Tuesday, February 28, 2017

Conference Championship Weekend Review


(Keturah Orji-Georgia)                                                          (Edward Cheserek-Oregon)

Conference Championship weekend as usual did not disappoint. Not only did the major conferences provide us with some fireworks but so did the mid major and smaller conferences. In this recap we will focus on the best of the best from this past weekend in all three disciplines of the sport.

SPRINTS/HURDLES

Women
In the 60 meter dash the highlight of the weekend again goes to NCAA record holder Hannah Cunliffe of Oregon. The talented junior again beat a bevy of her teammates and many conference foes to win the MPSF title. Her time of 7.15 was the top time from a weekend of great performances.

In the 200 meter dash Brittany Brown of Iowa proved to be the best in the Big Ten with her time of 22.79. Her time moved her to the 4th spot in the country and garnered a qualifying mark heading into the NCAA Indoor Championships. Brown is the latest of a great group of female sprinters coming out of the Big Ten to prove they can compete nationally.

Senior Shakima Wimbley of Miami has proven to be the queen of the 400 this season. She has led all season long and has performed at a higher level than preseason favorite Chris-Ann Gordon of Texas. Wimbley further asserted her ranking as number 1 with a time of 51.20 to win the 400 and lead the Miami Hurricanes to another conference title.

In the 60 hurdles senior Sasha Wallace of Oregon has been number one all year long. She continued that performance this past weekend with her time of 7.95 Wallace has not relinquished her top ranking have ran under 8 seconds nearly every meet this season.

Men

Christian Coleman of Tennessee again has proven to be the best of the best in the 60 meter dash. He went face to face against Kendall Williams of Georgia, the man with whom he shares the number one ranking with. Coleman ran confidently against a loaded SEC field to claim the title with a time of 6.52. His time was just slightly off his number one time of 6.51 and further solidified Coleman as the favorite to win the event at the NCAA Indoor Championship.

In the 200 there was a surprise at the SEC Championship, Coleman entered the race ranked number one and poised to claim the only conference title that had eluded him. However transfer Jereem Richards of Alabama followed Coleman around the curb and came motoring down the straightaway to surpass Coleman and claim the conference title. His time of 20.34 moved him into the number one spot over Coleman.

The 400 finally saw a sub 45 second performance. Fred Kerley of Texas A&M broke the barrier with a time of 44.94 to win against a loaded SEC field. Kerley who sat atop of the ranks with a 45.02 for a couple of weeks only did what he has shown all season, dominate.

In the 60 hurdles Chad Zallow of Youngstown State was the king of the weekend. He won the event at the Horizon League Indoor Championships with a time of 7.61. He also tripled by winning the 60 and 200 meter dash but it was his hurdle time that made him king over senior Aaron Mallet of Iowa and Grant Holloway of Florida.

DISTANCE

Women

Hanna Green of Virginia Tech lived up to the hype defeating a quality field at the ACC Championships in the 800. Her time of 2:02.28 was the top time for the weekend and she still has the number four ranked time in the NCAA this season.

The top mile time from this weekend was also performed at the ACC Championship. Notre Dame’s Jessica Harris had the top mark with a time of 4:33.80. Her time moved her to 8th in the nation and garnered a qualify mark to the NCAA Indoor Championship.

Gina Sereno of Michigan scored the top time in the 3,000 this past weekend with a time of 9:07.00. Although her time was not the top collegiate time of the weekend it was the top time for a conference champion. Sereno’s win was a part of a few bright spots for the Michigan Wolverines who did not have the best weekend. Sereno now ranks 15th in the country and has received a qualifying mark to the NCAA Indoor Championship.

The Big Ten had quite the show in the women’s 5,000. Erin Finn of Michigan has not only been the conference favorite but also the national favorite all season long. Finn returns as NCAA runner up and was looking to add more Big Ten hardware to her trophy case. However Katherine Receveur of Indiana proved to be too much for Finn shocking everyone and winning the event with a time of 15:28.89. The time vaulted Receveur to the number one ranking in the nation.

Men

Patrick Joseph of Virginia Tech took down defending champion Robert Heppenstall of Wake Forest. He led a 1-2 finish and sweep of the 800 for Viriginia Tech at the ACC Championships. Joseph crossed the finish line in a time of 1:46.23 and placed himself 2nd in the nation with his time.

The mile was quite interesting this weekend. Sean Tobin of Ole Miss had the top conference championship time with winning the SEC with a time of 4:00.18. However at the Boston University Last Chance meet Oregon’s senior Edward Cheserek was stunning the crowd with a NCAA record time of 3:52.01. It is his first NCAA record and quite an impressive feat for the senior. Cheserek is obviously the new number one but it remains to be seen if he will compete in the event at the NCAA Indoor Championship.

In the 3,000 John Dressell of Colorado had the top mark from the weekend. His time of 7:51.44 was enough for his to win the MPSF conference title and moved him into 10th in the nation garnering a NCAA Indoor Championship qualifying mark.

