Three-time NCAA Indoor Pentathlon Champion Wins First Conference Title In Heptathlon, Scoring Meet Record 6,220 Points And Winning All Seven Events

By Keenan Gray of DyeStat

Mckenzie Steeple photos

Jadin O'Brien's finale at the Atlantic Coast Conference Outdoor Championships was culminated by a 6,220-point outing in the women's heptathlon on Friday in Winston-Salem, N.C.. It was her first conference title in the event.

O'Brien smashed the previous meet record by 167 points and won all seven events.

O'Brien earned her highest score on Thursday in the women's 100-meter hurdles, running 13.41 seconds for 1,063 points. Her lowest score was 675 points from the javelin competition, where she threw 40.42 meters (132-7). She averaged 888.6 points per event.

O'Brien managed to pull teammate Alaina Brady along to a personal best score of 5,751 points, giving Notre Dame a 1-2 finish and 18 points to their scoring. Brady finished top three in five events, including second in both the 100 hurdles (13.44) and long jump (5.96m/19-6.75).

Louisville's Paul Kallenberg and Kenneth Byrd also completed a 1-2 finish in the men's decathlon. Kallenberg scored a personal best 7,944 points to win the overall title; Bryd locked up 7,849 points in second, a personal best.

North Carolina State's Angelina Napoleon ran away with the women's steeplechase title in a personal best and meet record time of 9:27.85. Notre Dame's Olivia Markezich held the previous meet record in 9:40.65 from the 2023 meet.

NC State's Brett Gardner completed the Wolfpack sweep of the steeplechase races, winning the men's title in 8:40.55.

NCAA indoor pole vault champion Simen Guttormsen of Duke won the men's competition by nearly a foot, clearing a season's best 5.60m (18-4.5)

Stanford's Alyssa Jones won the women's long jump competition with a mark of 6.54m (21-5.5), five inches ahead of Louisville's Synclair Savage.

NC State's Tyson Adams secured the men's long jump title on his sixth and final jump at 7.69m (25-2.75), beating California's Trevor Rogers by an inch.

Louisville's Jayden Ulrich, a Bowerman Watch List athlete on the women's side, began her weekend with a win in the shot put, throwing 17.56, (57-7.5).

North Carolina's Thomas Kitchell threw a personal best 20.18m (66-2.5) to come away with the men's shot put title.