Virginia Tech began its outdoor track and field season on March 20 at the Hurricane Invitational in Miami, where Yekini Bowen led the team with a victory in the discus and achieved a top-10 program mark.
Bowen won the discus event with a throw of 57.64 meters (189 feet, 1 inch), marking his second consecutive season-opening victory for Virginia Tech. Earlier in the indoor season, Bowen recorded a shot put throw of 17.75 meters before improving to a personal best of 18.11 meters (59 feet, 5 inches), which earned him sixth place, second-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference honors, and moved him to No. 8 all-time at Virginia Tech.
Other Hokies also found success at the meet. Lukas Baroke secured first place in the hammer throw with a mark of 64.13 meters (210 feet, 4 inches) during his first competition of the season. Mariana Pestana claimed victory in the women’s hammer throw with a distance of 66.01 meters (216 feet, 7 inches) in her season debut.
Alex Hoffman finished fourth in the discus event with a throw measuring 56.25 meters (184 feet, 6 inches).
The team is scheduled to continue competing at the Hurricane Invitational on Saturday for its final day of events. Additional Virginia Tech athletes will participate at the Virginia Opener in Charlottesville.
