Horowitz Wins 3,000m, Blue Devils Close 2006 ACC Championships

Thursday, February 23

Blacksburg, Va.

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Duke University

ACC Championships

Blue Devils Garner Seven First-Place Finishes, Four ECAC Marks At Wake Forest Open

Horowitz Wins 3,000m, Blue Devils Close 2006 ACC Championships

2/25/2006 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field

By: Duke Sports Information

BLACKSBURG, Va. -- Duke wrapped up the 2006 ACC Indoor Track and Field Championships Saturday with the men finishing 11th and the women eighth at Virginia Tech's Rector Fieldhouse. In the last event before the concluding relays, senior Clara Horowitz dominantly led the women's 3,000m to become Duke's second ACC Champion of the weekend and fourth in indoor school history.

Florida State won their fourth straight men's championship, while Miami claimed the women's title for the second straight year.

Horowitz won Duke's second consecutive 3,000m indoor championship, following in the footsteps of Blue Devil Shannon Rowbury, who doubled in the 3,000 and mile in 2005. Horowitz's 9:23.85 Saturday put her five seconds ahead of the runner-up, Florida State's Susan Kuijken. Freshman Maddie McKeever also scored for Duke, placing eighth in her best time of the season -- 9:46.51.

Another medalist, junior Debra Vento cleared a season-best 5-11.25 in the women's high jump, just a quarter of an inch short of the indoor school record she holds in that event, to take silver and earn All-ACC honors for her effort. Vento, now a four-time All-ACC indoor high jumper, was the second women's performer to make the All-Conference team at this year's ACC Championships, following senior Laura Stanley, who won the 5,000m Friday. Horowitz later claimed All-ACC recognition for her 3,000m performance.

The Blue Devils found success in the 800m, where freshman Chris Rowland posted the second-best indoor time in school history, running 1:52.43 to finish seventh in the championship finals. In the women's half-mile, freshman Libby Jenke also posted the fastest Duke time this season to finish fifth in the finals and earn a fourth-place spot on Duke's all-time indoor list with her 2:10.37.

Sophomore Chris Spooner and freshman Molly Lehman both scored for Duke in the mile run, with Spooner placing eighth in the men's event in 4:14.89 and Lehman taking seventh in the women's in 4:56.01.

In the pole vault, sophomore Ian Cassidy tied for eighth place with his best jump of the season -- 15-7.

Duke closed this year's ACC Championships by season bests in both the men's and women's 4x400m relays. The men's combination of freshman Nick Trombold, sophomore Peter Lewellen, sophomore Matt Danforth and junior Daniel King placed 10th in 3:18.14, qualifying for the IC4A Championships next weekend in Boston. Competing in the first heat of the women's race, junior Allison Stankavage, freshman Kelly McCann, freshman Jessica Davlin and junior Lindsay Owen ran second for most of the race until Owen took over in the final 400, opening a lead that couldn't be caught for a win in the heat. The women posted an ECAC-qualifying time of 3:52.31 to finish ninth overall.

Duke returns to action when those who have qualified for the ECAC/IC4A Championships will hit the road for Boston Friday.

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