Alabama
Frank Sevigne Husker Invite
Taylor Leads Tide at Husker Indoor
2/6/2015 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field, Cross Country
LINCOLN, Neb. - The University of Alabama track and field team had a number of season-best performances Friday at the 40th Annual Frank Sevigne Husker Invite, qualifying three athletes in three events for finals to be held Saturday. Alabama won one event and had a total of six season bests in five events in the first of two days of competition at the meet that is hosted by the University of Nebraska.
Sophomore Lakan Taylor won the women's pole vault for the second week in a row, clearing 13-8 1/4 (4.17m). Taylor took three close attempts at the current school record of 14-3 1/4 (4.35m) but was unable to clear the bar.
"We had a pretty good night overall," said Alabama head coach Dan Waters. "We improved some technical aspects in the sprints tonight, so that's a very encouraging development. This is the first time for a lot of the people that competed for us tonight to really be leading us in some of these events, so that's a growth opportunity that will serve us well down the line."
Crimson Tide junior Ahmed Ali was the first athlete to earn a berth into the finals on Saturday. Ali tied his season best performance in the 60-meter hurdle preliminaries, crossing the line in 6.79. The sophomore was second in heat three of the race, qualifying with the eighth-best time of the night.
Junior Dominique Kimpel qualified for finals in the women's 60-meter dash, running 7.51 to win heat five. Both senior Sarah Thomas (7.59) and sophomore Brianna Sims (7.74) ran season-best times for 2015. Sophomore Vanessa Clerveaux won heat two of the 60-meter hurdle preliminaries to earn a berth in Saturday's final with a time of 8.35.
MEN'S EVENTS
60-Meter Preliminaries - Junior Ahmed Ali led the Tide in the 60-meter dash, finishing eighth overall in the prelims in a time of 6.79. Fellow junior Tadashi Pinder crossed the finish line in a time of 6.85 to finish third in heat two. Junior Bradley Sylve recorded a season best time of 6.86 to finish fourth in the first heat of the night.
Long Jump - Sophomore Jeremiah Green took a week off from triple jump, his main event, to compete in the long jump Friday night. Green jumped 22-4 1/4 (6.81m) to finish 15th. Freshman Anthony Averett finished 19th with a mark of 20-11 3/4 (6.39m).
Weight Throw - Freshman Daniel Haugh had the sixth-best toss of the men's weight throw preliminary round, moving him into finals. His longest toss of the day came on his final throw when he threw the weight 62-5 3/4 (19.04m). The throw ranks as Haugh's third-best throw of the 2015 indoor season.
WOMEN'S EVENTS
60 Meter Preliminaries - Junior Dominique Kimpel led the Tide in the 60-meter dash, winning heat five in a time of 7.51 and qualifying for the final to be run Saturday. Senior Sarah Thomas ran a season best 7.59 to finish third in the second heat of the day. Thomas was followed across the line by sophomore Brianna Sims. Sims ran a personal best 7.74 to finish fourth in heat four.
60-Meter Hurdle Preliminaries- Tide sophomore Vanessa Clerveaux finished third overall in the 60-meter hurdle preliminary round and first in heat two, earning a berth into the finals, which will be run Saturday at 2 p.m. The sophomore's time of 8.35 is her second-best this season.
400 Meters - Sophomore Nicole Sassaman ran 1:00.41 in the 400-meter dash, finishing fifth in the fourth heat of the race.
Pole Vault - Tide sophomore Lakan Taylor won the women's pole vault with a clearance of 13-8 1/4 (4.17m). Taylor cleared the bar on her second attempt. The sophomore was the only athlete to clear the height and chose to raise the bar to 14-3 1/4, Alabama's current school record. Taylor missed three times at the height to end the competition. Junior Anna Rawles cleared 12-4 1/2 on her final attempt. She then attempted 12-10 1/4, but failed to clear the bar. Rawles was 10th overall in the field of 20 athletes.
Long Jump - Tide sophomore Quanesha Burks leaped to a third place finish with a mark of 19-10 3/4 (6.06m). It is the sophomore's second-best jump of the season and the sixth-best mark on the Alabama all-time performance list. Freshman Filippa Fotopoulou leaped to a season-best 18-1 1/2 (5.52m) to finish 17th overall in a field of 25 athletes.
Weight Throw - Alabama senior Nia Barnes finished third in the women's weight throw with a mark of 63-2 3/4 (19.27m). Barnes achieved that mark on her first attempt of the night. Carly Fehringer (unattached) won the event with a throw of 64-11 1/2 (19.80m) with Minnesota's Devin Stanford second at 63-9 3/4 (19.45m). Barnes had legal throws on four of her six attempts overall, but came close to equaling her best mark of the night just once, a toss of 19.16 on her final attempt of the night. Candicea Bernard was 17th with a best of 53-3 (16.23m).
Frank Sevigne Husker Invitational
Friday, February 6, 2015
Alabama Results
MEN
60 Meters (Prelims) - (Heat 1) 4. Bradley Sylve, 6.86; (Heat 2) 2. Ahmed Ali, 6.79 (Q); (Heat 3) 3. Tadashi Pinder, 6.85.
Long Jump - 15. Jeremiah Green, 22-4 1/4 (6.81m); 19. Anthony Averett, 20-11 3/4 (7.13m).
Weight Throw - 5. Daniel Haugh, 62-5 ¾ (19.04m).
WOMEN
60 Meters (Prelims) - (Heat 4) 3. Sarah Thomas, 7.59; 4. Brianna Sims, 7.74(Heat 5) 1. Dominique Kimpel, 7.51
400 Meters - 40. Nicole Sassaman, 1:00.41.
60-Meter Hurdles (Prelims) - (Heat 2) 1. Vanessa Clerveaux, 8.35 (Q).
Long Jump - 3. Quanesha Burks, 19-10 3/4 (6.06m), 17. Filippa Fotopoulou, 18-1 1/2 (5.52m).
Pole Vault - 1. Lakan Taylor, 13-8 1/2 (4.17m); 10. Anna Rawles, 12-4 1/2 (3.77m).
Weight Throw - 3. Nia Barnes, 63-2 ¾ (19.27m); 17. Candicea Bernard, 53-3 (16.23m).
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