish (34:44.31). Junior Jessica Rydberg (35:33.69) placed fifth to give the Irish two scorers in the race.
In the men’s 10,000m, Jake Kildoo finished sixth (33:13.21) to earn the squad three points.
Ted Glasnow sits in third place after five events in the men’s decathlon. The junior finished sixth in the 100m (11.67), fifth in the 400m dash (51.84), third in the long jump (6.58m), fifth in the shot put (11.88m) and fourth in the high jump (1.90m) to accumulate 3,478 points at the halfway point.
In the heptathlon Carly Loeffel and Meghan Moore are in sixth and seventh place, respectively, after four events in the heptathlon. Moore finished second in the 200m dash (25.22), while Loeffel placed second in the high jump (1.69m). Senior Maddie Buttinger had to withdraw from the competition with an injury.
The meet resumes on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. with the men’s javelin throw.
All-BIG EAST
Men
Andrew Hills (Hammer Throw)*
Women
Gabby Gonzales (10,000m)
*Champion
–ND–