Coming off of a dominating performance by Florida’s sprinting corps last week at the Razorback Invitational, the distance runners made their mark by breaking several personal records and earning a few nationally ranked times
The Gators competed on Friday and Saturday in the Camel City Invitational in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, as 33 runners made the trip up north to take part.
UF’s standout performance came from 800 meter runner Justin Pacifico. While his fourth-place finish may not seem particularly outstanding, it is important to note that the senior finished first among collegiate runners. The quality of the top three runners is outstanding, as first, second and third were taken by an Olympic bronze medalist, a first-team All-American, and a USATF respectively. More impressively, his 1:49.51 time broke his previous personal record and placed him in sixth nationally among 800m runners.
The Gators continued to impress in the 800 meter, as junior Abbie Harrelson finished second among collegiate runners with a 2:08.49. This time broke her indoor personal record and elevated the two-time All-SEC selection into the national conversation, now ranking 17th in the 800m.
Junior Colin Schaefer and sophomore Nick Deal both impressed for Florida in the 5,000 meters, coming in second and third, respectively. Deal’s 14:33.51 time was less than five seconds short of his teammate’s and served as a new indoor personal record for the St. Johns native.
A duo of Aussies, sophomore Imogen Barrett and senior Caitlin McQuilkin-Bell, added to a growing list of impressive performances from UF’s international contingent this past weekend. The sophomore broke her personal record in the mile with a 4:46.15 time, good for a 10th place finish. Bell broke her personal record as well, finishing with a 17:07.08 time in the 5,000 meters that led her to a strong third-place finish.
In the first 1,000 meter race of his career, freshman Hugh Brittenham impressed with a 2:30.41 time. This finish resulted in a second-place finish among collegiate participants and a first-place among Division 1 runners.
Other athletes of note are freshman Jackie Addy and junior Dominic Williams. Both runners broke their personal records over the weekend, with Addy scoring a 5:07.19 in the women’s mile and Williams earning a 9.09.55 time in the men’s 3000 meters.
The Gators will return to Clemson University for the second time next weekend to take part in the Tiger Paw Invitational and will have eyes on the quickly approaching SEC Championships, scheduled for Feb. 28 and 29 in College Station, Texas.
Follow Declan on Twitter @dawalsh_UF and contact him at dwalsh@alligator.org.