Justyn Knight of Syracuse garnered 20 points for his team by winning the 3,000 and 5,000 meter races at the ACC Championship. His time in the 5,000 was the top time from this past weekend; his winning time was 13:50.27.

FIELD EVENTS

Women

Top Performing Champions

Eleonora Omeregie (Florida State) High Jump 6’2 (Ranked 3rd Nationally)- Although she is ranked 3rd is by only a few inches. The talented freshman mad a name for herself this past weekend.

Victoria Weeks (Arkansas)- Pole Vault 15-0 (Ranked 2nd Nationally)- Weeks led a 1-2 finish for Arkansas women beating a talented field that included her number one ranked twin sister.

Shakeela Saunders(Kentucky)-Long Jump 22-4 ½ (Ranked 1st Natioanlly)- In a highly competitive race Saunders dominated the long jump at the SEC Championships leading a group of 3 women over 22 feet. Saunders was able to cement herself as number one in the long jump against the best competition.

Keturah Orji  (Georgia)- Triple Jump 46-11 ¾ (Ranked 1st Nationally)- Against an incredible field at the SEC Championship Orji again found a way to stand out. She set an American Indoor Record with her mark and cemented herself as perhaps the greatest American female triple jumper in history.
Raven Saunders (Ole Miss)- Shot 62-6 ¾ (Ranked 1st Natioanlly)- Saunders still remain as the only athlete over 60 feet and has been unchallenged so far this season.

Janeah Stewart (Ole Miss)- Weight Throw 76-0 ¾ (Ranked 1st Nationally)- Joins Saunders to make an incredible sweep in the throwing events at the SEC Championships.

Men

Randall Cunningham (USC) High Jump 7’5 ¼ (Ranked 1st Nationally)- Cunningham is the defending outdoor champion used the MPSF Championships to show his hand indoors. Cunningham claimed the number one ranking with his jump.

Kyle Prater (Air Force) Pole Vault 18-6 ½ (Ranked 3rd Nationally)- It’s not every day that a member of our Armed Forces to gets to shine in an athletic arena. Prater proved to be the guy to do it vaulting to a conference title and the number three mark in the country.

Julian Harvey (SIU-Edwardsville) Long Jump 26-9 ¾ (Ranked 1st Nationally)- Like Prater, Harvey comes from a smaller conference but can perform on the big stage. His mark of 26-9 further cemented the number one ranking he had already acquired mid-season.

KeAndre Bates (Florida) Triple Jump 55-2 (Ranked 2nd Nationally)- Bates avenged his regular season loss by defeating number one ranked Clive Pullen of Arkansas in the Triple Jump. His mark of 55-2 placed his in the all-time list of Florida and was a part of an impressive double in which Bates won the Triple Jump and Long Jump.

Mostafa Hassan (Colorado State) Shot Put 69-10 ¾ (Ranked 1st Nationally)- Hassan is a part of a growing theme this year where the smaller schools are producing big time athletes in the field events. Hassan claimed the conference Shot Put title and moved into the number one ranking nationally. It is not entirely inconceivable that he would hit a 70 foot mark at the Indoor Championships.

Grant Cartwright (Michigan) Weight Throw 76-5 ¾ (Ranked 4th Nationally)- Cartwright used the Big Ten Indoor Championship to not only give his team 10 points but to improve his national position in the event. With the 4th ranked mark in the country Cartwright has earned the qualifying mark to nationals.

MULTI-EVENT SIBLINGS- It’s not rare to see siblings dominate in the track world. Devon Williams and Kendall Williams both seniors from Georgia are the latest siblings to dominate their respective events. Devon Williams winning the men’s heptathlon after years of dealing with injuries set several personal bests at the SEC Championships and reached a total of 6,047 points moving to the 2nd position in the nation.

His sister Kendall Williams again cemented herself as perhaps the best collegiate pentathlete ever by winning another SEC title with a total of 4,686 points. She has over 200 points more than her closest competitor. Georgia has built quite the reputation in the field events, these two are the latest champions to leave their mark.

RELAYS:

Women

4x400: LSU defeated the number one ranked Texas A&M Aggies and claimed the title at the SEC Championships with a time of 3:31.50. They now rank 5th nationally and are rounding into great shape heading in to nationals.

Distance Medley: Colorado had the top time this weekend clocking in at 10:58.68 to win the MPSF. Their time moved them into 7th position nationally and earned them a qualifying mark to the Indoor Championships.

Men

4x400: It was quite a race at the SEC. Three of the fastest relays in history competed this past weekend. Three teams ran sub 3:03 in the 4x400 and Texas A&M came out on top thanks to a come from behind victory from Mylik Kerley. Their winning time of 3:02.39 is number 1 all time and just barely ahead of runner up Florida who clocked in at 3:02.73. Alabama finished 3rd with 3:02.92.

Distance Medley: Virginia Tech clocked in at 9:31.05. Their winning performance at the ACC Indoor Championship placed them 10th nationally and earned them a qualifying mark to the Indoor Championship.


Note: Only one meet to go. March 10-11 is when the best of the best will compete for a chance to call themselves a national champion. 

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