Orley second after day one of heptathlon

FAYETTEVILLE – Leah Orley, a member of the No. 9 University of Arkansas women’s track and field team, is currently in second place of the heptathlon after day one of competition at the John McDonnell Invitational in Fayetteville. Friday’s schedule was also set to feature an invitational section of the 1,500 meters but due to impeding severe weather, the event was moved to Saturday.

Orley has 3,085 points through the first four events of the heptathlon, 47 points behind leader Brianna Steel of Tulsa. In the final event of the day, the Razorback sophomore crossed first in the 200 meters with a time of 25.51, good for 841 points. Orley also posted runner-up finishes Friday in the 100-meter hurdles (14.51, 907 points) and high jump (5-3, 736).

This is the second heptathlon of the season for Orley, who completed her first seven-event competition of the season at Texas Relays. With her results on day one of the John McDonnell Invitational, she is 100 points ahead of the pace she set in Austin. Orley finished 12th at Texas Relays with 5,032 points; her lifetime best is 5,043 points set last season at the SEC Championships.

The Razorbacks return to action Saturday for the final day of the John McDonnell Invitational. Action is set to begin at noon (CT) with the javelin and pole vault competitions. Resumption of the heptathlon is scheduled for a 2 p.m. start while the day’s running events get under way at 4 p.m. Log on to ArkanasRazorbacks.com for live results, video stream and interactive blog.

Download: JMcD Start Lists.pdf