Distance Relays, Mondschein, Fludd and Jullien Win on first day of VT Challenge

BLACKSBURG, Va. - Virginia Tech\'s track & field teams completed the first day of the the Virginia Tech Challenge, which is held on a 200 meter banked track inside the Rector Fieldhouse on the Tech campus. The Hokies had three individual and two relay teams win. All three of the individual winners are from Tech\'s 22nd ranked men\'s team.

The Hokie men\'s and women\'s distance medley relay teams took top honors. Billy Berlin (Fr., Midlothian, Va.), Alex Johnson (Jr., Phoenix, Ariz.), Duncan Vick (So, Richmond, Va.) and James Scheiner (Fr., Centreville, Va.) ran as Tech\'s \"A\" squad in the men\'s DMR. They clocked a time of 10:08.38 for the win.

Natalie Sherbak (Fr., Virginia Beach, Va.), Victoria Green (Jr, Chesapeake, Va.), Meredith Brooks (So., Burke, Va.) and Jessica Fanning (Fr., Charlottesville, Va.) won the women\'s DMR in 11:45.05.

\"It is always a good feeling to win at home,\" stated Tech\'s distance coach Ben Thomas. \"We had several PR\'s (personal records) in the men\'s DMR and the women\'s DMR time ranks third in Virginia Tech\'s all-time performance list. I am proud of the distance runners intensity and competitive spirit. We need to stay focused and concentrate on getting better for next weekend\'s ACC championships.\"

Brian Mondschein earned his third men\'s pole vault win of the season with his NCAA provisional qualifying and PR jump of 17\'7.50\" (5.37m). With his mark, Mondschein currently leads the ACC and is tied for fourth in the NCAA division I.

Three-time All-American and two-time BIG EAST weight throw champion, Spyridon Jullien (Jr., Athens, Greece), once again won the men\'s 35 lb. weight throw competition with his NCAA automatic mark of 75\'6\" (23.01m). Jullien remains the No. 1 men\'s weight throw athlete in the nation.

Jason Fludd (Sr., Stafford, Va.) won the men\'s triple jump with a season best mark of 50\'0.75\" (15.26m). Idikoro Eradiri (So., Ashburn, Va.) placed sixth in the triple jump.

Speaking of PR\'s, Kristen Callan (So., Monroe, N.Y.) threw the 20 lb. weight 62\'10.75\" (19.17m) for fourth place in the event. She recorded her fourth NCAA provisional qualifying mark of the season.

David Clowney (So., Delray Beach, Fla.) qualified for the men\'s 55 meter final. He grabbed fourth place in the semifinals in a time of 6.38.

Tina Tremmel (Jr.-Tr., Dossenhem, Germany) had Tech\'s fastest time in the women\'s 1,000 meters. She clocked 3:01.95 for fourth place. Katie Danyko (Jr., Sterling Hts., Mich.) and Kristin Hart (Fr., Herndon, Va.) finished right behind her in sixth and seventh place, respectively.

Mark Wieder (Fr., Harrisburg, Pa.) finished in 19th place in the men\'s 1,000 meters. Andrew Montgomery (Fr., Falls Church, Va.) took 16th in the men\'s 5,000 meters while Bryan McVey (Fr., Arlington Hts., Ill.) was the 24th runner in the race.

Shamane Onwudiachi (Sr., Laurel, Md.) had the Hokies fastest women\'s 55 meters time (7.39). Jackie Nicholson (Sr., Clayton, N.J.) had an 8.40 55-meter hurdle time in the preliminaries but recorded a 8.45 in the semifinals.