Stripling wins vault Sutej hits auto

NEW YORK, N.Y. – Junior Katie Stripling led a 1-2-4-9 finish in the pole vault for Arkansas Razorback women’s track and field on day one of competition at the New Balance Collegiate Invitational at New York’s Armory Track Center.

"I thought the crew jumped very well today," assistant coach Bryan Compton said. "Tina (Sutej) getting the auto mark is the highlight and that’s actually a lifetime best for her. Getting Tina qualified for NCAA s out of the way allows us to progress in our training and get her training at higher bars. I thought Tara (Diebold) did a great job considering we were jumping on a surface we aren’t used to. We need to work on getting Sarah (Landau) healthy. Katie (Stripling) does what she does. She’s getting more comfortable jumping at higher bars and we’ll hopefully get that 14-foot mark next week at home."

Stripling won the event for the first time in her career. She cleared 13-9.25 to pick up her third NCAA automatic qualifier. She still holds a season and career best of 13-11.25.

Freshman Tina Sutej earned a runner-up finish. She cleared 13-9.25 and was second on misses. Her clearance is a career best and automatically qualifies her for the NCAA Championships in March.

Sophomore Tara Diebold earned a fourth-place finish with a height of 12-11.5. Senior Sarah Landau cleared 12-5.5 to finish ninth.

In the 1,000-meter run, senior Lauren Lewis led the Hogs with a third-place finish in the field of 36 and a clocking of 2:54.28. Freshman Samantha Learch ran a time of 2:54.31, good for a fourth-place finish and senior Janine Davis finished eighth with a 2:55.42.

Arkansas women’s track and field has concluded competition at the New Balance Collegiate Invitational. Complete results can be found at ArkansasRazorbacks.com. Up next for the Cardinal and White is the hosting of the Tyson Invitational, Fri.-Sat., Feb. 13-14.