April 19, 2008

BANNER ELK, NC – For the second straight year the Lions brought home the Women's Track Conference Championship in dominating fashion.  The two-day event featured 20 teams and a total of 383 athletes.  The weather was constantly changing ranging from dry and chilly to sleet and with the meet ending in a heavy rainstorm.  Despite the changing conditions the team turned in a number of record breaking performances.

Throws:  Erin Stowe (Cincinnati, OH) started it off with a Mars Hill record throw in the hammer with a mark of 86’ 6” earning her a 1st place.  Close behind were teammates Kelli Elliott (Mill Spring, NC), Lindsay Roberts (Murphy, NC) and Austen Ward (Asheville, NC).  Overall the ladies swept the top four places.  Erin followed up her record performance with a 1st place in the discus and a 2nd in the shot put.  Her two 1st place finishes earned her All-Conference honors for both events.

Sprints and Jumps:  Once again the Lady Lion sprinters were outstanding.  The 4 X 100 meter relay team captured the overall meet title beating the ladies from NAIA powerhouse King College in dramatic fashion down the home stretch.  Their time of 49.96 broke their own mark set earlier this year at Western Carolina and they became the first Mars Hill relay team to finish under 50 seconds.  The squad consisted of Gabby Walker (Chattanooga, TN), Sharisse Sutherland (Marietta, GA), Malaree Wallace (Yonkers, NY) and Tandra Landers (Monroe, GA).  It was the 2nd straight title for the ladies.  In the 100 meter dash Gabby claimed the title with another record time of 12.79 seconds with Tandra finishing 3rd.  In the 200 meter run Tandra and Sharisse finished 3rd and 4th overall adding to the team totals.  But it was in the jumps where the ladies really took over.  Multi-event specialist Ashley McCarthy (Clearwater, FL) claimed the overall meet title and All-Conference honors in the high jump tying her own Mars Hill record with a jump of 5”2 “.  It was the first of seven events that she competed in over the two days.  Teammate Lindsay Roberts finished 3rd overall in the high jump.  In the pole vault Sarah Brandenberger(Venice, FL) earned All-Conference honors for the 4th consecutive year with Ashley finishing 2nd.  In the long jump Gabby, Tandra and Sharisse finished 1st, 2nd and 4th respectively.  And in the triple jump Gabby again broke her own Mars Hill record to earn a 1st place overall finish with a jump of 35” 8.75”.  In total Gabby earned All-Conference honors in an amazing four events.

Distance:  The distance ladies turned in an outstanding performance while running multiple events.  Senior Keely Hollahan (Charlotte, NC) competing in her last meet ran the 10,000, 5000 and 1500 meter runs in strong fashion.  Jaime Kuehl (Dowington, PA) competed in the 10,000, 3000 meter steeplechase and the 400 hurdles.  Also running multiple events for team scoring were Anita Casey (Greer, SC), Amelia Green (Bakersville, NC), Hannah Moore (Franklin, NC) and Hannah Washburn (Clemson, SC).

Team Scoring – South Atlantic Conference:

Mars Hill College                254
Carson-Newman College   173
Lenoir-Rhyne College        121
Brevard College                 20
Tusculum College               8

All-Conference Honors:
Sarah Brandenberger - Pole Vault
Ashley McCarthy - High Jump
Erin Stowe - Hammer, Discus
Gabby Walker - 100 meters, Long Jump, Triple Jump
Gabby Walker, Sharisse Sutherland, Malaree Wallace & Tandra Landers - 4 X 100 meter relay      

Complete results can be found at: http://www.bigkahunatiming.com/

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