The Butler track and field teams won nine events today at the Butch Reynolds Invitational at BG Products Veterans Sports Complex to open the outdoor season, with four of those events qualifying for nationals.
Butler swept all four relays, winning the men's and women's 4x100 and 4x400. Individual winners were Jonelle Reinert in the women's 400 and Ashanna Hodge in the women's 400 meter hurdles. On the men's side, Steve Calloway won the 200, Alfred Larry won the 400 andEdwin Serem won the 1500.
During the meet, Reynolds was introduced in an on-field ceremony. The former Butler runner showed his gold and silver medals earned for running the open 400 and 4x400 meter relay at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. Reynold, who ran at Ohio State after Butler, held the world record in the 400 for 11 years and still has the second-fastest time ever in that event.
In Reynolds' 400 meter tradition, Butler had the top four runners in that event. Alfred Larry, who won the indoor national championship at that distance two weeks ago in New York, opened the outdoor season with a strong 400 run in a time of 48.35, which qualified him for outdoor nationals. Steven Calloway was second in 49.20, Shaquilla Alleyne was third in 49.36 and Leroy Moore was fourth in 49.44 for Butler.
Calloway also ran well in the 200, winning in a nationl-qualifying time of 21.47. Leroy Moore was third in the event while Justin Breaux was fourth and Deandre Wade was fifth. In the men's 100, Breaux was second in 10.80 and Steven Calloway was third in 10.84.
Edwin Serem won the 1500 with a strong kick down the final straightaway, winning in a time of 4:09.18.
On the women's side, Jonelle Reinert finished first in the 400 in 1:00.87. Ashanna Hodge, a national placer in the 400 hurdles last year, opened outdoor season by winning the 400 hurdles in a time of 1:05.47, nearly four seconds faster than the runner-up. That time qualifies her for nationals in the event.
Butler's next action will be on this weekend at the Texas Relays in Austin, one of the more renowned meets in the sport. The Grizzlies will then run in the Emporia State Invitational on April 5.
