Hurricanes Earn USTFCCCA All-America Recognition

Hurricanes Earn USTFCCCA All-America Recognition

EUGENE, Ore. – The University of Miami track and field program received 10 All-America honors following the conclusion of the 2017 NCAA outdoor track and field season, as announced by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
 

Miami earned seven Second Team All-America honors and had three student-athletes receive All-America honorable mention. First-team honors went to those athletes from individual events and relay teams that finished first through eighth, while those who finished ninth through 16thnabbed second-team billing. Honorable mention was given to those who finished 17ththrough 24th.

Anna Runia led the Hurricanes with a pair of Second Team All-America distinctions after finishing in the top-16 in the women’s 400m hurdles and the women’s 4x400m relay. The junior was 15th overall in the 400m hurdles at the NCAA Championships with a time of 58.65 seconds. Runia, who was the 2017 ACC champion in the women’s 400m hurdles, wrapped up a strong season that included Second Team All-ACC honors in the 400m hurdles. She was also a member of Miami’s ACC champion 4x400m relay team, earning First Team All-ACC in that event.

Runia was joined by Symone Mason, Tiara McMinn and Samantha Gonzalez on Miami’s 4x400m relay that placed 15th overall at the NCAA Championships with a time of 3:37.38. Each member of the quartet received Second Team All-America recognition. Miami has an excellent season in the women’s 4x400m, winning the ACC championship in the event, as Mason, Runia, Michelle Atherley and Gonzalez combined to earn First Team All-ACC honors and bring home the gold medal.

The Canes also had two freshmen throwers garner Second Team All-America awards, as Kevin Arreaga and Debbie Ajagbe finished among the top-16 in their respective events.

Arreaga placed 10thin the men’s hammer throw with a mark of 70.07m. The Madrid native finished fifth in the opening flight of 12 competitors. He nearly held on to qualify for the finals, but Alabama’s Daniel Haugh posted a mark of 70.52m on his third and final attempt in Flight 2 that moved him into eighth place and bumped Arreaga out of the top nine finalists. The 2018 ACC silver medalist in the men’s hammer throw, Arreaga had an outstanding inaugural season with the Hurricanes that included a First Team All-ACC honor and a school record in the hammer.

Ajagbe finished 16th overall in the women’s discus with a mark of 49.99m to wrap up an impressive inaugural collegiate season. The Miami native was First Team All-ACC in the shot put at the ACC Championships, earning a bronze medal in the event. Ajagbe was also a Second Team All-ACC honoree in the women’s hammer and qualified for the NCAA East Preliminary in the shot put, discus and hammer.

Three Hurricanes received All-America honorable mention, as Samantha Gonzalez was 17th in the women’s 400m hurdles, Tiara McMinn placed 19th in the women’s 100m hurdles and Gian Piero Ragonesi was 20th in the men’s discus.

Gonzalez finished sixth in Heat 1 of the women’s 400m hurdles semifinals with a time of 58.90 seconds. The junior had an outstanding 2018 season, winning the ACC 400m hurdles title and anchoring the Hurricanes’ 4x400m relay team to an ACC title. The junior was named First Team All-ACC in both events.

McMinn was sixth in Heat 2 of the women’s 100m hurdles semifinals with a time of 13.31 seconds. The freshman was the bronze medalist in the women’s 100m hurdles at the ACC Outdoor Championships and anchored Miami’s ACC champion 4x100m relay team as they posted the second-fastest time in school history. The Miami native was named First Team All-ACC in both events and qualified for the NCAA East Preliminary in both the 100m hurdles and the women’s 4x100m relay.

Ragonesi closed out an incredible career as a Hurricane with a mark of 52.77m in the men’s discus, finishing in the school’s all-time top five in the indoor shot put and weight throw and outdoor shot put, discus and hammer throw. A native of Forli, Italy, Ragonesi holds the school record in the discus and the indoor shot put. He earned First Team All-ACC at the 2018 ACC Championships after winning bronze medals in both the shot put and discus, helping punctuate an outstanding tenure with the Canes.

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