Three Lady Vols Post Top 10 Program Marks Friday At Clemson Invite

CLEMSON, S.C. — Kicking off their 2023 campaigns at the Clemson Invitational, three Lady Vols placed themselves on Tennessee track & field's all-time top 10 performance list with impressive showings Friday afternoon at the Clemson Indoor Track & Field Complex. The Big Orange also totaled 12 top-five finishes and nine indoor personal records to begin the new era under head coach Duane Ross.

Making their Tennessee debuts in the women's 60-meter dash, juniors Jacious Sears and Jonah Ross clocked times of 7.20 and 7.25 in the final to place fourth and sixth, respectively. Sears' time tied Cleo Tyson (2006) as the third fastest performer in school history in the event, while Ross now sits 10th on the Lady Vol charts.

Fifth-year senior and 2020 Olympian Joella Lloyd, who owns the 60-meter school record mark at 7.15, took third in the event on Friday with a 7.20 clocking, edging Sears by three thousandths of a second.

In the women's long jump, junior Mikele Vickers demolished her personal-best with a leap of 6.21m (20-4.5) on her second attempt to place third in the event at Clemson. The jump ranked Vickers ninth on the all-time Lady Vol performance list alongside her current teammates, Charisma Taylor and Prom'Myse Hoosier, and the program's director of operations, Ellen (Wortham) Hurst.

TOP FIVE OUTINGS: Lady Vol graduate Charisma Taylor got her fifth collegiate season off to a strong start in the 60-meter hurdles, winning her preliminary heat in 8.36 seconds before coming back in the final to run 8.20 and place third overall. The four-time All-American returns to action Saturday with entries in the triple jump and 200-meter dash.

A pair of Lady Vol seniors had career-best season debuts on Friday with Prom'Myse Hoosier competing in the long jump and Chandler Hayden in the weight throw. Hoosier leaped 6.19m (20-3.75) while Hayden threw 20.06m (65-9.75) for their best season openers since joining the program in 2019, and both athletes placed fourth in their respective events at Clemson.

Tennessee's Lady Vol pole vaulting trio of Ellison Colarossi, Kendall Ford and Sarah Schmitt each tallied podium finishes on Friday with Colarossi logging a lifetime-best clearance of 3.85m (12-7.5) to take second overall. Ford and Schmitt tied for third after clearing 3.75m (12-3.5), which was a personal best for Ford in her collegiate debut.

Running the 400-meter dash, freshman Javonya Valcourt and redshirt-junior Rasheeme Griffith each posted indoor PRs to begin their campaigns at Clemson. On the women's side, Valcourt broke 55 seconds indoors for the first time in her career with a mark of 54.24 to place second, while Griffith finished the men's open 400m in 47.94 for his first sub-48 clocking indoors.

Redshirt junior long jumper Anthony Riley wrapped up the afternoon with a third-place finish for the men of Tennessee, jumping one centimeter shy of his indoor PR with a leap of 7.64m (25-0.75) that was also less than three inches short of cracking the program's all-time top-10 list.

PR TRACKER: Tennessee's athletes collectively recorded nine indoor personal records on Friday at the Clemson Invitational.

Jacious Sears - Women's 60m - 7.20
Jonah Ross - Women's 60m - 7.25
Javonya Valcourt - Women's 400m - 54.24
Ellison Colarossi - Women's Pole Vault - 3.85m / 12-7.5
Kendall Ford - Women's Pole Vault - 3.75m / 12-3.5
Mikele Vickers - Women's Long Jump - 6.21m / 20-4.5
T'Mars McCallum - Men's 60m - 6.80
Isaiah Monroe - Men's 60m - 7.02
Rasheeme Griffith - Men's 400m - 47.94

UP NEXT: Tennessee wraps up the Clemson Invitational Saturday, beginning at 11 a.m. with the men's triple jump and concluding at approximately 2:55 p.m. with the men's 4x400-meter relay.

University of Tennessee | Official Athletics Site

Three Lady Vols Post Top 10 Program Marks Friday At Clemson Invite

Players Mentioned

Ellison Colarossi

Kendall Ford

Rasheeme Griffith

Chandler Hayden

Prom'Myse Hoosier

Joella Lloyd

T'Mars McCallum

Isaiah Monroe

Anthony Riley

Jonah Ross

Sarah Schmitt

Jacious Sears

Charisma Taylor

Javonya Valcourt

Mikele Vickers

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