Pioneers qualify 18 for OAC Outdoor Championships at Coastal Carolina's Shamrock Invitational

Mar. 18, 2006
MYRTLE BEACH, South Carolina — The 2006 Marietta College outdoor track & field season continued Friday and Saturday (Mar. 17-18), when the Pioneers traveled to Coastal Carolina for the un scored Shamrock Invitational.

Marietta faced a variety of talent at the meet, which included schools such as East Carolina, Malone, Minnesota and West Virginia.

Women's highlights included eight performances that resulted in OAC Outdoor Championship qualifications, while nine All-Ohio Championships bids were also earned.

Freshman Jessi Larrison took 12th in the 1500m run, running a new personal record, 5:03.81. Sophomore Mallory Sinoski captured 14th place in the 100m hurdles, crossing the line in a season-best time of 16.82 seconds. Both qualified for the All-Ohio and OAC Championships.

In addition, freshman Leslie Pyle (1:11.52) took 13th in the 400m hurdles, junior Rachel Forman (20th/36.12m), freshman Tiffany Kovacevich (21st/35.68m) and sophomore Alecia Benninger (24th/33.36m) had solid performances in the hammer throw, Benninger (10.84m) placed 11th in the shot put, while sophomore Breanne Kosar and freshman Melissa Schulte each took 17th (1.53m) in the high jump. These Pioneers qualified for this season's All-Ohio and OAC Championships.

On the men's side, five personal records were set, while 11 athletes qualified for the All-Ohio Championships and ten earned their way into the OAC Championships.

John Hull (34:52.03) finished seventh in the 10000m run, Harrison Potter (16:24.83) took 21st in the 5000m run and Clark Spears (9:47.95) placed second in the 3000m steeplechase. All three distance runners set personal records, while Spears and Potter qualified for All-OAC and Spears earned his way into the OAC Championships.

Junior Tim Roberts (16th/59.81) qualified for All-Ohio in the 400m hurdles.

Mike Panchowski (6th/51.94m) qualified for both All-Ohio and the OAC Championships in the javelin.

Four hammer throwers — Derek Carpenter (16th/42.57m), Eric Finn (18th/40.01m), Brian Pallini (22nd/36.01m) and Dan DeZordo (24th/35.01m) — will be competing at the OAC Championships after their performances this weekend. Carpenter, Finn and Pallini all qualified for All-Ohio as well.

DeZordo also qualified for both meets in the discus (9th/43.89m) and shot put (8th/13.85m), while Seth Townsend (8th/1.88m) did the same in the high jump.

Marietta will return in full force Saturday (Mar. 25) when it competes at the Wake Forrest Invitational in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Clark Spears took second place in the 3000m steeplechase at the Shamrock Invitational

Results