EUGENE, Ore. — Virginia’s Margot Appleton finished second in the final of the 1,500 meters Saturday on the final night of the NCAA outdoor track and field championships.
Appleton had a time of 4:08.99. Washington’s Sophie O’Sullivan won in 4:07.94. Virginia Tech’s Lindsey Butler finished seventh (4:10.32). All three earned first-team All-America honors.
Appleton had a busy night. Less than two hours later, she finished 13th in the final of the 5,000 meters (15:44.76).
Celia Rifaterra of UVa took seventh in the women’s high jump (6-0 1/2), earning first-team All-America honors. Teammate Carly Tarentino was 19th (5-8 1/2).
UVa’s Estel Valeanu took ninth in the women’s discus (191-0).
Georgia cruised to its first women’s outdoor national championship.
Georgia lapped the field with 73 points, way ahead of runner-up Southern Cal (47) and third-place Texas A&M (43). Fourth-year Bulldogs head coach Caryl Smith Gilbert also won national titles at Southern Cal in 2018 and 2021.
UVa finished 26th in the women’s standings, with Virginia Tech 57th.
BASEBALL
Ex-Hokies pick new schools
Former Virginia Tech first baseman Garrett Michel and former Hokies starting pitcher Jake Marciano have chosen their new teams.
Michel, who announced on June 1 that he would be entering the transfer portal, tweeted Saturday that he will be joining Arizona State for his final two years of eligibility.
He made the ACC all-freshman team and Collegiate Baseball’s Freshman All-America team in 2023, when he hit .339. He played in only nine games in 2024 because of a broken wrist. He hit .272 this year before suffering a season-ending knee injury in late March.
Marciano, who also entered the portal this month, tweeted that he will be transferring to Auburn.
Marciano started 14 games for the Hokies as a freshman this year, including the team’s ACC tournament win over Stanford. He was 4-2 with 71 strikeouts in 60 2/3 innings.
