The BG track and field team had another good weekend in Akron at the Northeast Ohio Quad.
There were some good performances by the athletes this past weekend, though none more special than another record setting performance by thrower Brooke Pleger.
Pleger set the school record in the hammer one week ago with a throw of 212-6 at the Raleigh Relays, which was good enough for the third best throw in the country.
This past weekend she broke her own school record with a throw of 219-9. With the throw she climbs to second in the country, only Arizona State’s Chelsea Cassulo has a farther throw of 229-0 this year.
“The impressive results Brooke posted has come from her extreme focus and dedication to the event,” Coach Lou Snelling said. “Her blood, sweat and tears have gotten her to this point. She has completely bought into the training that Coach [Matt] Conly has laid out for her. We are beyond proud and excited about the opportunities this performance has opened up for Brooke.”
Pleger’s throw also met the USA Track and Field A Standard, which means Pleger has qualified automatically for the USA Track and Field Championships in Des Moines, Iowa.
Akron’s Brittany Funk entered the meet No. 8 in the country in the hammer throw but finished second to Pleger with a throw of 216-9, which allowed her to climb to fourth in the country.
Allison Weimer won the 400 with a personal best time of 56.25 and Jeanette Pettigrew reached the MAC automatic qualifying marks in the 100 and the 200 at the Northeast Ohio Invitational Saturday, hosted by Akron.
“We saw nice improvement today in several areas,” Snelling said. “Now we will get focused on representing well at home this week.”
Weimer, a senior, ran the 400 in 56.25 to beat 13 other competitors at the meet. Weimer improved upon her season-best 56.99 seconds and personal best 56.50, which she ran at the MAC Championships a year ago to finish 11th. Taylor Rambo, a freshman, ran the 400 for the first time in her collegiate career and finished second with a time of 56.83.
Jeanette Pettigrew edged forward in both the 100 and 200, running the 100 in 11.93 seconds, which was just .02 faster than the MAC automatic qualifying mark of 11.95 seconds. In the 200, Pettigrew’s time of 24.37 was .08 faster than the MAC automatic qualifying mark of 24.45 and better than her previous career best of 24.82.
The Falcons will have their only home meet of the year when they host Toledo in a dual meet Thursday beginning at 2 p.m.
