SALEM, Virginia – The Virginia Wesleyan men's and women's track and field teams opened the 2020-2021 season with a strong performance at the Roanoke Invitational Challenge in Salem, VA. Senior thrower CJ Govan won the men's weight throw and placed second in the shot put to lead the Marlins.

MEET INFORMATION
The meet was the first for the Marlins since last March when a pair of VWU athletes saw their chances at the NCAA Indoor Nationals ended before they began. 

INSIDE THE RESULTS
Virginia Wesleyan had one winner on the day and nine top-three marks at the Roanoke Invitational Challenge.

VWU's win came from the men's weight throw as senior CJ Govan threw a 13.08M distance nearly a half meter ahead of the second place finisher who threw 12.68M. Govan also had a good performance in the shot put throwing a distance of 12.02M to claim the second place spot.

Freshman Shirell Washington claimed a second place finish in the women's triple jump with her mark of 9.95M. Washington's 9.95M mark places her 26h in the country in the women's TJ. Washington is also among the top-12 nationally in the women's 60M hurdles as she sits 11th in the nation following her fourth place finish with a time of 9.60 seconds.

Also performing well in jumps was sophomore Geni Roberts who took second in both the long jump and triple jump for the men's team. Roberts hit a 6.86M mark in the long jump and a 13.91M mark in triple jump. Roberts' marks land him near or at the top of the leader boards in the country according to TFRRS.org as Roberts' long jump mark is second in the country and his triple jump mark leads the nation.

Senior Landry Moffo took second in the men's 60M hurdles with a time of 8.50 seconds. This mark ranks the Stafford, VA native fifth in the country in the men's 60M hurdles.

Rounding up the top finishes of the day was the women's team of Niya Crocker, Shirell Washington, Jaylyn Lane, and Casey Stedman that ran the 4X400M relay in 4:34.68 to finish third in the event.

The Marlins return to action next weekend when they co-host the East Coast Invitational at the Virginia Beach Sports Center in Virginia Beach, VA.
 
VWU Results | 2021 Roanoke Open | Jan. 30, 2021