University of Connecticut Athletics
UConn Takes The Lead On Day One of BIG EAST Championship
5/13/2022 10:40:00 PM | Women's Track and Field
STORRS, Conn. – The UConn women's track and field team hold the team lead after the first day of competition at the 2022 BIG EAST Outdoor Championship at their home track, the George J. Sherman Family Sports Complex on campus.
The Huskies took home three gold medals on Friday and put up 72 total points over six scored events on Friday. UConn leads Villanova in second place with 59 points and Marquette in third with 30 points.
UConn's Mia Nahom (New Milford, Conn.) led the way on Friday winning the 3000 meter steeplechase by setting new BIG EAST, UConn and facility records in the process. Junior Mikyla Rodgers (South Huntington, NY) took gold in the hammer and junior Emma Chee (Bainbridge Island, Wash.) defended her BIG EAST title in winning the pole vault.
The Huskies also won three other medals on Friday. "On the women's side, right out of the gates, just in a fight with Villanova," stated Director of Cross Country and Track & Field Greg Roy. "Mia Nahom just put this team on her back in that steeplechase race tonight. In the next race, Randi and Caroline Towle in the 10,000, picked up big points for us, huge."
"Tomorrow for the women, we have someone in every track event and our field events, it's going to be a barnburner. I said early in the season, we were tough and getting tougher and right now we are going to have to show it. We took a huge jump with our win indoors, and this one is not going to come easy. It's going to be a fight for it tomorrow and I love it."
FINALS
On the track…
- Senior Mia Nahom (New Milford, Conn.) won her first career gold medal in the 3000 meter steeplechase and did so in record breaking fashion. Nahom won with a time of 9:52.81 and not only broke her own school record (9:58.50) she also broke the BIG EAST record (9:56.33 – Brianna Ilarda, Providence – 2017) and set a new facility record as well.
- Junior Randi Burr (Westerly, R.I.) won silver in the 10,000 meters to cap off the day of events. Burr clocked in at 35:30.57. Also scoring for the Huskies was freshman Caroline Towle (Bedford, Mass.) in sixth place at 36:32.84, her first time running the event.
In the field…
- Junior Mikyla Rodgers (South Huntington, NY) took home the first medal of the weekend on the women's side. Rodgers took home the gold thanks to a new PR throw of 60.22 meters. Freshman Natalia Surdej (Lancaster, NY) scored with a fourth place finish in 54.08 meters.
- Junior Emma Chee (Bainbridge Island, Wash.) took gold in the pole vault for the second-straight season, winning with a height of 4.15 meters. Freshman Kalli Knott (Erie, Pa.) got bronze for her second career medal, posting a new PR height of 3.95 meters.
- In the javelin, freshman Brynn Madonna (Allendale, NY) took silver with a new PR throw of 44.56 meters.
- Sophomore Jasmine Barrow (Athens, Ga.) took the bronze in the long jump with a leap of 5.77 meters.
- Through four events in the heptathlon, junior Emily Lavarnway (Ovid, NY) is in second place with a total of 3,202 points. She won the 200 meters (25.11) and was second in the 100 hurdles (14.56) and shot put (11.87m).
PRELIMS
- Three Huskies moved into the finals of the 1,500 meters on Saturday led by senior Mia Nahom (New Milford, Conn.) who was second in the prelim at 4:30.55. Joining her in the final will be junior Celia Chacko (Windsor, Conn.), 4:25.43, and sophomore Jenna Zydanowicz (West Hartford, Conn.), 4:28.90.
- A trio of Huskies made it to the final of the 100-meter hurdles led by freshman Jailya Ash (Voorhees, NJ) who had the second fastest prelim time at 13.65 seconds. Also making the finals was sophomore Felicia Quainoo (Metuchen, NJ), 14.23 seconds, and freshman A'Liyah Thomas (Linden, NJ), 14.89 seconds.
- Freshman Raquel Rosa (Waterbury, Conn.) will run in the 400 meter dash final after qualifying with a prelim time of 54.57 seconds, a new PR.
- Freshmen Brianna Davis (Bay Shore, NY) and Danielle Phillip (Valley Stream, NY) made the finals in the 100 meter dash. Davis had a time of 11.61 seconds, second fastest, and Phillip came in at 11.87 seconds, both new PRs. Davis will also compete in the 200 meter dash finals after posting a time of 23.77 in the prelim, a new PR. She will be joined by freshman Ta'Jae Jackson (Bolingbrook, Ill.) who ran 24.24 seconds, also a new PR.
- Sophomore Elise O'Leary (Milton, Mass.) will run in the 800 meter final on Saturday thanks to a performance of 2:10.72 in the prelim.
- Freshman Gabby Davis (Franklin Park, NJ) posted the fastest time of the day in the 400 meter hurdle prelim, clocking in at 1:01.12. Freshman Alyssa Elliot (Bangor, Maine) will join her in the final after running 1:04.70.
Up Next:
- The 2022 BIG EAST Outdoor Championship will conclude on Saturday afternoon from George J. Sherman Family Sports Complex in Storrs. Admission is free and open to the public. Parking is available at the South Parking Garage on campus.
Players Mentioned
