Track & Field Under Way at SEC Championships
By Jacob Most
May 8, 2013 –
COLUMBIA, Mo. – The University of Kentucky track and field teams’ Southeastern Conference Outdoor Championships kicked off at Audrey J. Walton Track Stadium on the University of Missouri campus on Thursday.
Defending SEC Discus Champion Andrew Evans opened the meet for UK on Thursday in the hammer throw.
The 2012 All-American opened the event with a toss that went 57.06 meters / 187 feet 2 inches. His second throw reached 57.33M/188’1″, a little more than foot short of his personal best.
Evans finished third in the first qualifying flight, and missed out on a spot in the nine competitor final by three spots and five feet. He finished 12th overall.
The meet continues at noon ET on Friday, and at 2 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.
Live streaming video and results will be available all three days of the Championships on MUtigers.com/SECtrack. Live coverage will air on ESPN3.com Saturday and Sunday afternoon with respective start times of 4:40 p.m. and 3:50 p.m.
The SEC Championships will air as part of a 90-minute show on ESPNU on Thursday, May 23 beginning at 8 p.m.
UK enters the SEC Championships defending one individual championship, as Evans claimed the event title last season in Baton Rouge, La. UK has claimed the last five SEC discus titles with Chase Madison, Rashaud Scott and Colin Boevers also having claimed at least one conference title each over the past five seasons.
The Wildcats will also send two 2013 SEC indoor champions in the form of Cally Macumber (3,000 meters) and Hillenbrand (mile) to Walton Stadium.
Raymond Dykstra, a 2012 All-American, was SEC javelin runner-up last season. Luis Orta was 2012 SEC 3,000-meter steeplechase runner-up and 2012 SEC Indoor Runner of the Year.
UK athletes hold three of the eight fastest SEC times at 1,500 meters this season. Hillenbrand and Keffri Neal have the second and third fastest performances at the distance, while Adam Kahleifeh posted the No. 8 SEC 1,500M time last Friday.
Chelsea Oswald and Macumber each rank inside the SEC top 5 at 5K this season.
Freshman Rebecca Famurewa owns the second best discus throw in the conference this season, a mark which ranks No. 3 in the nation.
Freshman Morganne Phillips, a 2013 indoor All-American in the distance medley relay, boasts the No. 5 time in the SEC over 400 meters this season.
Keith Hayes and Kayla Parker rank third and fourth in the SEC 110 and 100-meter hurdles respectively.
Bradley Szypka, who placed fourth in the SEC shot put indoors this season, ranks seventh in the conference outdoors in 2013.
Orta and Oswald added to their already impressive collection of accolades when they were named to the SEC Community Service Team on Tuesday.
All-session tickets to the meet cost $20 for adults and $10 for youths. Single-session tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for youths. Tickets are available at MUtigers.com/tickets or at the Walton Stadium gate.
The Kentucky track and field program is currently running its third annual Shoe Drive. Supporters are encouraged to donate any type of shoes in any condition into collection bins located across the UK campus.
Shoe drive drop-off locations include the Johnson Recreation Center, Shively Sports Center (adjacent to Cliff Hagan Stadium) and CATS (attached to Memorial Coliseum).
The UK shoe drive runs until Friday, benefitting those less fortunate who lack access to adequate footwear. For more information on the UK Track and Field Shoe Drive visit http://www.uktrackandfieldshoedrive.com/.
New Cat Scratches story: Floreal hoping to display ‘different’ @kentuckytrack team at SEC Championships ukathletics.com/blog/2013/05/f…
— Kentucky Athletics(@UKAthleticsNews) May 8, 2013
