Leaps & Bounds

Virginia’s sparkling new track facility hosted close to 400 competitors for the three-day ACC Outdoor Track & Field Champ-ionships in April. By the time it was over, the Cavaliers had plenty to be proud of. The women’s team placed second, while the men’s took third.

"I couldn’t be happier for our team," director of track and field/cross country Bryan Fetzer says. "It was a fantastic atmosphere here at Lannigan Field and it was a collective team effort this weekend."

Amid a number of championship performances by Virginia athletes, first-year Nick Vena stood out, and not just because of his imposing 6-foot-4, 280-pound frame. After winning gold in the discus and the shotput, Vena was named ACC Men’s Outdoor Most Valuable Field Performer.

Marcus Robinson won gold in the triple jump with the second-best distance in the country this year. Robinson’s jump broke the school record set in 1976 by Keith Witherspoon (Com class of ’76), who coached Robinson at J.R. Tucker High School in Richmond.

Virginia’s ACC Champs

Women

• Catherine White (Educ class of ’12) - 10,000 meters
• Erin Wykoff (Col class of ’12) - Discus

Men

• Lance Roller (Educ class of ’12) - 800 meters and 4x400 relay
• Marcus Robinson (Col class of ’11, SCPS class of ’12) - Triple jump
• Nick Vena (Educ class of ’15) - Shotput and discus
• Kevin Anding (Col class of ’12) - 4x400 relay
• Ozzie Bryan (Col class of ’14) - 4x400 relay
• Payton Hazzard (Col class of ’15) - 4x400 relay