LYNCHBURG, Va. – The VMI men's track and field team opened its 2009-10 season Wednesday by taking part in day one of the Liberty Kickoff, hosted by Liberty University at the Tolsma Indoor Track Center in Lynchburg.
Just four events were contested on the first day of competition, with all four being a part of the men's heptathlon. With three events remaining in that competition, VMI's Antonio Wood currently sits in third place, just 139 points out of the lead.
The Keydets got off to an excellent start, as the first event of the campaign was the 60-meter dash. Wood won the event in a time of 7.23 seconds, edging out unattached competitor Jacob DeValve. Richard Garcia was fourth in that race, breaking the tape in 7.34, while Taylor Schmalhofer (7.39) and Michael Munson (7.48) were sixth and seventh respectively.
In the second event of the day, the long jump, Munson made an impact with a jump of 6.23 M (20'5 ¼”) and finished just a single inch behind event winner Garen Woodbridge of Liberty. Wood was just behind his teammate, as the freshman leapt 6.12 M (20'1”) to place third. Schmalhofer and Garcia earned fifth and seventh-place finishes respectively.
The Keydets did not fare as well in the shot put, earning the fifth through eighth places, but VMI was able to rebound with the final competition. The high jump saw Wood finish first, clearing 1.89 M (6'2 ¼”) to earn 705 points, while Munson was fourth (1.80 M, 5'10 ¾”).
Woodbridge ended the first day with the lead, thanks to his total of 2748 points. That total put him 79 points ahead of DeValve, who is in second place, and Wood's 2609 markers earn him the third place ranking. Full standings are below.
“I'm very pleased with the results as a whole today,” said VMI Assistant Coach Garrett Brickner, who is in charge of the multi events. “We had solid performances for where we are at this point in the season. I'm excited to see how the hurdle and pole vault results look tomorrow, as we have worked very hard on those two events this fall.”
VMI will return to action tomorrow, as the Keydets take part in day two of the Liberty Kickoff in Lynchburg with a full slate of action on tap. The first event is scheduled to begin at noon.
Current Heptathlon Standings
1 – Garen Woodbridge, Liberty – 2748
2 – Jacob DeValve, Unattached – 2669
3 – Antonio Wood, VMI – 2609
4 – Drew Edwards, Liberty – 2454
5 – Michael Munson, VMI – 2435
6 – Kevin Richards, Radford – 2402
7 – Taylor Schmalhofer, VMI – 2148
8 – Richard Garcia, VMI – 2125
