University of Tennessee Athletics
University of Tennessee
Penn Relays
Blankenship, Brown Win Penn Relays Titles
April 25, 2015 | Track & Field
April 25, 2015
PHILADELPHIA -- Tennessee's weekend at the 121st Penn Relays concluded in the same fashion as the 120th and 119th editions: with Jake Blankenship standing atop the medal stand with a men's pole vault championship title in tow. Blankenship clinched his third consecutive Penn Relays title on Saturday while teammate and sprinter Felicia Brown notched a win of her own in the finals of the women's 100-meter dash.
Blankenship now has three Penn Relays championships in three trips to the historic event. He successfully defended his crown on Saturday with a winning vault of 18 feet, 0.5 inches (5.50) amidst cold and windy conditions. The next-closest competitor to Blankenship finished at 17 feet, 4.5 inches (5.30).
Saturday's mark matches Blankenship's previous best vault at the Penn Relays, which he used to win the 2013 championship. Last year, Blankenship took the outright crown with a jump of 17 feet, 4.5 inches (5.30).
"It's awesome," said the junior on the achievement of his three-peat. "There's a lot of great competitors out here. The conditions were not the best. The Penn Relays is known for being windy, but it's a great atmosphere, there are a lot of great people here, and it's what the big meets are going to be like."
Blankenship has now taken top medalist honors in each of the last three meets in which he has competed this season.
On the track, Brown picked up her second career win in the 100-meter dash and her first-ever Penn Relays championship. After turning in the top qualifying time during Friday's preliminary heats, Brown validated that performance with another strong showing on Saturday. The junior posted a time of 11.60 to outrank the remainder of the nine-member field.
For the weekend, UT departs Philadelphia with 12 top-10 finishes--seven of which came inside the top five.
Tennessee got two more top-10 performances in the field events from Tavis Bailey and Kyle Quinn. Competing in the men's discus championship, Bailey earned a fifth-place finish after breaking the 60-meter mark for the second straight week. His top throw of the competition came in at 197 feet, six inches (60.20). Quinn was seventh in the men's javelin championships after recording an effort of 215 feet, five inches (65.66).
The Volunteers now return home to host the Tennessee Challenge at Tom Black Track. The one-day meet will take place on Saturday, May 2 and is the final event on the regular season calendar for UT. The SEC Outdoor Championships begin Thursday, May 14 in Starkville, Mississippi.
MEN'S RESULTS AT PENN RELAYS
Thursday
5000m (Champ.): Kyle Walter - dnf
10,000m (Champ.): 25. Anthony Simpson, 31:38.76
Friday
Discus (College): 5. Matthew Zajac, 176-2 (53.71)
High Jump (College): 16. Wesley Edwards, 6-6.75 (2.00)
Shot Put (Champ.): 6. Matthew Hoty, 60-0.5 (18.30); 9. Tavis Bailey, 55-7 (16.94)
DMR (College): 4. Tennessee `A' (Hilton, Carter, Kaiser, Whitelaw), 9:58.66
4x400 (prelim): 16. Tennessee `B' (Coleman, Hunter, Strother, Carter), 3:16.88
SMR (Championship): 4. Tennessee `B' (Coleman, Hunter, Strother, Hilton), 3:24.65
Saturday
Javelin (Champ.): 7. Kyle Quinn, 215-5 (65.66)
Discus (Champ.): 5. Tavis Bailey, 197-6 (60.20)
Pole Vault (Champ.): 1. Jake Blankenship, 18-0.5 (5.50); Tyler Porter - nh; Michael Maira - nh
Hammer (College): 28. Deon McAdoo, 174-10 (53.31); 32. Carson Frost, 166-2 (50.66)
WOMEN'S RESULTS AT PENN RELAYS
Thursday
Pole Vault (Champ.): 4. Erin Champion, 12-9.50 (3.90)
Long Jump (College): 3. Cidae'a Woods, 19-2.00 (5.84)
3000m (Champ.): Chelsea Blaase - dnr
Friday
Triple Jump (College): 12. Brielyn Rogers, 39-2.25 (11.94)
100m (prelim): 1. Felicia Brown, 11.59 (+2.9) - adv
Javelin (College): 11. Maria Jimenez, 140-7 (42.86)
Saturday
100m (Champ. Final): 1. Felicia Brown, 11.60 (+1.0)
! - Personal Best, $ - SEC Record, a - American Record, b - Banked Track, c - Collegiate Record, adv. - Advanced, dna - Did Not Advance, dnf - Did Not Finish, dnr - Did Not Run, dns - Did Not Score, dq - Disqualified, F - Foul, f - Facility Record, fr - Freshman Record, fr* - Tied Freshman Record, fs - False Start, H - Heptathlon, h - Hand-Timed, mr - Meet Record, nh - No Height, nm - No Mark, P - Pentathlon, sr - School Record, u - Undersized Track, w - wind-aided, wr - World Record
