Blue Devils Win Eight Events at Liberty Kickoff

Friday, December 6

Lynchburg, Va.

Duke University

Liberty Kickoff

Christian Johnson competes in weight throw at ACC Indoor Championships

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Blue Devils Win Eight Events at Liberty Kickoff

12/7/2024 1:00:00 AM | Track & Field

Final Results (PDF)

LYNCHBURG, Va. – Duke track and field opened the indoor season in style, turning in a dominant team performance en route to winning eight events at the Liberty Kickoff. Overall, the Blue Devils totaled 23 top-three placements and 35 top-five finishes across the two days of competition.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

Graduate student Christian Johnson picked up the first Duke win of the weekend in the men's weight throw Thursday evening after opening the 2024-25 campaign with a career performance.
Johnson came through with his best throw on the sixth attempt, launching the weight 22.45m (73-7.75 feet) to lock up the win. The mark was more than seven feet better than the event runner-up – teammate Christian Toro (20.28m/66-6.25 feet) – and bested Johnson's own program record by nearly two feet.
The Blue Devils posted seven of their eight event wins Friday, the first two coming via junior William Skelly in the men's mile and graduate student Birgen Nelson in the women's 60m hurdles.
Skelly clocked a time of 4:08.19 to cement himself atop the field, while Nelson dashed a personal best of 8.33 seconds to lock down the win – good for No. 4 all-time in program lore.
TJ Clayton sprinted his way to victory in his first meet as a Blue Devil courtesy of a collegiate-best performance in the 60m final.
The graduate student clocked 6.77 seconds for the first-place finish, the mark ranking fourth on the Duke charts. Clayton also had a strong showing in the men's 200m and moved into No. 3 all-time at Duke via a finish of 21.58 seconds.
Three of Duke's next four event wins were delivered by the women's sprints unit, as the Blue Devils placed first in the 300m, 500m and 4x400m relay.
Junior Julia Jackson slotted herself at the top of the Duke charts in the 300m, leapfrogging teammate Megan McGinnis for the No. 1 overall spot after delivering a personal best of 37.91.
Duke's speed was on full display in the event, with the Blue Devils claiming four of the top-five placements.
Amber Wimbish made her collegiate debut one to remember as the freshman picked up her first event win after turning in a time of 1:14.61 in the 500m race.
A first-place finish in the women's 4x400m relay capped the meet with an exclamation point for Duke. Comprised of graduate student Kyla Krawczyk, freshman Emily Royce, senior Meredith Sims and junior Lauren Tolbert, the Blue Devil quartet clocked 3:44.66 for the victory – two seconds faster than the runner-up (Virginia).
Freshman Luke Thompson rounded out the group of first-place finishers for Duke, running his 3000m in 8:20.80 to register his first collegiate victory.
Senior Max Forte delivered a phenomenal showing in the men's heptathlon, headlined by record-breaking, and personal-best, performance in the heptathlon long jump of 7.44m (24-5 feet), establishing a Liberty Indoor Track Complex record.
Forte finished multis with a collegiate best of 5,598 points, slotting himself No. 2 all-time in program history. His overall performance included two event wins and four personal bests.
Additionally, the Blue Devils revised the program record books in the men's 60m hurdles, men's 200m and men's and women's 300m events.
Sophomore Michael Scherk moved into a tie for No. 2 all-time on the program charts after finishing runner-up in the 60m hurdles behind a personal best of 8.07 seconds.
Freshmen Braelyn Baker, Andres Langston and Joseph Taylor got their Duke careers off to a strong start with each placing second in their respective races.
Taking part in the 300m dash, Taylor's sprint of 34.20 seconds moved him into No. 3 all-time, while Baker's time of 38.34 seconds checked in at No. 5 on the Duke charts.
Langston represented the Blue Devils in the 500m, slotting himself No. 4 in Duke history via a run of 1:03.43.
To see the full meet results, click HERE.

UP NEXT:
Duke resumes indoor competition after the holiday break, making the trip down Tobacco Road for the Dick Taylor Carolina Challenge Jan. 18.

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