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The Daily Tar Heel

UNC track and field sees several strong showings at Tennessee Relays

The North Carolina track and field team spent the weekend in Knoxville, Tenn. at the Tennessee Relays, where they continued their upward trajectory with several high-ranking performances.

What happened?

On the track, junior Kenny Selmon made noise in his outdoor season debut, winning the 400-meter hurdles in an ACC third-best time of 50.95. Also notable in that race was a quick finish from first-year Brandon Cachone, who place third. Junior Logan Carroll notched a top-ten ACC time with his 14:23.31 in the 5,000-meter race.

On the infield, Daniel McArthur continued his impressive first-year campaign with an ACC fifth best throw of 56’ 8” in the shot put. Sophomore Darryl Shaw improved on his season best to net the fifth-best triple jump in the conference this season.

The women’s team was anchored by performances off the track. Sophomore Nicole Greene beat in-conference rival Eleonora Omoregie of Florida State with an ACC-leading mark in the high jump. The jump also ranks eighth in the NCAA this season. First-year Brianna Duncan placed third in the long jump, and junior Alexis Gannon had a lifetime best performance in the triple jump with an ACC second-best jump.

Who stood out?

Redshirt senior Sarah Howard has put together a formidable final campaign since the indoor season, but this weekend was the high point so far. The thrower finally broke the 17-meter mark for the first time in her career in the shot put, which earned her the second best mark in UNC history.

The women’s 4x400-meter relay of juniors Natisha Dixon, Jewel Christian and Cierra Dunston and first-year McKinley McNeill continued improving their season-best, this time shaving off nearly three seconds for an ACC fifth ranked time, finishing third in the meet.

The men’s team of Cachon, Selmon, redshirt junior Kwame Donyinah and redshirt senior R.J. Alowonle, clocked an ACC third-best time in their runner up finish.

Why does it matter?

The team has consistently improved from meet to meet, but the Tennessee Relays were a chance for the Tar Heels to show how those marks would stack up against elite competition. The results were positive for the team, with myriad marks cracking the ACC and NCAA rankings.

Most importantly, these marks came from a diversity of athletes. Throwers, jumpers and track runners all contributed to the all-around effort. This should give the Tar Heels fresh confidenc, as they get closer to post season competition.

Where do they compete next?

The team will travel down the road to High Point to compete in the High Point Invite from April 14-15.

@James_Tatter

sports@dailytarheel.com

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