Comenentia Highlights Tyson Invitational

Saturday, February 9

Fayetteville, Ark.

All Day

University of Georgia

Tyson Invitational

February 09, 2019 | Track & Field

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. --- Senior Denzel Comenentia showcased his championship caliber as the Georgia track and field teams concluded the Tyson Invitational in Fayetteville, Arkansas, on Saturday.

Comenentia launched a monumental throw of 67 feet, 11.75 inches in the shot put finals, eclipsing his own school record by nearly a foot while garnering his 10th indoor shot put win as a Bulldog. Comenentia secured the victory by a seven-foot margin.

Two Bulldogs also excelled in the high jump invitational. Junior Darius Carbin established a new personal record and improved his No. 3 standing all-time at Georgia with a clearing of 7 feet, 5 inches for third place. Senior Keenon Laine cleared the same height for second place, a quarter-inch shy of his school record. Edged out by Alabama's Shelby McEwen, the nation's leader with a mark of 7'7", the invitational event provided a preview of what is to come this postseason.

"Our men's team had a great meet today and showed some intensity against good competition," head coach Petros Kyprianou said. "I'm hopeful this will ignite our team going in to championship season. We are dealing with some minor injuries but have faith in our sports medicine staff that will have them available for battle come SECs and NCAAs. Our team is not a conference-type team, so we will go in with national championship mindset and try to build on the performances we had today. The highlight of this weekend is obviously Denzel and the two boys (Laine and Carbin) in the high jump placing themselves high on the very competitive national list. Our women had some bright spots with Marsh in the triple jump and Lester in the 200 meters, as both showed promise for the future. We look forward to ending indoor season on a high note and get ready for outdoor."

Freshman Sterling Lester etched her name in the Georgia record books, becoming No. 9 in school history in the 200 meters with a time of 23.99. In her first collegiate race in the event, Lester barely finished outside of scoring position for ninth place.

Not to be outdone by her freshman teammate, Titiana Marsh notched a fourth-place finish in the triple jump invitational finals, improving her mark at No. 10 in Georgia history with a season-best leap of 42 feet, 9.5 inches.

Junior Ansley Heavern notched her first-ever event win in the 3,000 meters, racing to a personal-best time of 9:59.49 that also marks the fastest time this season for the Lady Bulldog distance runners.

Similarly, junior Michael Hans registered a career-first event win in the 3,000 meters with a personal-best time of 8:23.95. Fellow junior Jack Bradley joined him in the event with fourth place and a personal record of his own (8:35.27).

Junior Kayla Smith finished fourth place in the pole vault finals with a clearing of 13 feet, 2.5 inches. Sophomore Carson Dingler, a Forsyth, Georgia, native who transferred in from Stephen F. Austin, finished 16th (12'4.75") in the event. Freshman Sakari Famous tied for third place in the high jump with a mark of 5 feet, 5.75 inches.

On the track, freshman Elija Godwin notched a 16th place finish in the 200 meters with a time of 21.60. Seniors Michael Nicholls and Jonathan Raines placed 23rd and 38th with times of 21.65 and 22.20, respectively. Newcomers Taylor Scarbrough and Nicholas Yanek notched second (14:53.87) and third place (14:56.17) finishes, respectively, in the 5,000 meters.

The Bulldogs train through the following week and weekend before returning to the Razorbacks' facility to compete at the Southeastern Conference Championships on Feb. 22-23.

Updates from Georgia's track and field and cross country teams can always be found on Twitter/Instagram (UGATrack) and Snapchat (ugatrack).