GAINESVILLE, FLA. – Georgia State had its sixth Sun Belt-season best performance on Day 3 of the 73rd Pepsi Florida Relays on Friday. GSU posted the season-best Sun Belt performance in the 4x100m relay.
For the three days of the Florida Relays, GSU had six best performances of the season in the Sun Belt (100m, 200m, 400m hurdles, hammer, 4x100, 4x400). The Panthers had two school records (hammer and discus) and missed a third record by less than .01 of a second (100m).
Day 3 Recap
GSU's 4x100m relay quartet of Jada Steward, Ravin Gilbert, Ashlan Rosier and Katherine Randolph were timed in 45.69 to post the best of the Sun Belt this year. That was 24th of the 53 relay teams in this large Florida Relays.
In the shot put, Alysiah Whittaker threw 15.59m (51-01.75) for the fifth-best distance in school history (just behind her personal best of 15.70m). That placed her 10th in her College Division.
The 4x200m relay team of Steward, Gilbert, Sydney Davis and Randolph clocked 1:37.56 for the fourth-fastest time in school history.
The 4x800m relay team of Nuria Ramirez, Stephanie Berger, Sammi Donovan and Jordan Townsley ran in 9:31.37 for the third-fastest time in school history in this event.
Day 2 Recap
Leading Friday's record onslaught was junior LaPorscha Wells. In the hammer throw, Wells topped the 26-thrower field with a school record distance of 60.36m (198-0). She topped her own previous of 59.31m and topped her Sun Belt season best by 4m. Her Friday win saw throwers from UCF, Virginia Tech and Louisville finish 2-3-4.
Discus thrower Alysiah Whittaker bested her school record with a throw of 51.99 (170-7) at the Florida Relays. She finished second to a non-collegiate thrower among the 26 competitors. Finishing behind her in spots 3-7 were throwers from NC State, Troy, Missouri, Maryland and Florida State.
Sprinter Ravin Gilbert gave another pair of outstanding performances. In the 100m spring, Gilbert ran 11.461, clocked that way because of four other runners between 11.46 and 11.47. GSU's school record is listed at 11.46 by Kendra LaFleur in 2010. That's the fastest in the Sun Belt this year also. Gilbert finished 12th of 60 sprinters, besting runners from schools like Missouri, Kentucky, Alabama, Virginia, Western Kentucky, Brazil and Ole Miss right behind her with Florida and Kentucky runners 1-2.
Gilbert followed her 100m time with a 23.65 time in the 200m dash to finish fifth with the fastest time in the Sun Belt this year. The 23.65 is fourth-fastest clocking in school history and her second-best time behind a 23.50 clocking last year.
In the 4x400m relay, GSU's quartet ran 3:47.84, one second off the Sun Belt's fastest time of the season. That group of Brianna Archer, Jasmyne Robinson, Ashlan Rosier and Sydney Davis finished 21st of the 36 relay teams.
In the 3,000m steeplechase, Nuria Ramirez ran a 11:12.95, Sammi Donovan a 11:23.56 and Jordan Townsley a 11:29.73 to place 16th, 17th and 20th, respectively, in the College Division.
Day 1 Recap
A trio of Georgia State runners began the three-day 73rd Pepsi Florida Relays competition with good results.
In the 400m Hurdles (Open Division), Panther sophomore Tyler Watson produced the third-fastest time in school history and finished eighth of the 30 competitors. The Tampa, Fla. native clocked 1:00.19 in a race that saw only one collegiate runner finish ahead of her. That time surpassed UL Lafayette's Alena Hrusoci for the fastest time in the Sun Belt this year. Her teammate Kassandra Pierre finished 17th of those 30 hurdlers in 1:02.69, just .06 off her season-best time.
In the 9 p.m. 5,000m run, Stephanie Berger lowered her personal-best outdoor time by 20 seconds in clocking 17:55.72.
