Crimson Tide Posts Six Regional Qualifying Marks on Day Three
3/28/2009 12:00:00 AM
March 28, 2009
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - The Alabama women's track and field team hosted the third day of competition at the Alabama Relays at Sam Bailey Track and Field Stadium on Saturday. With the weather cooperating all day after thunderstorms in the early morning, it mad for a great day on the oval and in the field as several athletes set personal bests and qualified for the NCAA Regional Championships.
"I think when you open up your season with six regional marks, it kind of says the quality of team you have and it also says that the girls have bought into our program," head coach Sandy Fowler said. "The question now is since they're here now, where they will be come SECs and nationals because all they're going to do improve as the season progresses."
In the first event of the day, Farrah Stewart claimed second place in the 10,000 meter run with a time of 40:21.42.
Megan Williams set an outdoor personal best 5,000m time on the oval running a time of 19:05.85. She bettered her previous outdoor mark by nearly 30 seconds.
The Crimson Tide posted two finishers in the top five of the 100m hurdles. Kimberley Laing finished third leaning across the line in a regional qualifying time of 13.57 seconds, just .06 off her personal best. Nicole Okolo placed fifth running a time of 14.20.
In the 100m dash, Alabama placed four athletes in the top 10 led by a third place finish from Chealsea Taylor running a regional qualifying time of 11.74. Heather Matherson and Audra Frimpong finished sixth and seventh with times of 12:06 and 12:09, respectively. Toni Graham rounded out the top 10 leaning across the line with a time of 12.14.
Three Alabama women set personal bests in the 800m run with Leigh Gilmore leading the way with a sixth place finish and a time of 2:16.23. Following closely was Jordan Harper crossing the line in seventh with a time of 2:17.05. Meghan Hawkins also set a personal best as she finished 13th with a time of 2:19.69.
Amethyst Holmes threw a personal best by over five feet in the discus finishing 12th overall with a throw of 123-1.
In her first time competing in the 3,000m steeplechase, Andrea Torske turned in the fourth fastest time in school history running 11:46.58.
Graham added her second top 10 finish of the day in the 200m placing eighth with a time of 25.24.
School record holder in the pole vault, Lynda Cooper finished second in the pole vault with a regional qualifying clearance of 12-11 1/2. Katherine Strickland also finished in the top 10 tying for seventh with a mark of 11-9 3/4.
After finishing seventh in the 100m dash, Frimpong placed seventh in the long jump as well with a leap of 18-5 1/4.
Competing for the first time in an Alabama uniform, Krystle Schade not only won the high jump title, but also qualified for the NCAA Regional Championships with her clearance of the bar set at 5-8 3/4. Laing, competing in the high jump for her first time, finished fourth clearing a height of 5-5.
"We felt like we got some things accomplished today," assistant coach Scott Roberts said. "Obviously, it's the first meet of the season so we have some kinks to work out, but we also had some kids that didn't compete indoors like Krystle Schade who came out and won the high jump in her first collegiate meet. Also, Chealsea Taylor hasn't run the 100 meters since her freshman year and it's a collegiate best for her. We think that this gives us a great place to start and room to grow throughout the season."
Talaya Owens posted a second place finish in the 400m hurdles sprinting to a regional qualifying time of 59.91.
Kelsey Johnson finished sixth in the 1,500m run crossing the line with a time of 4:37.60.
In the shot put, Angelica Howard finished fourth with a regional qualifying throw of 48-2 1/2. Chandra Brewer competing unattached, also a volunteer coach for the Crimson Tide, broke the two-year-old facility record by nine inches by throwing the shot put 56-8 1/2. Brewer was fourth at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials.
"I think it's a huge deal when an athlete breaks a facility record, but also to have somebody that is actually working with my team kind of sets the tone as well because these athletes get to see her basically everyday," Fowler said.
The Alabama Relays will resume with the final day of competition on Sunday with the men's hammer throw at 8:00 a.m. Running events are slated to commence at 12:30 p.m. with the women's shuttle hurdle relay. All running events on Sunday will be relays.
Players Mentioned
