Women's Track Opens Outdoor Season At Hurricane Invite :: Mason places seven in the top-15 at event; Odum and Swindell meet ECAC qualifiers

Mason places seven in the top-15 at event; Odum and Swindell meet ECAC qualifiers

March 22, 2008

CORAL GABLES, Fla. - George Mason's women's track and field team headed south this weekend to kick off its 2008 outdoor campaign at the Hurricane Invitational, hosted by the University of Miami.

Mason recorded seven top-15 finishes in the meet. Sophomore Asia Odum placed highest among all Patriots with her 5.46 meter effort in the long jump, good for seventh place. Odum later finished 10th in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 14.20, surpassing an ECAC qualifiying standard.

Sophomore Tiara Swindell also picked up two top-15 finishes, as she placed ninth in the 200-meter dash (24.42) and 15th in the 400-meter dash (57.34). Swindell's time in the 200-meter dash met an ECAC qualifier as well. Freshman Samantha Fickel earned a 10th-place finish in the 1,500-meter with a time of 5:20.76, while juniors Jonecia Gates and Ryann Hendricks each picked up 15th place, with Gates finishing the 400-meter hurdles in 1:06.71 and Hendricks' completing the 100-meter dash in 12.54.

Mason will be back in action next weekend, traveling to North Carolina to participate in the Raleigh Relays on Friday and Saturday.