FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. ? Both University of Kentucky track and field teams enter the final day of competition at the Southeastern Conference Indoor Championships in fourth place. The Wildcats broke two varsity records as well as a pair of freshman all-time marks at the University of Arkansas? Tyson Track Complex in Fayetteville, Ark.
After five scored events each Wildcat squad has accumulated 21 points. The women?s total is triple what the Cats tallied a year ago after two days of competition and the men improved by 13 points compared to a year ago.
Sprinter Jenna Martin had a career day as she broke the women’s 400 meter dash record for the second time in two meets. The sophomore edged her own top mark by 0.01 seconds crossing the line at 52.71 in the prelims. Martin finished second overall and advanced to the final Sunday. The record holder also set the third-best mark in the women’s 200 meter dash with her time of 24.03.
Sophomore Mary Chris Durham set a new school record clearing a height of 12-6.25 bettering her record set earlier this season by 2.75 inches. Durham finished in a four-way tie for eighth, earning the point by virtue of clearing earlier heights on fewer attempts.
First-year Wildcat Derrick Locke set a new freshman long jump record in the preliminaries of the men’s long jump. Locke hit the dirt at 25-2 to lead the competition and earn the top seed in the event championship. In the finals, the rookie set the record again in his final attempt increasing his top freshman mark to 25-5.25. His mark ranks second all-time in varsity marks at UK, two inches shy of the top mark. Locke placed third in the event earning the Cats six points.
?I thought (Derrick) Locke stepped up big today with limited practice time,? said UK coach Don Weber. ?Leading the conference in the long jump going into the finals is pretty impressive. He is a really gifted athlete.?
In the women’s 200 meter dash, freshman Bianca Tyson tied the all-time freshman mark with a run of 24.20. Her time ranks fifth all-time in the UK record books.
Two Wildcat men qualified for Sunday’s 400 meter dash final. Junior Jose Acevedo earned a provisional mark with a season-best time for the Cats of 47.14. The mark ranks sixth-best on UK’s all-time list. Senior Nathan Browning joined his 4×400 relay teammate in the final with a time of 47.50.
The Cats earned 10 points from three throwers in the women’s shot put. Junior Ashley Muffet led the way with a throw of 51-9, placing third. Junior Emilee Strot threw a personal-best and moved into fifth-place all-time in the UK record books with her distance of 49-7.26 – good for sixth overall. Freshman Jennifer Svoboda wrapped up the scoring for UK with a mark of 47-11.25, picking up a point in eighth place.
In the men’s weight throw, junior Rashaud Scott placed second with a toss of 64-10.5, earning the Cats eight points. Senior Andy Fryman finished third with a distance of 63-10.5, grabbing six points. Fellow senior Alek Grietens finished just outside of the scoring for UK, placing ninth with a throw of 58-7.5.
Twin sisters and teammates Jenna and Jessica Ortman each qualified for the women’s mile final. In the prelims, Jessica finished third in heat one with a time of 4:50.27 to automatically qualify. Jenna ran a 4:51.48 to place fourth in heat two and advanced as one of the four best times outside of the top three in each heat.
Senior Lavera Morris qualified for the women’s 800 meter run final by winning her heat and the prelims with a time of 2:08.80.
In the men’s 200 meter dash, Acevedo qualified for the final by placing eighth in the prelims, clocking in at 21.23. Sophomore Kwasi Obeng’s time of 21.46 was a personal best and moved him into a tie for eighth on UK’s all-time list. In addition, juniors Gordon McKenzie and Brandon Austin set season-best times in the event crossing the line at 21.63 and 21.73, respectively.
Sophomore Katherine Peterson picked up a point for Kentucky in the women’s 3000 meter run. The distance runner placed eighth overall with a time of 9:47.71. The time is a personal best and season best time for the Cats this year.
Locke?s teammate on the football squad, Greg Wilson, scored in the men’s high jump with a leap of 6-6.25. His height was good for eighth place and a point for the Cats.
Freshman Danielle Sampley set a personal best and the best distance by a Wildcat this year with a jump of 19-9 in the women’s long jump prelims. Sampley finished tenth overall.
?Track meets never go perfect,? said Weber. ?You can?t always run on all eight cylinders as a team. In some events that we expected to score tonight, we did not. But on the upside we really positioned ourselves well in the 400 and 200 meters. Points are never assured at this meet and are hard to come by.
?I feel good about the running events tomorrow with Jose Acevedo and Nate Browning, as well as Jenna Martin, Jenna and Jessica Ortman and Lavera Morris. I think we will be very competitive in the 4×400 and distance medley relays too.?
Competition resumes Sunday with field events kicking off at 11 a.m. ET and running events beginning at 1:30 p.m. ET. Live results can be found at www.ladybacks.com or by clicking the live results link on the UK track schedule page.
The UK men are ranked 17th, while the Wildcat women stand 22nd in the latest U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association polls. Six SEC men?s squads and seven women?s teams, including the Wildcats, are ranked in their respective top-25 rankings.
Complete results and a recap of this weekend?s action will be available at UKathletics.com.
Wildcat Scorers By Event – SEC Indoor Championships
WOMEN (points earned)
3000 Meter Run
8. Katherine Peterson – 9:47.71 (1)
Shot Put
3. Ashley Muffet – 51-9 (6)
6. Emilee Strot – 49-7.25 (3)
8. Jennifer Svoboda – 47-11.25 (1)
Pole Vault
8. Mary Chris Durham – 12-6.25 (1)
Pentathlon
4. Ashley Trimble – 3858 (5)
5. Danielle Sampley – 3704 (4)
MEN (points earned)
High Jump
8. Greg Wilson 6-6.25 (1)
Long Jump
3. Derrick Locke 25-5.25 (6)
Weight Throw
2. Rashaud Scott 64-10.5 (8)
3. Andy Fryman 63-10.5 (6)
