The University of New Haven opened the 2013 Penn Relays on Thursday, April 25, at Franklin Field in Philadelphia. This was the 117th Penn Relays.
Two relay teams competed, and senior Shraya Manick competed in the hammer throw.
Manick finished in 10th place in the collegiate division with a throw of 50.24 meters in her second attempt. She was the second-best Division II competitor and finished just outside of the finals in the division. The toss was her second longest in her career and only the second throw of 50-plus meters. The mark provisionally qualified her for the NCAA Division II Championships.
The 4×100-meter relay team of sophomore Briana Conyers, junior Ada Udaya, senior Alissa Howell and freshman Marshae Holt posted a time of 48.87 seconds for a 49th place finish in the collegiate division.
The Chargers’ 4×400-meter relay team of junior Monica Yanez, sophomore Ivy Watts, Udaya and Holt ran a time of 3:57.57. The team finished in third place in the college division CTC.
Three members of the UNH women’s track and field team returned to action on Friday, April 26.
The lone Division II competitor in the 100-meter dash, Udaya, recorded an 11th-place time of 11.90 seconds in her preliminary heat.
Conyers was the top Division II performer in the College Division of the triple jump. Conyers recorded a mark of 11.71 meters to place 20th overall in her division. She currently leads the Northeast-10 Conference and met NCAA provisional qualifying standards earlier this season.
Also besting all non-Division I competition in her division was sophomore Tiara Mitchell, who placed 10th in the Eastern Division of the triple jump with a top flight of 11.56 meters. Mitchell’s performance marked a personal season-best and cemented her position as the Northeast-10’s No. 4 seed in the event.
The men also competed in four events Friday. Graduate student David Thomas won the men’s long jump in the collegiate eastern division with a UNH outdoor record and personal best jump of 7.46 meters. The distance is the eighth best in NCAA Division II this season and provisionally qualified the senior in the event for the National Championship.
Thomas also posted a time of 10.74 seconds for a 16th-place finish in the 100-meter dash in the collegiate division. He is the top-ranked student-athlete in the Northeast-10 in the event with a top time this spring of 10.55 seconds, recorded earlier this month.
The Chargers’ sprint medley relay team of Thomas, freshman Jamaal James, sophomore Nazim Roberts-Smith and freshman Devin Rose also broke the previous New Haven record with a 34th finish in the Championship of America division with a time of 3:37.84.
The 4×400-meter relay team placed fourth in the CTC division. James joined junior Christopher Dannenhoffer, sophomore Joseph Kingston and freshman Taylor DenBleyker to record a time of 3:26.11.
