Feb. 19, 2010
TEMPE – The final chance to prepare for the conference championship weekend was highly successful for members of the Arizona State University track & field team in Flagstaff on Friday night as the Sun Devils won six events and earned two national berths at the NAU Tune-Up. ASU athletes also recorded five marks that rank among the Top 10 all-time on the program’s record lists.
True freshman Christabel Nettey continued to improve in the women’s long jump and punched her ticket to the national championships in three weeks as she recorded a mark of 6.38m (20-11.25) to land exactly on the automatic qualifying mark and become the first ASU woman to secure a berth into the NCAA meet. Her leap in the long jump currently ranks as the fifth-best in the nation and stands as the fourth-best all-time in school history.
Nettey’s mark was not the only top measurement on the day as Michael Stokes won the men’s event with a leap of 7.52m (24-08.25) and provisionally qualified for the national meet. Stokes’ mark also ranks highly on the all-time rankings in school history as he moved into seventh.
Kayla Sanchez and Samantha Henderson also turned in strong showings on the night as both women won a pair of events. Sanchez won a pair of sprint events by taking the 200m dash in 24.68 and the 55m dash in 7.11 (converted) while Henderson was victorious in the high jump with a clearance of 1.60m (5-03.00) and the 55m hurdles in 8.30 (converted). Sanchez’ time ranks as the ninth-best all-time in ASU history while Henderson also recorded the ninth-best time in the hurdle event.
On Saturday, the Sun Devils will play host to the Diablo Relays presented by MF Athletic at Sun Angel Stadium in Tempe with field events starting at 9 a.m. and running at 9:30 a.m. in the all-comers meet. Entry for all competitors is $5. ASU’s next indoor competition will come next weekend in Seattle as the Sun Devils will compete in the MPSF Indoor Championships.