Saturday, February 23
Lubbock, TX
All Day
Abilene Christian
at
at Lone Star Conference Championships
Photo by: Gary Rhodes
2/22/2013 11:31:00 AM | Track & Field
Lone Star Conference Track + Field Rankings
Interviews With Reyare Thomas, Johnathan Farquharson and head coach Roosevelt Lofton
ABILENE – Abilene Christian's nationally ranked men's and women's track and field teams head to Lubbock and the Texas Tech Athletic Training Center for this weekend's inaugural Lone Star Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships.
The meet begins Saturday at 10:30 a.m. and continues Sunday at 9 a.m.
ACU has won more Lone Star Conference outdoor championships than the rest of the conference schools combined with 51, but this is the first time in the conference's 82-year existence that there's been a contested indoor championship.
The Wildcats' men's team won its 19th consecutive outdoor championship (and 28th overall) last spring in Commerce, while the women finished a half point behind Angelo State. The Rambelles have won six of the last nine titles, but the Wildcats have won all the others – a total of 23 since 1983.
ACU's competition features five men's and seven women's teams, including newcomer Harding University, which was announced as an affiliate member for track and field in January. This is Harding's second stint with the Lone Star Conference after holding full membership in the league for three athletic seasons and competing at the 1998, 1999 and 2000 conference track meets.
This year's Wildcat teams are especially strong in the sprints. Freshman Johnathan Farquarhson and junior Reyare Thomas own the conference's fastest times in the 60-meter dash and 200m, while senior Jordan Geary and sophomore Elea Diarra are currently ranked first in the 400m. Geary also ranks second to Farquharson in the 200m.
Farquharson appears to be ACU's lone scoring threat in the men's 60 based on LSC rankings, but both he and Geary should come away with high points in the 200m. Darian Hogg, Devan Brown and Osei Allyene-Forte are also capable of cracking the top eight in the 200m should they exceed their current season bests.
The women's 60m and 200m are the Wildcats' deepest events as they could end up with three to four scorers in each. Thomas leads the LSC 60m rankings with a time of 7.47 seconds followed by senior Shennae Steele (7.71) and sophomore Karolyn Palmer, who currently sits just outside the top eight with her mark of 7.96 seconds.
Thomas twice this season lowered the school's record in 200m and enters the championship with a NCAA automatic qualifying mark of 23.95 seconds, which she posted earlier this month in New Mexico. Steele has the next fastest time at 24.46, while Diarra ranks fourth at 24.85 and Palmer eighth at 25.58.
In the women's 400m, Diarra is the LSC's best runner by more than two seconds over Incarnate Word's Shaneve Swift, 54.57 to 56.73, while on the men's side Geary (48.44) should expect a close race from Harding's Landon Belcher (48.62). Allyene-Forte and Palmer could also provide additional points for ACU in this event.
The combination of Diarra, Steele, Thomas and Ayesha Rumble represents the LSC's top 4x400m relay, which posted a season best time of 3:49.53 earlier this winter at the Masked Rider Open. West Texas A&M has the next fastest relay time of 3:53.76.
The top four men's relay times are separated by less than one second. Angelo State enters with the top time of 3:17.84, but fourth-ranked ACU is close behind at 3:18.38 with Harding and Kingsville pinched in between.
Leading the Wildcats in the middle-to-long distance events are 800m runners Rumble, Emily Hill and Banjoo Jaiyesimi, freshman Xavier King and senior Chloe Susset, who has won five outdoor conference track and field titles. Susset has recorded a pair of NCAA provisional marks this season in the mile and 3K, but will face a steep challenge from Harding sophomore Ewa Zaborowska, who ranks first these same events with times of 4:49.88 and 9:46.39.
King, meanwhile, is No. 1 in the 5K (14:55.31) and ranks among the top eight in the 3K (8:52.39) and mile (4:20.26).
Jaiyesimi looks to be ACU's only scorer in the 800m, but the Wildcats could see Rumble win her race over top-ranked Jaylen Rodgers of Angelo State in addition to receiving some extra points from Hill.
