Temple University Athletics
Saturday, February 6
Staten Island, N.Y.
5:00 p.m.
Temple University
at
Villanova Invitational
Freshman Sylvia Wilson Breaks Two Indoor School Records at Villanova Invitational
2.7.16 | Women's Track and Field
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. – Temple women's track and field freshmen Sylvia Wilson has officially made her mark in the Owls' record books, shattering two indoor school records at Saturday night's Villanova Invitational. Overall, the team earned five top-five finishes and placed third as a team ahead of American Athletic Conference opponent USF.
"We had a lot of excitement and a lot of good things that went on yesterday," said head coach Elvis Forde. "This type of weekend is what helps the kids stay motivated. They see success across the board and it carries over into the next weekend."
Wilson first topped the school record in the preliminary round of the 60-meter dash, running a time of 7.59 that bested the record by one second. The previous record of 7.69 seconds was set by Isatta Kennah in 2013. In the finals of that event, Wilson ran a 7.70 to place fourth.
In her second event of the day, Wilson took to the 60-meter hurdles, where she has bettered her own record in four consecutive weekends. In the preliminaries, Wilson logged a time of 8.52 seconds, besting her own record and the school's indoor record. Wilson then went one step farther, running a time of 8.51 in the finals to place second. The previous record had stood for 11 years and was set by Rachel Clifton who posted an 8.53 in the event.
"Wilson is performing at a really high level right now," said coach Forde. "She's a competitor and it's great to see her run as well as she is right now."
Top finishes were plenty for the Owls, starting with seniors Jimmia McCluskey and Sydnee Jacques, and freshman Crystal Jones jumping their way into top-five finishes. McCluskey led the pack in the long jump, logging a 5.65-meter jump to take the gold. Jones also brought home a gold after posting a 1.73-meter jump in the high jump. In the triple jump, Jacques logged a 11.66-meter jump to place third overall.
Junior Kenya Gaston picked up a second-place finish in the 400-meter race after logging a time of 55.80 that fell just behind Lafayette's Devin Smith. Gaston also helped lead the 4x400-meter relay team to a third place finish. With Aliya Sharp leading off, followed by Bionca St. Fleur, Gaston, and Maya Halprin-Adams, the Owls recorded a time of 3:49.10 in the event.
Junior Simone Brownlee added a new personal-record at the competition with a run of 8.76 seconds in the preliminaries of the 60-meter hurdles where she qualified for the finals and placed sixth overall.
Freshman Brigit Andersson also picked up a personal-best in the 800-meter run. Andersson logged a time of 2:20.94 that bested her previous record by almost four seconds. Classmate Maddie Bixler made her collegiate debut in the 3000-meter run, setting a mark of 10:43.17 in the event that she now looks to improve on moving forward.
"Overall it was a really good day," said coach Forde. "There is still a lot of work to be done as the indoor season winds down and we are excited to keep improving."
The Owls will travel to Boston, Mass. next weekend for the Valentine Invitational. Next weekend also logs the last meet before the team competes at the American Athletic Conference Indoor Championships starting Sunday, Feb. 28 in Birmingham, Ala.
"We had a lot of excitement and a lot of good things that went on yesterday," said head coach Elvis Forde. "This type of weekend is what helps the kids stay motivated. They see success across the board and it carries over into the next weekend."
Wilson first topped the school record in the preliminary round of the 60-meter dash, running a time of 7.59 that bested the record by one second. The previous record of 7.69 seconds was set by Isatta Kennah in 2013. In the finals of that event, Wilson ran a 7.70 to place fourth.
In her second event of the day, Wilson took to the 60-meter hurdles, where she has bettered her own record in four consecutive weekends. In the preliminaries, Wilson logged a time of 8.52 seconds, besting her own record and the school's indoor record. Wilson then went one step farther, running a time of 8.51 in the finals to place second. The previous record had stood for 11 years and was set by Rachel Clifton who posted an 8.53 in the event.
"Wilson is performing at a really high level right now," said coach Forde. "She's a competitor and it's great to see her run as well as she is right now."
Top finishes were plenty for the Owls, starting with seniors Jimmia McCluskey and Sydnee Jacques, and freshman Crystal Jones jumping their way into top-five finishes. McCluskey led the pack in the long jump, logging a 5.65-meter jump to take the gold. Jones also brought home a gold after posting a 1.73-meter jump in the high jump. In the triple jump, Jacques logged a 11.66-meter jump to place third overall.
Junior Kenya Gaston picked up a second-place finish in the 400-meter race after logging a time of 55.80 that fell just behind Lafayette's Devin Smith. Gaston also helped lead the 4x400-meter relay team to a third place finish. With Aliya Sharp leading off, followed by Bionca St. Fleur, Gaston, and Maya Halprin-Adams, the Owls recorded a time of 3:49.10 in the event.
Junior Simone Brownlee added a new personal-record at the competition with a run of 8.76 seconds in the preliminaries of the 60-meter hurdles where she qualified for the finals and placed sixth overall.
Freshman Brigit Andersson also picked up a personal-best in the 800-meter run. Andersson logged a time of 2:20.94 that bested her previous record by almost four seconds. Classmate Maddie Bixler made her collegiate debut in the 3000-meter run, setting a mark of 10:43.17 in the event that she now looks to improve on moving forward.
"Overall it was a really good day," said coach Forde. "There is still a lot of work to be done as the indoor season winds down and we are excited to keep improving."
The Owls will travel to Boston, Mass. next weekend for the Valentine Invitational. Next weekend also logs the last meet before the team competes at the American Athletic Conference Indoor Championships starting Sunday, Feb. 28 in Birmingham, Ala.
Players Mentioned
Distance
/ Women's Track and Field
Distance
/ Women's Track and Field
Hurdles
/ Women's Track and Field
Sprints
/ Women's Track and Field
Mid-Distance
/ Women's Track and Field
Hurdles/Jumps
/ Women's Track and Field
Multis
/ Women's Track and Field
Sprints/Jumps
/ Women's Track and Field
Sprints
/ Women's Track and Field
Sprints/Jumps
/ Women's Track and Field
Sprints/Hurdles
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