Meet: Brant Tolsma Invitational
Location: Lynchburg, Va. (Liberty Indoor Track Complex)
 
The short story: The throwers set the tone for the Rams again in this weekend's meet, with the Black and Gold bringing home first and second place in the weight throw. 
 
THROWS:

• Gudrun Hallgrimsdottir earned first place in the weight throw with a distance of 20.72 meters. The event consisted of 48 entries
• Eryn Byrd finished second in the weigh throw behind Hallgrimsdottir, as the graduate senior threw 18.88 meters in the event. Byrd also earned third place in the shot put, as she recorded a distance of 14.55 meters
• Sophomore Blanca Pereira set a new personal best in the weight throw, as she threw 16.13 meters, besting her previous record of 15.57 meters
• Like Matalatala and Desi Akaolisa finished ninth and 10th, respectively, in the shot put, as Matalatala threw 13.50 meters and Akaolisa recorded a distance of 13.48 meters 

DISTANCE:

• In the 5000-meter race, junior Ava Miller's time of 18:18.28 marks the eighth best time in school history for the event. Miller earned seventh in the race
• Sophomore Shreya Krishnamurthy recorded a new personal best in the 1-mile race as well

SPRINTS:

• In the finals of the 60-meter dash, junior Kayelyn Tate and graduate senior Lauryn Taylor finished sixth and seventh, respectively. Tate's best time of the day came in the prelims as she notched a mark of 7.60, while Taylor's best came in the finals as she recorded a time of 7.63
• Tate also recorded the best time for the Black and Gold in the 200-meter race, as her time of 25.10 earned her eighth in out of 90 entries
• Sophomore Jaliyah Person finished third in the 400-meter, as her time of 56.93 was just shy of besting her personal record of 56.27. Freshmen June Hobaugh and Tori Lewis both recorded personal best times in the event as well 

JUMPS:

• Junior Selkis Elong earned the best placement for VCU in the long jump, as her distance of 5.77 meters landed her fifth place in the event. Elong finished just shy of her personal record, a mark that is top 10 in school history
• Amaya Wiggins finished seventh place in the long jump, as the sophomore recorded a new personal best distance of 5.69 meters, shattering her previous best of 5.16 meters
• Senior Sydney Carr notched the best mark for the Black and Gold in the triple jump with a distance of 11.72 meters
• Nayome Shipp earned sixth in the high jump, as the senior recorded a height of 1.64 meters

HURDLES:

• The Rams had three personal bests set in the 60-meter hurdles, as junior Sophie Heinold and freshmen Lewis and Hobaugh who ran the hurdles after just finishing the 400-meter, all recorded new best times

Quote:
"The women had a very solid meet. Our young athletes are gaining confidence, and our returners are settling in. We are looking to big things coming from this group as the season progresses." – HEad Coach Jon Riley

Next Up
VCU next travels to Fairfax, Va. where they will compete in the Patriot Games hosted by George Mason. The meet will take place on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 31-Feb. 1.