The women's triple jump should be the main event among all the field competitions as its pits the top two nationally ranked D-II athletes against one another: all-America Amanda Ouedraogo of ACU and Angelo State's Kearah Danville.
Danville recorded her best triple jump of the season (41-11.25/12.78m) at the Texas Tech Open on Jan 12, but Ouedraogo eclipsed her less than a month later with a runner-up distance of 42-0/12.80m at the Armory Collegiate Invitational. These two will also be in contention for the long jump title against ASU's top-ranked Theresa Sue and No. 4 Kris-Ann Walters of Angelo State.
In the throws, expectations are for ACU to dominate both the men's and women's weight throw as the duos of Baptiste Kerjean (60-6.5/18.45m) and Andrew Hudson (55-1.5/1.68m), and Shalania Lakey (51-0.75/15.56m) and Lauren Hartwick (50-5.25/15.37) each rank first-second by a wide margin over the rest of the conference.
The Wildcats also have several throwers among the top eight in the shot put, but each would have to improve by at least seven feet in order to pull off an upset victory over favorites Zach Weatherly of West Texas A&M and Angelo State's Kimberly Williams.
The multi events should belong to the Wildcats as they're currently one of only two conference teams to have athletes on the men's heptathlon and women's pentathlon rankings. Seniors Matthew Stark (4,807) and Parker Petty (4,714) each recorded NCAA provisional scores in the heptathlon at the Air Force Invitational held in late January, while Cassie Brooks fell just 79 points shy of that standard in the pentathlon.
Freshman Luke Woods gives ACU a possible third scorer in the heptathlon and is one of two Wildcats ranked among the top eight in the 60m hurdles along with rookie Jeremy Tatham.
Brooks is a top-five hurdler and will give ACU a solid 1-2 punch in this event alongside sophomore Lexus Williams, who currently ranks second to ASU's Jordan Gray by just .02 seconds.
In the men's jumps, look for Petty, Stark and Woods to all be entered in the pole vault and high jump, while Hogg and freshmen Keaton Hart and Malcolm Barnes will represent ACU in the long and triple jumps. Hogg finished fourth in both jumps last spring in Commerce.
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Participating Men's Teams (6): Abilene Christian, Eastern New Mexico, Harding, Incarnate Word, Texas A&M-Kingsville, West Texas A&M.
Participating Women's Teams (8): Abilene Christian, Angelo State, Eastern New Mexico, Harding, Incarnate Word, Midwestern State, Texas A&M-Kingsville, West Texas A&M.
Schedule:
DAY 1: Saturday, February 23, 2013
WOMEN'S PENTATHLON
11:00a 55m Hurdles
11:40a High Jump
1:00p Shot Put
2:00p Long Jump
3:00p 800m
MEN'S HEPTATHLON
10:30a 55m
11:15a Long Jump
12:30p Shot Put
1:45p High Jump
RUNNING EVENTS (Women's followed by Men, unless otherwise noted)
4:30p 55m Hurdles Prelim
5:00p 400m Prelim
5:30p 55m Prelim
6:00p 5,000m Final
6:55p 200m Prelim
7:25p Distance Medley Relay Final
FIELD EVENTS
3:00p Men's Weight Throw
3:00p Men's Pole Vault
4:00p Women's Weight Throw
4:00p Women's Long Jump followed by Men
6:00p Men's High Jump
DAY 2: Sunday, February 24, 2013
MEN'S HEPTATHLON
9:00a 55m Hurdles
9:45a Pole Vault
11:15a 1,000m
RUNNING EVENTS (Women followed by Men, unless otherwise noted)
11:00a Mile Final
11:20a 55m Hurdles Final (Men followed by Women)
11:40a 400m Final
12:00p 55m Final
12:20p 800m Final
12:40p 200m Final
1:00p 3,000m Final
1:20p 1,600m Relay Final
FIELD EVENTS
11:00a Men's Shot Put
11:30a Women's Triple Jump followed by Men
12:30p Women's Shot Put
12:30p Women's Pole Vault
1:00p Women's High Jump
Interviews With Reyare Thomas, Johnathan Farquharson and head coach Roosevelt Lofton
ABILENE – Abilene Christian's nationally ranked men's and women's track and field teams head to Lubbock and the Texas Tech Athletic Training Center for this weekend's inaugural Lone Star Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships.
