Tucson, Ariz. – The University of Arizona track and field throws group is set to compete in the 2018 Tucson Elite Classic on Thursday, May 17th and Saturday May 19th. Competition is set to begin on Thursday and Saturday at 4 p.m. MST at Roy P. Drachman Stadium.
On Thursday,
Turner Washington competed in the discus throw. The freshman threw a mark of 55.38m (181-8).
Competing in the Tucson Elite Classic on Saturday will be
Megan Dulaney, and
Kaelyn Shipley.
On the men's side,
Jordan Geist,
Turner Washington, and
Grayson Fleming will compete.
Each throwing discipline will feature a deep field of world-class athletes. The men's shot put will feature 2016 IAAF World Indoor Championships, and the gold medalist at the 2017 World Athletics champion Tom Walsh, 2016 Olympian Darrell Hill. Diego Alan Del Real Galindo and Alexander Young highlight the professionals in the hammer throw. Sam Mattis and USA Paralympian David Blair will compete in the discus throw. Team USA Olympian Tia Brooks-Wannemacher will highlight the ladies shot put. Whitney Ashley, who competed for Team USA in three consecutive Global Championships, will throw the discus. Two-time indoor world champion and six time NCAA champion Ryan Whiting will compete in the shot put event on Saturday. Athletes from Australia, Mexico, Great Britain, and New Zealand will make the trip to Tucson to compete. Ariana Ince of the Valessa Track Club highlights the women's javelin throw and her teammate Michael Shuey will compete in the men's competition.
Marks for this meet will not count towards NCAA qualifiers, but will count towards personal bests and school records. Admission is free to the public.
Coverage: A complete recap of the Tucson Elite Classic will be available on ArizonaWildcats.com following the competition. You can follow @ArizonaTrack on Twitter for live updates.
Last Time Out: The Cats competed in the 2018 Pac-12 Championships, where the men finished in fourth with 91 points and the women took 7th with 44 points. The Cats claimed Pac-12 titles in the men's shot put, discus, and 4x400-meter relay. Freshman
Jordan Geist was named athlete of the meet following a 22-point performance.
Knochness Monster: Freshman
Jordan Geist amassed 22 points in the Pac-12 Championships to earn him Athlete of the Meet Honors. Geist became the first freshman in conference history to double as the shot put and discus champion. Geist also set an outdoor best of 20.06m (65-9.75) to win the shot put and PRed in the hammer throw with a mark of 61.60m (202-1). He threw a mark of 57.56m (188-10) in the discus to win the event.
Throwing Points: The men's throws squad accounted for 31 of the team's 91 points. Wining the shot put on day one, Geist was credited with 10 points. Geist, along with
Turner Washington and
Grayson Fleming amassed 16 points in the discus throw. In the hammer throw, Geist and Fleming combined for five points.
Spearing for Points: In the javelin,
Kaelyn Shipley scored a pair of points with a mark of 45.50m (149-3). The mark was good for a seventh-place finish.
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