Despite the rain, it was a good weekend for the athletes in the Duke Invitational track and field meet.
Ten meet records were broken during the two-day meet, held Friday and Saturday at Wallace Wade Stadium. Several school and personal records were set by the men's and women's track teams.
"It's probably the best meet we've had in the last five years," said assistant women's coach Scott Yakola. "It's hard to get a good meet in early April."
Sophomore Doug Kling won his heat in the 800-meter run, setting a personal best at 1:52.91. In the same heat, sophomore Miles Hall placed third in 1:53.55, also setting a personal record.
Both Kling and Hall should be well-placed to make the final in the upcoming Atlantic Coast Conference tournament, according to assistant coach Norm Ogilvie. Kling and Hall have the team's fastest times in the 800 this year.
In the women's distance medley relay, Duke's "A" team of Liz Hanly, Christine Gregorski, Beth Berghausen and Jeanne McFeely broke the school record by 14 seconds on their way to a fourth-place finish, with a time of 12:00.99.
The men's distance medley relay team also placed fourth, with a time of 10:04.39. The team, made up of Kling, Hall, Mike Coles and Mark Donahue, should qualify for the Penn Relays, held April 23-24 in Philadelphia.
"The Penn Relays are really the culmination of our season," Ogilvie said. The relays are one of the most prestigious and best-attended track meets in the country. Attendance at the Saturday session of the relays last year was approximately 40,000, Ogilvie said.
The women's 4x400 relay team also did well, recording a time of 4:03.83 and placing seventh overall. Their time was the fastest run by a Duke team in four years, Yakola said. The team consisted of Veronica Davi, Beth Gadkowski, Joanna Boettinger and Joanne Marlin.
Davi, a freshman, also placed eighth in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 1:04.76.
Freshman Megan Mitchell broke the school record in the shot put with a toss of 37 feet, 2 1/2 inches. Her performance placed her eighth overall and shattered the mark she had posted only last week.
The men's 4x400 relay team placed fifth in their heat with a time of 3:25.67, their best of the year. Team members were Coles, Kling, Hall, and Gregg Wilkerson.
"The team did well," Ogilvie said. "People respond well, running at home for the only time this year. The crowd really got into it."
Yakola said he was extremely happy with the performance of the women's team. "We're right where we need to be heading into the next two weeks -- the [ACC] tournament and the Penn Relays."
The ACC Tournament will be held at the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill Friday and Saturday.
Former Duke standout Randy Jones, competing for the Durham Striders track club, made the final in the men's 100-meter run where he placed fourth in 10.82.
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