The Bruins track and field teams were given a great challenge at the John Weaver Invitational at Appalachian State University, but overcame the rainy conditions to put up great results.

"We approached this late season meet with high performance expectations, and the team did a great job and rose to the occasion," Head Coach Ken Roach said. "We put in the long reps throughout the season and wanted to test our competitive mentality to capture the moment.  As we head into to Nationals, we have to trust ourselves to be ready to deliver our goals. Very proud of this team and I have confidence we can rise higher.

The meet started out with a bang on Friday with the Bruins javelin throwers. Abby Woo was feeling good and looking for a personal best throw. Staying cool, she got exactly that and came in second place. Misha Gray and Sam Ashley followed her up in the men's javelin throw where Gray threw a personal best to place in third.

• Women's Javelin: Abby Woo - 30.03 meters
• Men's Javelin: Misha Gray - 46.95 meters | Sam Ashley - 33.56 meters

To close out a pretty short day for the Bruins was Jacob Doshier and Judah Nash who finished one after another in the men's 3k steeplechase. This was Nash's first time running in the event.

• Men's 3k Steeplechase: Jacob Doshier - 10:32 | Judah Nash - 10:37

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Saturday morning began with clear skies and made it nearly perfect conditions for the women's and men's distance crew to run a 5k, even though the 3300 feet of elevation may have affected the races difficulty. Lauren Jones and Kristen Dodds were on the track first for the Bruins in the women's 5k followed by James Baer and Daniel Kyle in the men's 5k. All four of those runners scored points for the Bruins. Samantha Jones was next in the women's mile followed by Luke VanDenBerghe in the men's mile.

• Women's 5k: Lauren Jones - 21:09 | Kristen Dodds - 21:18
• Men's 5k: James Baer - 17:09 | Daniel Kyle - 17:58
• Women's Mile: Samantha Jones - 6:05
• Men's Mile: Luke VanDenBerghe - 5:27

The drizzle began right before the women's and men's 100 meter dash where Bri Felter represented the women's team, and Leo Mota and Kyle Williams raced in the men's dash. Mota hit a milestone personal best going under 11 seconds for the first time. Liz Farley was next in the women's 400 meter dash with Misha Gray and Jeremiah Medrano following in the men's 400 meter dash. Gray and Medrano both finished with personal bests.

• Women's 100 Meter Dash: Bri Felter - 13.28 seconds
• Men's 100 Meter Dash: Leo Mota - 10.99 seconds | Kyle Williams - 11.41 seconds
• Women's 400 Meter Dash: Liz Farley - 1:08
• Men's 400 Meter Dash: Misha Gray - 50.84 seconds | Jeremiah Medrano - 51.57 seconds

It was shortly after the 400 meter dash that the rain started to pour down creating puddles, slippery conditions, but fun memories. Those conditions didn't stop Emily Walton or Kate Amato, though, as they both finished with personal bests in the 800 meter race. Walton's time put her in the top five of the meet. Joel Batres-Mena followed in the men's 800 meter race and still ran to the standard despite being boxed in for a majority of it. Melody Davis raced next in the women's 400 meter hurdles and her time gave the Bruins eight points.

• Women's 800 Meter Race: Emily Walton - 2:27 | Kate Amato - 2:39
• Men's 800 Meter Race: Joel Batres-Mena - 2:00
• Women's 400 Meter Hurdles: Melody Davis - 1:13

The Bruins ended the days with a flurry of runners in each the women's and men's 200 meter dash. Bri Felter and Melody Davis were back on the track and in the rain, and both finished inside the top seven. Will Stark led the way with a second place finish in the men's 200 meter dash with Misha Gray, Leo Mota, and Kyle Williams all shortly behind.

• Women's 200 Meter Dash: Bri Felter - 28.20 seconds | Melody Davis - 29.33 seconds
• Men's 200 Meter Dash: Will Stark - 22.45 seconds | Misha Gray - 22.80 seconds | Leo Mota - 23.32 seconds | Kyle Williams - 24.12 seconds

After the sprinters closed their events, the Bruins quickly packed their belongings and left grateful for the experience at this meet.

Full results for the meet can be seen here.

Next week, a few Bruins will head to Lexington, Kentucky to compete in the Jim Green Invitational as a tune-up for the NCCAA Outdoor Track and Field National Championships coming up in two weeks.

(personal best)