The opening day at the 2023 Clemson Invite on Friday, January 13th, showcased some of the nation’s top collegiate track and field athletes. Among the meet’s highlights on Day 1 was the performance of former collegiate star Anna Hall, a World Athletics Championships heptathlon bronze medalist, who won the 60m hurdles and finished second in the long jump.
In the women’s sprint hurdles, Hall clocked a personal best of 8.18 seconds, improving on the 8.25 seconds she ran last season. Read More: Abby Steiner to opener season with 400m race at Kentucky meet
The 21-year-old was followed closely by Jayla Hollis of Florida, who clocked 8.19 seconds, and Charisma Taylor of Tennessee, who clocked 8.20 seconds. Hall ran 8.19 seconds in the qualifiers, while Hollis clocked 8.36 seconds to qualify for the final.
In the women’s long jump, Hall finished second with an effort of 6.53 meters (21-05.25) which she achieved in the third round. The former Florida star finished behind current Gator jumper Claire Bryant, who stretched out to 6.59 meters (21-07.50) for the top spot. Bryant’s effort also came in round three.
After a foul in the first round, Bryant returned to leap 6.53m to take the lead before extending that mark in the third round of the competition. She then went 6.52m and 6.54m in rounds four and five to cement her spot at the top of the performance list.
Meanwhile, Hall will return to action in the women’s Shot Put and High Jump competitions when the Clemson Invite resumes on Saturday.
The talented American won the 2022 Heptathlon NCAA and was the champion in the Pentathlon during the 2022 NCAA Indoor campaign.
In the meantime, in the men’s long jump competition, Jeremiah Davis of Florida State did 8.17 meters for the win. He came very close to eclipsing the Facility record of 8.18 meters, set by Isaac Grimes, also from Florida State, in 2021.
In the sprints, Talitha Diggs of Florida clocked 7.14 seconds to secure the victory in the women’s 60m dash on her way to setting a new facility record.
Ismael Kone of Florida State took the men’s 60m title with a time of 6.51 seconds, beating Favour Ashe, who now competes for Auburn (6.57) after transferring from Tennessee.
PJ Austin of Florida clocked a personal best time of 6.59 seconds for third place.
Day 2 of the Clemson Invite begins at 10:30 a.m. ET and is live on the ACC Network Extra and ESPN+. Be sure to tune in to catch all the action on Saturday.
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