HATTIESBURG, Miss. – The Loyola University New Orleans men’s and women’s track team jump started their 2012 outdoor season today at the Southern Miss Invitational. The event was held at the Marshall Bell Track & Field Complex.
Sarah Tortorich impressed in the short distance events. The junior sprinter set a new Loyola record in the 400m dash with an unofficial time of 56.10 (8th place). Tortorich also competed in the 200m dash and clocked a time of 26.04 (18th), beating runners from Division I schools Southern Miss and Nicholls State.
Vanessa Righeimer led the women in the 1500m & 5000m events. Righeimer placed 14th in the 1500m with 5:20.15, and placed 4th in the 5000m with a time of 19:35.89. In addition, Elizabeth Gienger set a new personal record in the 5000m with a time of 20:34.
Emma Larson made her outdoor debut with a 11th place finish in the 800m run with 2:37.12.
Lauren Fincher posted a time of 1:11.01 in the 400m hurdles. Harley Augustine recorded 1.42m in the high jump and 8.54m in the shot put. Furthermore, Alexandra Lain achieved a 10.32m distance in the triple jump.
Freshman Michael Corso led for the men in the 1500m & 5000m races with times of 4:22.92 (22nd place) and 16:45.74 (9th place) respectively. Mario Ramirez clocked a time of 2:10.40 in the 800m coming in 16th place.
Claude Nelson finished in 10th place in the 100m dash with a time of 11.39. Nelson also raced in the 200m and finished in 16th with a time of 22.99.
Finally, Carlos Flores competed in the discus throw and shot put and threw 25.85m and 8.96m respectively.
“It was a good start for some of our runners. Next week is a bigger meet against stiffer competition, thus our main focus has been geared towards the Louisiana Classic,” explained Loyola head coach Andy Canegitta.
The Wolfpack will compete again next Saturday in the Louisiana Classic in Lafayette at the Cajuns Soccer and Track Facility.