Vanderbilt Track and Field traveled to Eugene, Oregon, to compete in the NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships this past weekend. All nine student-athletes who participated were named All-Americans, earning four second-team honors and four honorable mentions.
In the 100-meter hurdles, senior Falon Spearman was named a second-team All-American after posting a mark of 13.09, good for No. 15 overall in the event. Spearman also competed in the 400-meter hurdles semifinals alongside senior Madyson Wilson. The duo posted respective times of 57.25 seconds and 57.81 seconds, placing them No. 18 and No. 20 overall. The seniors each earned an honorable All-American mention.
Two more Vanderbilt student-athletes were also named honorable All-American mentions. Graduate student Jayden Hill earned the recognition in the 400-meter semifinals with a time of 2:02.78 and junior Lena Gooden secured the honor in the long jump, following a mark of 5.92 meters.
Graduate student Elizabeth Bailey finished the outdoor season strong by earning second-team All-American honors after a javelin throw of 53.27 meters.
The Black and Gold’s 4×400-meter relay team of Josie Donelson, Faith Franklin, Joy Moorer and Madyson Wilson made Vanderbilt history after shaving 0.45 seconds off the school record. Despite the quartet’s record-breaking showcase, which earned them second-team All-American honors, they failed to move on to the finals after placing No. 11 overall.
In the heptathlon, senior Marta Sivina had an incredible showcase in the first four events after setting two new personal bests. In the 100-meter hurdles, the Ogre, Latvia, native notched a top four finish with a time of 13.55 seconds, good for No. 7 in Vanderbilt history. Sivina also posted a personal best time of 24.46 seconds in the 200-meters dash.
On day two, Sivina continued to impress, recording another personal best — this time in the javelin — with a throw of 34.65 meters. She also secured top-10 finishes in the long jump and 800-meter dash portions of the event. Sivina was named an NCAA Second Team All-American after finishing No. 11 overall with a total of 5,778 points.
Vanderbilt Track and Field closed its outdoor season with a strong showing, highlighted by the program’s drive to grow and improve.
“Being out here and performing the way they have all season, then coming here and competing with pride, throwing with pride, jumping with pride and running with pride, it just says a lot about who we are as Commodores,” Track and Field director Althea Thomas said.
As the outdoor season comes to a close, Thomas now turns her attention to the fall Cross Country season.
