January 11 officially kicked off the spring track season for the KSU Owls. The team travelled to Birmingham on Friday to compete in the Blazer Invitational hosted by the University of Alabama-Birmingham.
With only a week of training under their belts and still recovering from the sudden death of teammate Jonathan Garner; the Owls struggled to open the spring schedule. Amid the disappointment, several seniors had nice outings for the Owls.
Senior Michelle Quimby finished first in pole vault. In distance, Senior Ryan Burruss finished seventh in the 3000m. Sadio Diallo ran for two Top-12 finishes, including an eighth place showing in the 60-meter dash.
The meet was very beneficial for scouting and motivational purposes according to Assistant Coach Agne Eggerth, noting “It was good to see other teams in person; very educational for us”. A-Sun foes Lipscomb and East Tennessee State joined KSU in the invitational.
The Owls saw the most success in the throwing competitions. Senior Gwen Jones broke her own school record to place third in shot put. Meanwhile, Suzee Mills placed fourth in weight throw.
Sprinter Alicia Whittle was a noticeable bright spot for KSU according to Coach Eggerth. The sophomore missed all of last semester with a broken ankle and posted a fourth place finish in the 60-meter in her return.
When asked what the coaching staff took away from the meet, Agne said simply “we have to train harder”. In the eyes of the coaching staff, returning to the routine is the best medicine for the Owls.
The team was welcomed back from winter break with 6 a.m. workouts and the Owls will have to train hard if they want to defend their A-Sun title.
The squad will hit the road again this weekend to compete in the Niswonger Invitational in Johnson City, Tenn.