The meet begins Saturday at 10:30 a.m. and continues Sunday at 9 a.m.
ACU has won more Lone Star Conference outdoor championships than the rest of the conference schools combined with 51, but this is the first time in the conference's 82-year existence that there's been a contested indoor championship.
The Wildcats' men's team won its 19th consecutive outdoor championship (and 28th overall) last spring in Commerce, while the women finished a half point behind Angelo State. The Rambelles have won six of the last nine titles, but the Wildcats have won all the others – a total of 23 since 1983.
ACU's competition features five men's and seven women's teams, including newcomer Harding University, which was announced as an affiliate member for track and field in January. This is Harding's second stint with the Lone Star Conference after holding full membership in the league for three athletic seasons and competing at the 1998, 1999 and 2000 conference track meets.
This year's Wildcat teams are especially strong in the sprints. Freshman Johnathan Farquarhson and junior Reyare Thomas own the conference's fastest times in the 60-meter dash and 200m, while senior Jordan Geary and sophomore Elea Diarra are currently ranked first in the 400m. Geary also ranks second to Farquharson in the 200m.
Farquharson appears to be ACU's lone scoring threat in the men's 60 based on LSC rankings, but both he and Geary should come away with high points in the 200m. Darian Hogg, Devan Brown and Osei Allyene-Forte are also capable of cracking the top eight in the 200m should they exceed their current season bests.
The women's 60m and 200m are the Wildcats' deepest events as they could end up with three to four scorers in each. Thomas leads the LSC 60m rankings with a time of 7.47 seconds followed by senior Shennae Steele (7.71) and sophomore Karolyn Palmer, who currently sits just outside the top eight with her mark of 7.96 seconds.
Thomas twice this season lowered the school's record in 200m and enters the championship with a NCAA automatic qualifying mark of 23.95 seconds, which she posted earlier this month in New Mexico. Steele has the next fastest time at 24.46, while Diarra ranks fourth at 24.85 and Palmer eighth at 25.58.
In the women's 400m, Diarra is the LSC's best runner by more than two seconds over Incarnate Word's Shaneve Swift, 54.57 to 56.73, while on the men's side Geary (48.44) should expect a close race from Harding's Landon Belcher (48.62). Allyene-Forte and Palmer could also provide additional points for ACU in this event.
The combination of Diarra, Steele, Thomas and Ayesha Rumble represents the LSC's top 4x400m relay, which posted a season best time of 3:49.53 earlier this winter at the Masked Rider Open. West Texas A&M has the next fastest relay time of 3:53.76.
The top four men's relay times are separated by less than one second. Angelo State enters with the top time of 3:17.84, but fourth-ranked ACU is close behind at 3:18.38 with Harding and Kingsville pinched in between.
Leading the Wildcats in the middle-to-long distance events are 800m runners Rumble, Emily Hill and Banjoo Jaiyesimi, freshman Xavier King and senior Chloe Susset, who has won five outdoor conference track and field titles. Susset has recorded a pair of NCAA provisional marks this season in the mile and 3K, but will face a steep challenge from Harding sophomore Ewa Zaborowska, who ranks first these same events with times of 4:49.88 and 9:46.39.
King, meanwhile, is No. 1 in the 5K (14:55.31) and ranks among the top eight in the 3K (8:52.39) and mile (4:20.26).
Jaiyesimi looks to be ACU's only scorer in the 800m, but the Wildcats could see Rumble win her race over top-ranked Jaylen Rodgers of Angelo State in addition to receiving some extra points from Hill.
The women's triple jump should be the main event among all the field competitions as its pits the top two nationally ranked D-II athletes against one another: all-America Amanda Ouedraogo of ACU and Angelo State's Kearah Danville.
