March 29, 2003

RALEIGH, N.C. - The Clemson men's track and field team posted four regional qualifying marks at the Raleigh Relays. The Tigers qualified student-athletes in the pole vault, shot put, steeplechase and 4x100m relay while winning three events.

Itay Magidi won the 3000m steeplechase with a time of 9:06.13, qualifying for the regional championships. The Tigers' 4x100m relay team also qualified for the region meet, posting a time of 40.35. Ryan Lewis qualified for the East Region Championships in the pole vault, clearing 16'0.75". That mark was good for a second-place finish. Matt Lombardi placed fifth in the shot put, posting a personal-best mark of 53'11" to qualify for the region meet. Clemson's 4x200m relay team was also a winner on Saturday, claiming the race in 1:23.87.

In the running events, Larry Griffin placed fifth in the 100m dash with a time of 10.64, while Grafton Ifill clocked a 10.77 in the preliminaries of the event. In the 200m, Ifill placed second with a time of 21.57. Ryan Hunter led three Tigers in the 400m, finishing in 50.00. Garrick Copes and Rick Hill finished the 400m in 50.65 and 51.73, respectively. In the 800m, Marcus Hodge ran a time of 1:52.96 to place eighth, and Mike Barton clocked a personal-best time of 3:54.39 in the 1500m to finish third. In the second section of the 3000m steeplechase, David Adams paced Clemson with a fifth-place finish in 9:31.69, while David Smith and Ryan Fenton were sixth and eighth with times of 9:36.94 and 9:38.83, respectively. Scott Shaw recorded a personal-best time of 14:46.32 in the 5000m, and Jason Meany was the runner-up in the 10,000m with a time of 30:23.85. Matt Pimentel also competed in the 10,000m, clocking a time of 32:03.49. In the 110m hurdles, Rashad Gardner posted a time of 14.94 in the preliminaires. Michael Bolling placed ninth in the 400m hurdles with a time of 53.42, and Gardner was 14th in 53.88. The Tigers' sprint medley relay team placed second in 3:23.27.

George Kitchens placed third in the long jump with a mark of 23'8", and Ryan Hunter cleared 15'3" in the pole vault. Derek Gilson posted an eighth-place finish in the shot put with a mark of 52'7.25", then recorded a mark of 151'11" in the discus. Matt Lombardi also competed in the discus, placing seventh with a mark of 156'9".

The Clemson men's track and field team will return to action next Saturday, Apr. 5, at the Clemson Invitational.