CONWAY, S.C. - Georgia Southern Track and Field competed at the Coastal Carolina University/Shamrock Invitational, the largest track meet on the East Coast this weekend. A record field of 38 men's and women's teams and 1,280 athletes participated in the three-day meet.
Georgia Southern had a strong showing in the field events with senior Demetrise Anthony (Manchester, Ga.) leading the Eagles as GSU had three top-15 finishes in the long jump, the most of any school in that event. Anthony took sixth place in the long jump at 5.51 meters with sophomore Millicent Brooks-Millender (Douglasville, Ga.) finishing tied for 12th with a distance of 5.40 meters and senior Shaunta Hamilton (Macon, Ga.) at 5.34 meters for 14th place.
Hamilton had her best performance of 2010 in the Triple Jump with a distance of 11.83 meters for a fifth-place finish in the event.
Anthony also anchored Georgia Southern's 4X100 Meter Relay team that posted a top-10 finish with a season- and conference-best time of 47.32. Antoinette Jordan (Griffin, Ga.), Courtney Ware (Indianapolis, Ind.) and Jasmine Billings (Lawrenceville, Ga.) combined for the mark. Ware, JoAnn JaJa Benson (Savannah, Ga.), Jordan and Jefferson teamed up for a 4:00.27 time in the 4X400 Meter Relay.
Billings recorded a time of 14.91 (1.3) in the 100 Meter Hurdles for eighth place in the finals Saturday after a 14.70 (2.2) time in the preliminaries. Hamilton tied for 20th with a time of 15.70 (1.9). The preliminaries of the 100 Meter Dash had four Eagles in the top 50 with Anthony tied at 16th (12.16, 1.1), Jordan with a time of 12.33 (0.7), Ebony Carter (Rome, Ga.) and Ware (12.85, 1.1) rounding out the event. Ware posted a 1.08.38 time in the 400 Meter Hurdles.
Georgia Southern had three representatives in the top 30 of the 200 Meter Dash with Jordan finishing 14th with a time of 25.21, which will rank likely rank as the the top performance in the Southern Conference after this weekend. Carter posted a time of 26.01 and Billings had a time of 26.26, her best time of 2010. Jefferson and JaJa Benson recorded their best times of the outdoor season in the 400 Meter Dash with JaJa Benson in 15th place with a time of 58.01 and Jefferson placing 16th at 58.22. Kristiana Towns had a 34th-place finish in the event.
The Eagles competed in the finals of five events on Friday with sophomore Brittani Martin (Alpharetta, Ga.) taking fifth place in the 10,000 Meter Run with a time of 40:23.58. Teammate Sarah Molly McBreaty (Macon, Ga.) posted a time of 44:54.74 for eighth place in that event. Freshman Heather McAllister (Cartersville, Ga.) placed 16th in the 5,000 Meter Run with a time of 19:28.88 for her best time of the season. McAllister ran a 11:23.81 time in the 3,000 meter run.
The Georgia Southern 4X800 Meter Relay team of freshman Mary O'Sullivan (Greenville, S.C.), sophomore Azura Robillard (Altamonte Springs, Fla.), senior Laura Fuller (Cartersville, Ga.), and Jefferson had a 13th-place finish with a time of 9:52.52 Friday. Robillard also competed in the javelin throw Saturday with a distance of 26.46 meters and the shot put while Spivy threw the discus 34.43 meters. Herndon recorded a distance of 10.0 meters in the shot put.
In the Amber Campbell Invitational Women's Hammer, the first event on Friday, all three Georgia Southern participants placed in the top 40 with Amanda Spivy throwing a distance of 38.12 meters, freshman Megan Fannon (Doravilla, Ga.) at 35.53 (116-07) and sophomore Sarah Herndon (Statesboro, Ga.) at 33.7 (110-07).Topping her previous 2010 season best height of 1.57 (5-01.75), sophomore Alex Cassagnol (Augusta, Ga.) reached a height of 1.6 meters (5-03) to tie for 12th place in the High Jump in the final event of the day Friday.
In one of Saturday's first races, three Eagles place in the top 50 with Fuller leading the way with a time of 5:04.23 for 35th place. Freshman Sarah Curry (Lawrenceville, Ga.) and sophomore Leah Bradley (McDonough, Ga.) completed the Georgia Southern efforts.
The Eagles play host to the GSU Invitational Saturday, March 27 at the Soccer/Track Complex at Erk Russell Athletic Park on the campus of Georgia Southern University.
