On April 21, the ETSU track and field teams competed at the Georgia Tech Invitational.

The Bucs’ Head Coach George Watts was very excited that the team had the opportunity to show their talents at such a large showcase.

The Georgia Tech Invitational featured schools such as Belmont, Clemson, Syracuse and many others. Going into the event, Watts was looking forward to the 4x100m relay to qualify for regionals.

Day one of the event for the women in the 100m dash started with Kiana Davis (Ooltewah, Tenn.) finishing 29th with a time of 12.31 seconds. While in the 100 meter hurdles Kyra Atkins (Greer, S.C.) finished ninth with a time of 13.71 seconds.

Atkins also finished top 10 in the women’s long jump, finishing in eighth place. Going into the meet, Watts thought this would be a big weekend for Akins.

“She’s a conference leader hopefully this will help her move up in the NCAA list,” said Watts. “Hopefully she can get a personal best time and set a school record.”

In the women’s 1500m, the Bucs got another top 10 finish when Kaitlyn Lay (Knoxville, Tenn.) finished ninth with a time of 4:37.89. Macy Carrier (Bluff City, Tenn.) kept the Bucs top 10 finishes going, finishing ninth in the women’s 3000m steeplechase.

On the men’s side, Watts was looking forward to seeing how Simeon Roberts (Greeneville, Tenn.) ran.

“He’s not too far off a NCAA regional time but he’s not there yet,” said Watts.

Roberts finished in second place in the men’s 3000m steeplechase. In the men’s 1500m Josh Routh (Gray, Tenn.) finished in 17th place. In the men’s 100m David Perez (Asheville, N.C.) finished in 37th place.

In the women’s 4×100 relay on Saturday, the team of Kyra Atkins, Kiana Davis, Lamisha Simmons (Dania Beach, Fla.) and Katrina Seymour (New Providence, Bahamas) finished in second place.

In the men’s 400m, the team of David Perez (Asheville, NC), Harper Sigler (Bogart, Ga.), Ashton Wilson (Gray, Tenn.), and Tyler Houston (Lawrenceville, Ga.) finished in seventh place. In the women’s 400m hurdles, Katrina Seymour finished first.

Overall, the Bucs had a successful weekend, securing multiple top 10 finishes.

“Our goal is to just stay healthy,” said Watts.

Author

  • Edwin Nelson

    Edwin Nelson is a Sophomore from Chattanooga who moved to Johnson City to pursue a journalism degree at ETSU. His passion for writing about sports — especially basketball — is what led him to choose journalism as a major and join the East Tennessean staff. When he’s not watching the Bucs play, he’s watching his favorite professional basketball team, the Cleveland Cavaliers.

    View all posts