Temple University Athletics
DMR Takes Gold; Two Records Drop on Day One of AAC Championships
2.28.20 | Women's Track and Field
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Temple track and field team shined on day one of the 2020 American Athletic Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships in Birmingham, Ala. on Friday afternoon. The distance medley relay team reset the conference meet record and earned its first gold medal just after Grace Moore shattered the 5000m school record to cap off a successful first day of championship competition.
Meet Highlights
> The Owls set the tone for a successful day in their first event on the track when senior Millie Howard and junior Helene Gottlieb breezed through mile trials to each punch a ticket into tomorrow's final. Howard took the third seed in the event with a time of 4:58.07 and Gottlieb crossed the finish line in 4:58.12 to earn fifth to advance into a thrilling finals field.
> Marissa White built off of her teammate's momentum and ran an outstanding 400m dash to qualify for finals for the second-straight year. The sophomore clocked in at 55.68 to win her heat and advance into tomorrow's championship round seeded seventh. Junior Mallorie Smith also performed well in the quarter mile, running an indoor personal record of 56.56 in her first event of the day. Following, Junior Sydney Williams ran her fastest-ever 60m hurdles time of 8.77 to finish 12th.
> Temple was spectacular in the 800m prelims, sweeping the top-three seeds by taking first in each heat to each advance into finals. Gottlieb hit the track first out of the three, winning her heat with a time of 2:11.96 to qualify as the event's top-seed. Howard dominated heat two, clocking in at 2:13.17 for a second place finish in trials to advance in her second event of the day. Record-holder Alanna Lally coasted through her first-ever AAC Championship event, crossing the finish line in 2:14.47 to complete the trifecta.
> The Cherry and White continued to shine in the 5000m. After missing last indoor season due to injury, Moore raced her first-ever 5K on an indoor track and was nothing short of spectacular. The redshirt-junior shattered the school record in the event by over 10 seconds, posting a time of 16:38.15 for a fourth place finish that earned the Owls five points. Michelle Joyce was also outstanding in the event, breaking the 17-minute mark at 16:59.02 to finish sixth overall.
> After a full day of competition, Temple saved the best for last with its performance in the distance medley relay. Entering the meet as the event's top-seed, the relay team of Gottlieb, White, Lally and Howard exceeded expectations to take the crown in the DMR for the first time in program history. The squad crossed the finish line in 11:26.89, shattering the conference meet record (11:29.93) by over three seconds and earning the team's first gold medal of the weekend.
Up Next
> The Owls will conclude their 2019-20 indoor slate tomorrow on day two of the American Athletic Conference Championships. Action will begin in the field with Aisha Brown competing in the high jump at 9:45 a.m. (CT) and will continue with Candus Burks in the triple jump at 11:00 a.m.
> Howard and Gottlieb will hit the track first for the day to compete in the mile finals at 11:20 a.m. 20 minutes later, White will fight for the title in the 400m dash at 11:40 p.m.
> Finals for the 800m run will be raced at 1:00 p.m. and will feature the mid-distance trio of Lally, Gottlieb and Howard. At 1:40 p.m., Moore and Joyce will return to the track to compete in the 3,000m and wrap up individual competition for the day. The championship meet will conclude with the running of the 4x400m relay at 2:50 p.m.
Meet Highlights
> The Owls set the tone for a successful day in their first event on the track when senior Millie Howard and junior Helene Gottlieb breezed through mile trials to each punch a ticket into tomorrow's final. Howard took the third seed in the event with a time of 4:58.07 and Gottlieb crossed the finish line in 4:58.12 to earn fifth to advance into a thrilling finals field.
> Marissa White built off of her teammate's momentum and ran an outstanding 400m dash to qualify for finals for the second-straight year. The sophomore clocked in at 55.68 to win her heat and advance into tomorrow's championship round seeded seventh. Junior Mallorie Smith also performed well in the quarter mile, running an indoor personal record of 56.56 in her first event of the day. Following, Junior Sydney Williams ran her fastest-ever 60m hurdles time of 8.77 to finish 12th.
> Temple was spectacular in the 800m prelims, sweeping the top-three seeds by taking first in each heat to each advance into finals. Gottlieb hit the track first out of the three, winning her heat with a time of 2:11.96 to qualify as the event's top-seed. Howard dominated heat two, clocking in at 2:13.17 for a second place finish in trials to advance in her second event of the day. Record-holder Alanna Lally coasted through her first-ever AAC Championship event, crossing the finish line in 2:14.47 to complete the trifecta.
> The Cherry and White continued to shine in the 5000m. After missing last indoor season due to injury, Moore raced her first-ever 5K on an indoor track and was nothing short of spectacular. The redshirt-junior shattered the school record in the event by over 10 seconds, posting a time of 16:38.15 for a fourth place finish that earned the Owls five points. Michelle Joyce was also outstanding in the event, breaking the 17-minute mark at 16:59.02 to finish sixth overall.
> After a full day of competition, Temple saved the best for last with its performance in the distance medley relay. Entering the meet as the event's top-seed, the relay team of Gottlieb, White, Lally and Howard exceeded expectations to take the crown in the DMR for the first time in program history. The squad crossed the finish line in 11:26.89, shattering the conference meet record (11:29.93) by over three seconds and earning the team's first gold medal of the weekend.
Up Next
> The Owls will conclude their 2019-20 indoor slate tomorrow on day two of the American Athletic Conference Championships. Action will begin in the field with Aisha Brown competing in the high jump at 9:45 a.m. (CT) and will continue with Candus Burks in the triple jump at 11:00 a.m.
> Howard and Gottlieb will hit the track first for the day to compete in the mile finals at 11:20 a.m. 20 minutes later, White will fight for the title in the 400m dash at 11:40 p.m.
> Finals for the 800m run will be raced at 1:00 p.m. and will feature the mid-distance trio of Lally, Gottlieb and Howard. At 1:40 p.m., Moore and Joyce will return to the track to compete in the 3,000m and wrap up individual competition for the day. The championship meet will conclude with the running of the 4x400m relay at 2:50 p.m.
Players Mentioned
Jumps
/ Women's Track and Field
Jumps
/ Women's Track and Field
Mid-Distance
/ Women's Track and Field
Mid-Distance
/ Women's Track and Field
Distance
/ Women's Track and Field
Distance
/ Women's Track and Field
Distance
/ Women's Track and Field
Sprints
/ Women's Track and Field
Sprints
/ Women's Track and Field
Sprints/Hurdles
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