Track and Field Ready For ACC Championships
April 16, 2008
<?xml:namespace prefix=”o” ns=”urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office”?>
CORAL GABLES – The <?xml:namespace prefix=”st1″ ns=”urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags”?>University of Miami men’s and women’s track and field teams gear up for the Atlantic Coast Conference Outdoor Championships this weekend, hosted by Georgia Tech at the George C. Griffin Track and Field Facility, Thursday through Saturday, April 17-19.
The men’s team is led by four-time All-American Tim Harris. He is the lone returning ACC Outdoor Champion, winning the 800-meters in 2007. The senior has only run the 800-meters once in the first four weeks of this season, but he made it count. He ran it in a time of 1:47.73, not only the No.1 time by a collegiate runner this year, but the fastest time by any American.
Harris also won the 800-meters in 2006 and will try to become the first Hurricane to win an outdoor conference title in the same event for three consecutive seasons, since Aaron Moser won the BIG EAST decathlon title from 1998-2000.
Harris isn’t alone in the 800-meters, as Coach Mike Ward has both Patrick O’Donnell and Richard Bernard holding two of the top ACC times in the event as well. O’Donnell is coming of a personal-best 1:51.54 this past weekend and will be looking to finish in the top three for All-ACC honors.
The other two student-athletes on the men’s team that have reached regional marks both come out of the 110-meter hurdles, senior Les Bradley II and sophomore Cory Nelms. Nelms is currently the 28th-ranked 110-hurdler with Bradley at No. 49. Nelms also is ranked 52nd in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 52.36.
Junior jumper Elan Daviglus has been consistent all season with the high jump and his season-best height of 2.01m is currently fourth in the conference.
Freshman Demarcus Vandyke returned from spring football and in his lone appearance at the Miami Elite, running a conference top-ten time of 10.72 in the 100-meter dash.
Another senior that hopes to have a successful final ACC Championship is pole vaulter Casey McGinn. His mark of 4.85m currently ranks him eighth in the conference. However, he has been victorious in three of the four weekends so far this season and will bring that competitors edge with him this weekend.
The Hurricane women are coming off a runner-up finish ACC finish last year in College Park, Md., ending their six year run of conference championships, four in the BIG EAST.
The women scored 113 point at the 2007 championships and will look to add to that total this season. A pair of ACC Champions return from last year, in senior Khadija Talley (discus, 53.19m) and junior Krista Simkins (200m, 23.08).
This year the emergence of a few freshmen has been a welcome surprise for Coach Amy Deem’s squad. Currently there are three freshmen on the team that have registered NCAA regional qualifying marks in Ti’erra Brown (100H, 13.17; 400H, 57.49), Takecia Jameson (100H, 13.66; 400H, 58.43), Tameka Jameson (400H, 59.59).
Brown was named the ACC co-Performer of the Week for her efforts at the Hurricane Challenge on March 29.
After having a day to remember this past weekend at the Miami Elite Invitational, senior Khadija Talley was also awarded the ACC Performer of the week. Throughout the first four weeks of the season, Talley has reached qualifying marks in all three of her throw events, the hammer, shot put and her best event, the discus.
Also in the throws, senior Misti Barber stands in fifth place in the shot put in the ACC with a distance of 14.80 meters. Another senior will likely put points up for Miami in school-record javelin thrower Kaitlin Nazario. She has already qualified for regionals and will look to improve on her season-best mark of 43.46m.
Going into the conference championship, Talley holds the nation’s No.1 time in the discus, with a throw of 57.10m. At one point or another this outdoor season there have been three individual No. 1 rankings for the Hurricanes. Brown improved on her ranking in the 400-meter hurdles for three consecutive weeks while junior Krista Simkins debuted with a time of 23.14 in the 200-meters on March 29.
All three student-athletes are tops in the ACC in their respective events, but the 4×100 relay team also holds down a top spot in the conference. The team consists of freshmen Tara Thomas and Charlene Fuller, sophomore Kristy Whyte and the two-time All-American Simkins.
Whyte also holds a regional qualifying mark in the 200-meters and sits only behind Simkins in second place in the conference standings.
Miami will have a great opportunity to amass points in the jumps this week, as junior Viktoria Andonova has hit the regional qualifying mark of 1.75m each of the four outdoor meets this season. She also won the ACC title in the indoor high jump earlier this year, her second straight indoor title. Freshman Megan Novinger will have an opportunity to score as well, her season-high leap of 1.65m is tied for the fourth best mark in the conference so far this year.
Sophomore Deandra Doyley will be the lone competitor for the Hurricanes in both the long a triple jumps. She has reached a regional mark in the long jump and a set personal-best in the triple jump at 12.30m at the Miami Elite.
Junior All-American Ena Leufroy has run the team’s best times in both the 800 and 1,500-meters and will be looked on to pick up key points this week in Atlanta.
In all, the women hold 14 individual regional marks with two relays, behind only Virginia Tech (17) for the most in the ACC.
Events will begin at 9 a.m. on Thursday and 10 a.m. on both Friday and Saturday. The championship weekend will conclude with the presentation of awards at 5 p.m. on Saturday. All events will be available for viewing online at www.ACCSelect.com.