Danville recorded her best triple jump of the season (41-11.25/12.78m) at the Texas Tech Open on Jan 12, but Ouedraogo eclipsed her less than a month later with a runner-up distance of 42-0/12.80m at the Armory Collegiate Invitational. These two will also be in contention for the long jump title against ASU's top-ranked Theresa Sue and No. 4 Kris-Ann Walters of Angelo State.
In the throws, expectations are for ACU to dominate both the men's and women's weight throw as the duos of Baptiste Kerjean (60-6.5/18.45m) and Andrew Hudson (55-1.5/1.68m), and Shalania Lakey (51-0.75/15.56m) and Lauren Hartwick (50-5.25/15.37) each rank first-second by a wide margin over the rest of the conference.
The Wildcats also have several throwers among the top eight in the shot put, but each would have to improve by at least seven feet in order to pull off an upset victory over favorites Zach Weatherly of West Texas A&M and Angelo State's Kimberly Williams.
The multi events should belong to the Wildcats as they're currently one of only two conference teams to have athletes on the men's heptathlon and women's pentathlon rankings. Seniors Matthew Stark (4,807) and Parker Petty (4,714) each recorded NCAA provisional scores in the heptathlon at the Air Force Invitational held in late January, while Cassie Brooks fell just 79 points shy of that standard in the pentathlon.
Freshman Luke Woods gives ACU a possible third scorer in the heptathlon and is one of two Wildcats ranked among the top eight in the 60m hurdles along with rookie Jeremy Tatham.
Brooks is a top-five hurdler and will give ACU a solid 1-2 punch in this event alongside sophomore Lexus Williams, who currently ranks second to ASU's Jordan Gray by just .02 seconds.
In the men's jumps, look for Petty, Stark and Woods to all be entered in the pole vault and high jump, while Hogg and freshmen Keaton Hart and Malcolm Barnes will represent ACU in the long and triple jumps. Hogg finished fourth in both jumps last spring in Commerce.
###
Participating Men's Teams (6): Abilene Christian, Eastern New Mexico, Harding, Incarnate Word, Texas A&M-Kingsville, West Texas A&M.
Participating Women's Teams (8): Abilene Christian, Angelo State, Eastern New Mexico, Harding, Incarnate Word, Midwestern State, Texas A&M-Kingsville, West Texas A&M.
Schedule:
DAY 1: Saturday, February 23, 2013
WOMEN'S PENTATHLON
11:00a 55m Hurdles
11:40a High Jump
1:00p Shot Put
2:00p Long Jump
3:00p 800m
MEN'S HEPTATHLON
10:30a 55m
11:15a Long Jump
12:30p Shot Put
1:45p High Jump
RUNNING EVENTS (Women's followed by Men, unless otherwise noted)
4:30p 55m Hurdles Prelim
5:00p 400m Prelim
5:30p 55m Prelim
6:00p 5,000m Final
6:55p 200m Prelim
7:25p Distance Medley Relay Final
FIELD EVENTS
3:00p Men's Weight Throw
3:00p Men's Pole Vault
4:00p Women's Weight Throw
4:00p Women's Long Jump followed by Men
6:00p Men's High Jump
DAY 2: Sunday, February 24, 2013
MEN'S HEPTATHLON
9:00a 55m Hurdles
9:45a Pole Vault
11:15a 1,000m
RUNNING EVENTS (Women followed by Men, unless otherwise noted)
11:00a Mile Final
11:20a 55m Hurdles Final (Men followed by Women)
11:40a 400m Final
12:00p 55m Final
12:20p 800m Final
12:40p 200m Final
1:00p 3,000m Final
1:20p 1,600m Relay Final
FIELD EVENTS
11:00a Men's Shot Put
11:30a Women's Triple Jump followed by Men
12:30p Women's Shot Put
12:30p Women's Pole Vault
1:00p Women's High Jump
Monday, October 26
Monday, October 26
Monday, October 26
Monday, October 26
