Meet Recap: Armory Collegiate Invitational presented by NYRR 

NEW YORK CITY -- The Men of Wisconsin and Women of Arkansas prevailed here on the final day of competition at the Armory Collegiate Invitational presented by NYRR. Records fell by the wayside and fast times were run in bunches, including a number of college leaders.

For Wisconsin, the win was extra special considering head coach Mick Byrne spent many years living in New York City and coaching Iona College. 

"It's exciting," said Byrne, whose team tallied 63 points. "A lot of our kids have never been to New York City before. It's their first time running at The Armory, so it was a great opportunity for us to show off The Armory and show New York City to our kids."

On Saturday, Wisconsin's Mo Ahmed won the 3000m in 7:55.45 and Michael Lihrman claimed first in the weight throw with a mark of 75 feet, 4 inches.

Byrne said that the team's performance was an indication of good things to come at the Big Ten Conference meet in three weeks.

"It's February, time to get everyone rolling. I think this weekend we really got a lot of our kid's coming into the championship part of the season," Byrne said.

On the women's side, Arkansas scored 93.5 points, topping Mississippi State and South Carolina. Among Arkansas' wins were freshman Regine Williams in the 200 meters (23.59 seconds) and Stephanie Brown in the 800 meters (2:06.91). The Razorbacks also won the distance medley relay on Friday.

Saturday's competition at The New Balance Track & Field Center at The Armory was filled with notable performances. 

While other teams had trouble passing the baton from one leg to the next, Pittsburgh executed a near flawless 4x200m Championship relay. The quartet of Carvin Nkanata, Brycen Spratling, Desmond Palmer, and Micah Murray timed 1:25.24, a new Armory and meet record by .23 of a second.

Pittsburgh wasn't done competing, though. The Panthers quartet returned for the 4x400 meters, winning in 3:09.08. Spratling, a senior, was named the men's Outstanding Collegiate Athlete of the meet. 

South Carolina senior Jeannelle Scheper cleared 6 feet, 2 inches in the high jump (1.88 meters), a new meet record. Scheper, who is ranked number one among collegiate high jumpers this season, was the only athlete to soar over six feet.

Arizona's Nick Ross and Mississippi State's Marcus Jackson treated The Armory crowd to a show in the men's high jump. Jackson, the 2013 champion, managed to clear 7-03.75. But Ross, a senior competing at The Armory for the first time, went even higher. He made 7-5 and then took three attempts at 7-7.25 on the way to winning the event. 

In the men's triple jump, Kennesaw State junior Andre Dorsey soared 53 feet, 4.5 inches (16.27 meters), a new NCAA leading mark. 

Other highlights included:

- Mandissa Marshall of George Mason clearing 14 feet, 1.25 inches in the pole vault.

- Hampton's Teiara Denmark jumping 20 feet, 6.50 inches in the long jump.

- Coppin State's Christina Epps soared 43 feet, 2.25 inches in the triple jump.

- Mississippi State's Brandon McBride narrowly missed a meet record in the 800 meters, finishing first in 1:48.29.

- BYU's Braydon Bringhurst and Kansas's Alex Bishop both cleared 17-10.50 in the pole vault.

A number of stellar performances were turned in by high schoolers in the junior races. Both the boys and girls 4x800m relays saw new national leading times. 

Denise Branch came back after a disappointing 1000m Friday to anchor the girls of Benjamin Cardozo to victory, finishing in 9:08.97. That's a new US#1 by more than ten seconds. 

Blacksburg, Virginia's Kenneth Hagen --last night's 1000m boys winner-- returned to the oval to lead his team to a US #1 of 7:44.52. The next time Blacksburg races at The Armory will be New Balance Nationals Indoor in March.

Zyaire Clemes (Trenton Central, NJ) bettered his national leading mark in the 300 meters, winning the junior race in 33.50 seconds. The New Rochelle girls won the 4x200 when Cheltenham of Pennsylvania was disqualified for cutting in to the curb too early. New Rochelle lowered its season's best and maintained its US#1 ranking. The Union Catholic boys dominated the 4x200 and ran 1:28.02.

Rhode Island's Adam Kelly achieved a new US#1 in the weight throw, with 78 feet, 6.25 inches.

Photo galleries of Saturday's competition can be viewed here on ArmoryTrack.com. 

Video interviews and replays of some races are also available here.

Full results from the Armory Collegiate Invitational presented by NYRR are located here.