ATHENS, GA – Ashley Howard got back on track in her quest to become the second Winthrop Eagle to qualify for the National Championships for Track and Field as she uncorked a toss of 168 feet, 6 inches to shatter her school and Big South record in the women's discus during the meet held at the University of Georgia.
The throw official measured 51.35m breaking her five-week old record toss of 50.75m set at the Asics Invitational in March. Howard won the event by over 6 feet and now moves back into the top 30 in the United States at No. 29.
Sasha Robinson continued her breakthrough junior season with an easy victory in the 400 meter dash with a time of 55.07 seconds. Robinson, who is hoping improve on her No. 40 ranking in the NCAA East Region had to battle 30 mph winds that slowed the race considerably.
Indoor champion and outdoor runner-up Keary Simms hurdled to a fourth place finish of 14.28 seconds in the 110 meter hurdles and looks poised to run very well in the next few weeks. Although he didn't finish in the top three places, junior Billy Pearce heaved the discus 160 feet, 3 inches to set a new school record and claim 6th place.
“This was not a bad tune up for this time of the year,” said Winthrop head coach Ben Paxton. “It is very exciting to see Ashley iron out some of her problems that she has encountered over the last few weeks. Coach (Brett) Best is getting her primed at the right time. I wish the weather would have cooperated for Sasha's run, but she did dominate in tough conditions. We have athletes moving up the NCAA list and a few on the edge. Our meet next week should tell us a lot about our team”
