Junior Torben Laidig of the No. 21 Virginia Tech men’s track and field team won a gold medal in the pole vault, clearing the 5.70-meter height (18 ft., 8.5 in.) for a new program record Saturday at the 90th Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays, presented by Spectrum, held at the University of Texas’ Mike A. Myers Stadium in Austin, Texas.
Laidig made his outdoor debut in front of 21,120 fans at the prestigious four-day meet and recorded a nation-best mark, resetting the school record set by teammate Deakin Volz at the U-20 World Championships held in Poland last summer (5.