Men's Track Sends Four to Finals at SEC Championships
5/15/2010 12:00:00 AM
May 15, 2010
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - Into the early hours of Sunday morning went the third day of the 2010 SEC Outdoor Track and Field Championships, after a four-hour, 20-minute lightning show delayed the events at Tom Black Track at LaPorte Stadium on Saturday night. The Alabama men's track and field team is in 10th place with one day of competition remaining.
In the 1,500 meter prelims, juniors Julius Bor and Joel Rop posted the ninth and 11th-fastest times of the day to advance to the Sunday final. Bor finished with a time of 3:49.47, while Rop clocked a time of 3:49.98.
True freshman Kirani James, runner-up in the 400 meters at the indoor SEC championships, won his 400 meter prelim heat easily with a time of 46.22 to advance to the finals with the third-fastest time of the day. This was the Grenada native's first 400 meter race since winning the CARIFTA gold medal on April 3 earlier this year. The 400 meter final will feature some of the fastest sprinters in the world in No. 1 Calvin Smith (Florida), No. 3 Tavaris Tate (Mississippi State) and No. 5 James.
The final event of the night, the 3,000 meter steeplechase, junior Andrew Kirwa finished fourth with a personal-best time of 9:00.11.
Alabama athletes qualifying for Sunday's finals are junior Fred Samoei (800 meters), Bor (1,500 meters), Rop (1,500 meters) and James (400 meters).
The Crimson Tide will return to action on the oval on Sunday at 5:10 p.m. (ET) for the 4x100 meter relay. The final event of the championship meet will be the 4x400 meter relay, set for Sunday at 8:40 p.m.
Saturday's Alabama Men's Results
1,500 Meter Prelims: 9. Julius Bor - 3:49.47+; 11. Joel Rop - 3:49.98+
400 Meter Prelims: 3. Kirani James - 46.22+; Bobby Onyeukwu - DQ (Lane Violation)
100 Meter Prelims: 16. Ray Jadusingh - 10.64 (+0.3); 23. Brandon Spradley - 10.80 (+0.3)
3,000 Meter Steeplechase: 4. Andrew Kirwa - 9:00.11!; 11. Austin Duckworth - 9:42.40!
Alabama Men's Scorers (Top Eight Finishers - All Weekend)
Decathlon: 7. Michael Hughes - 6,794 points! (2 points)
3,000 Meter Steeplechase: 4. Andrew Kirwa - 9:00.11! (5 points)
! - Personal-best; * - Season-best; + - Advanced to next round; DQ - Disqualified; DNF - Did not finish; NM - No mark; FS - False start; SR - School record
Alabama Men Advancing to Sunday's Finals
Fred Samoei - 800 Meters (6:50 p.m. ET)
Julius Bor - 1,500 Meters (5:30 p.m. ET)
Joel Rop - 1,500 Meters (5:30 p.m. ET)
Kirani James - 400 Meters (6:10 p.m. ET)
Men's Team Standings (7 of 21 Events Scored)
1. LSU - 45
1. Georgia - 45
3. Auburn - 40
4. Mississippi - 35
4. Florida - 35
6. Arkansas - 23
7. Tennessee - 18
8. South Carolina - 16
9. Mississippi State - 9
10. Alabama - 7
