Jan. 26, 2018
CLEMSON, S.C. - Auburn track and field had an impressive first day at the Bob Pollack Meet, establishing seven personal records over the course of the competition at the Clemson University Indoor Complex.
Sprinters Jonielle Smith and Natalliah Whyte highlighted the afternoon with their outstanding performance in the women's 60m sprint. Smith started it off with a 7.28 in the prelim only to get bested by Whyte's personal-best 7.23 in the following heat. The pair entered the final Nos. 1-2 in the standings and held that position at the end of the race, only with the places switched. Whyte maintained a 7.23 to finish second, but Smith turned it on for a personal-best 7.20 finish, tied for the fourth fastest in school history with Tiger greats Fana Ashby, Kai Selvon and Kerron Stewart.
Both Smith and Whyte's times rank in the top five in the nation this year.
Raheem Chambers won the men's 60m for the second time this season, clocking a 6.63 in the final. Xavier Coakley placed fourth in the 60m hurdles with a personal-best 7.81 finish.
Auburn throwers had a big day in the field portion of competition as freshman Evan Blaire (16.60m) and Tori McKinley (15.02m) each surpassed their previous personal bests with ease. Both Blaire and McKinley finished fourth in their respective fields.
Jenae Ambrose finished fifth in the women's 400m and was one of four Tigers that had personal-bests in the race.
Day two of the Bob Pollack Meet is slated for a 10 a.m. CT start tomorrow. Live stats can be found here.
Event Athlete Place Time/Mark
60mH - M Xavier Coakley -- 8.02
60mH - M Xavier Coakley 4th 7.81*
60m - W Natalliah Whyte -- 7.23*
60m - W Natalliah Whyte 2nd 7.23*
60m - W Jonielle Smith -- 7.28
60m - W Jonielle Smith 1st 7.20*
60m - M Raheem Chambers -- 6.71
60m - M Raheem Chambers 1st 6.63
400m - W Jenae Ambrose 5th 54.33*
400m - W Mattie McLauhorn 27th 59.03*
400m - W Anna Gierow 32nd 1:00.97*
400m - W Kristen Laidlaw 33rd 1:01.77*
DMR - W Weems, Mack, Kiprop, Cheruiyot 3rd 12:16.59
DMR - M Armes, Allen, Komen, Spieler 4th 10:16.77
LJ - M Mark Rubalcaba 2nd 7.38m/24-2.50
LJ - W Dominique Bullock 5th 5.98m/19-7.50
LJ - W Jakayla Hand 8th 5.76m/18-10.75
LJ - W Deja Hillman 13th 5.37m/17-7.50
SP - W Tori McKinley 4th 15.02m/49-3.50*
SP - M Evan Blaire 4th 16.60m/54-5.50*
SP - M Benedict Draghi 7th 15.92m/52-2.75
Junior Chris Stone is also competing this weekend at the Texas Tech Classic in Lubbock, Texas, in the men's heptathlon. Stone currently sits in fifth in the overall standings with a personal-best 3,093 points on the day.
Full results for Stone's first day of competition:
60m 4th 7.12
Long jump 5th 6.65m/21-10
Shot Put 2nd 13.67m/44-10.25*
High Jump 3rd 2.01m/6-7*
*-personal best