DePaul University Athletics
Millar Wins BIG EAST Hammer Throw Title
5/6/2007 12:00:00 AM | TRACK AND FIELD
STORRS, Conn. - Brad Millar captured the BIG EAST Conference men's hammer throw title on Sunday as the DePaul men's and women's track and field teams closed out the 2007 BIG EAST Outdoor Championships. The Blue Demon men scored 31 points to finish 11th in the team standings while the women's squad posted 13 points to finish 15th.
Millar became DePaul's first BIG EAST champion as he seized the hammer throw crown with a personal-best mark of 62.09m. He gave the Blue Demons 10 points while breaking the NCAA Regional qualifying standard of 55.60m for the fourth time this season. Millar earned four more points for his team as he finished fifth in the men's javelin throw with a distance of 57.86m.
The women's hammer throw saw Tammy Burris grab fourth place with a personal-best mark of 55.45m while Jamie Holifield followed in fifth place with a season-best 54.21m throw. Burris scored five points and Holifield earned four points as both Blue Demons exceeded the NCAA Regional qualifying standard of 54.15m.
Piotr Lewkowski, Donnie Smith, Gabe Vargas and Gabe Harris scored five points as they took fourth place in the men's 4x100m relay with a time of 42.15. Richard Fugiel and Gilbert Lifton joined Harris and Vargas in the men's 4x400m relay. The Blue Demon foursome finished eighth and scored one point with a season-best time of 3:15.12.
The women's 800m run saw Allyson Petersen finish seventh while Claire Duck followed in eighth place. Petersen scored two points with a time of 2:14.15 and Duck scored one point with a time of 2:17.47. Duck also finished eighth and scored one point in the 1,500m run with a season-best time of 4:29.25.
Joe Strawder earned eighth place in the men's triple jump with a season-best mark of 14.69m. The Blue Demon freshman scored one point.
The women's relay teams notched a pair of DePaul records in the 4x100m relay and 4x400m relay. Mary Hodges, Kyra Coffey, LaShunta Sanders and Stephanie Williams posted a 4x100m time of 47.05 to finish ninth and break the 2004 record of 47.42 that Hodges set with Dee Moore, Marissa Petersen and Diana Runnels. Allyson Petersen and Erica Scott passed the baton with Coffey and Sanders in the 4x400m relay for a time of 3:48.56. They finished ninth and broke the 2005 record of 3:49.25 that Sanders and Scott set with Marissa Petersen and Courtney Grand Pre.
Notre Dame topped the women's standings with 120.50 points and Louisville won the men's team title with 142 points. The Blue Demon men placed ahead of Marquette, Pittsburgh and Providence, while the DePaul women finished ahead of USF.
DePaul returns to competition this Thursday and Friday at the Dr. Keeler Invitational in Naperville, Ill. The meet at North Central College offers the last chance to post qualifying performances for the NCAA Regional Championships.