The Virginia Tech track and field teams saw six individuals win ACC championships at the ACC Outdoor Track and Field Championships held April 17-19 in Chapel Hill, N.C.
Behind three individual champions, the Tech men’s team finished in fifth place with 78 points, and behind three individual champions, the women’s team came in sixth with 69 points.
On the men’s side, runner Grant Pollock and pole vaulter Stephan Munz each made history for the Hokies. Pollock became the first Tech runner in history to repeat as the champion of the 1,500-meter run, winning the race in a time of 3:50.34. The junior from Richmond, Va., also became just the eighth person in ACC outdoor track and field history to win back-to-back 1,500-meter titles.
Munz, a redshirt senior from Goppingen, Germany, won the title in the pole vault with a mark of 17 feet, 10.5 inches (5.45 meters). The win marked the fifth time in six years and the seventh time in 10 that a Hokie has won the event. Munz won his first ACC outdoor title in the pole vault on top of his two indoor crowns (2011, 2013).
Tomas Kruzliak added to the Hokies’ point total by winning the hammer throw. The sophomore from Nitra, Slovakia, recorded a throw of 214 feet, 4 inches (65.32 meters) that stood, giving Tech its sixth straight win in the event dating back to 2009.
On the women’s side, Martina Schultze, Sarah Rapp and Amanda Smith each won individual titles in their respective events.
Schultze, a junior from Uhingen, Germany, continued her domination of ACC competition in the pole vault. She won her fifth ACC title in the event, hitting a mark of 14 feet, 4.25 inches (4.38 meters) to secure the gold medal. She became only the second woman in ACC history to win three straight outdoor titles.
Smith, a junior from Chesapeake, Va., became the first Tech female to win the ACC title in the 800-meter run. She set the school record with a time of 2:04.45, breaking her previous mark of 2:05.59 set last year. Smith won the 800 crown during the indoor season as well.
Rapp, a junior from Raleigh, N.C., became the first Tech female to win an ACC title in the 5,000-meter run. She ran a personal-best time of 16:12.47, 25 seconds faster than her previous personal best en route to a first-place finish.
Tech’s next big meet comes May 29-31 at the NCAA East Regionals in Jacksonville, Fla. The NCAA Championships will be held June 11-14 in Eugene, Ore.
