Jayhawks Journey to Ames for Big 12 Indoor Championships
Feb. 25, 2010
Complete Meet Notes in PDF Format 
LAWRENCE, Kan. –
It is a busy weekend across the country for Division I track and field programs, as teams gear up for conference championship action. The Jayhawks, who are competing in one of the fiercest leagues in the NCAA, will head to Ames, Iowa for the 2010 Big 12 Indoor Championships. Eight of the nation’s top 25 teams will be featured between the men’s and women’s sides. The Jayhawks have 25 men and 25 women in tow for an exciting and spirited weekend at the Lied Recreation Center on the campus of Iowa State University.
Leading the men’s team will be three-time defending Big 12 Champion in the pole vault, Jordan Scott. The senior from Watkinsville, Ga., will have a chance to sweep the title during his four years at Kansas, as he enters the event with the top mark in the Big 12 at 5.43 meters (17-09.75 feet). In addition to Scott, senior Ryan Hays and freshman Corey Shank both have an excellent chance to score points in the pole vault.
Also currently atop the Big 12 performance list is freshman Mason Finley, who leads the men’s shot put with a mark of 19.10 meters (62-8 feet).
Sophomores Keith Hayes (60-meter hurdles) and Corey Fuller (triple jump) represent two other Jayhawks who will be a threat at the championships. Hayes finished fifth overall in the 60-meter hurdles at last year’s league meet, and has already met the NCAA provisional standard in the event twice this season. Fuller is coming off a career-best performance just two weeks ago at the ISU Classic, where he met the provisional standard in the triple jump with a mark of 15.48 meters (50-09.50 feet).
On the women’s side, senior Lauren Bonds will vie for a medal in three different events, as she is slated to compete in the mile, 3,000 meters and distance medley relay. Bonds is currently second on the Big 12 performance list in the mile (4:42.11), while ranked ninth in the 3,000 (9:30.9h). Not only has she met NCAA provisional qualifying standard in both events this season, but those times also marked new Kansas school records.
Another top competitor in the distance events includes junior Amanda Miller, who is currently fourth in the 5,000 meters in the Big 12 Conference. Just two weeks ago in the Lied Recreation Center, Miller set the Kansas school record and earned her first-career NCAA qualifying standard in the 5,000 meters with a time of 16:27.03. She will also compete in the 3,000 meters this weekend.
Freshman thrower Alena Krechyk is currently the top-ranked athlete in the weight throw in the Big 12. She also set a school record in her last meet, throwing 19.37 meters (63-06.75 feet).
The event kicks off Friday, Feb. 25 at 10:00 a.m. with pentathlon and heptathlon events and continues through Saturday, Feb. 26. See PDF notes for a complete meet schedule or visit the Big 12 Championships website at http://www.big12sports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=10410&KEY=&ATCLID=204872021
Recap and results of each day’s competition will be available on www.kuathletics.com/trackandfield and live results of the meet can be viewed at http://www.deltatiming.com/results/meet.aspx?DB_OEM_ID=10410&yf=2010&mf=big-12-indoor-championships&ts=true.
KANSAS NOTES
THE CHAMPIONSHIPS
Last season, Texas captured the men’s crown for the third consecutive year and fifth time overall. Nebraska leads the conference with nine championships (1997-98, 2000-05, `07). On the women’s side, Texas A&M cruised to its third straight title. The Husker women (1997, 2000-01, 2004-05) are tied with the Longhorns (1998-99, 2002-03, `06) for the most Big 12 titles at five each. In 2009, the Jayhawk men took 11th, while the women finished ninth in the conference. In total, Kansas has produced 60 conference team championships and over 600 individual conference champions in the school’s history.
THE VENUE
The 2010 Big 12 Indoor Chamionships will be held at the Lied Recreation-Athletic Facility on the campus of Iowa State University. This marks the fourth time Iowa State has hosted the event (1998, 2000, 2007).
The indoor facility features a 300-meter track with eight 42-inch lanes, making it the largest and one of the fastest indoor surfaces in the world. There are four pole vault runways and two long jump/triple jump pits, as well as portable seating available for 2,000 spectators. The polyurethane surface maximizes the power of the runner and the long straightaways and sweeping curves make the track a magnet for the finest runners. Over the summer of 1999 the track was resurfaced at a cost of over $600,000 with a mondo surface.
KU MEN’S BIG 12 CHAMPIONSHIPS LINEUP
Brian Bishop (Shot Put)
Mason Finley (Shot Put)
Reggie Carter (60m-400m-4×400)
Kyle Clemons (4×400-DMR)
Ryan Hays (Pole Vault)
Jordan Scott (Pole Vault)
Keith Hayes (60h-4×400)
Keyen Porter (60h)
Nick Canton (High Jump)
Nate Scherzer (High Jump)
Sam Jones (DMR)
Ryan Peterson (800m)
Josh Baden (5,000m – 3,000m)
Kaleb Humphreys (3,000m)
Corey Shank (Pole Vault)
Chandler Frigon (600 yds)
Bret Imgrund (3,000m-DMR)
Dan Van Orsdel (5,000m – 3,000m)
Derrick Perry (600 yds)
Keron Toussaint (600 yds-DMR)
Corey Fuller (Triple Jump)
Nick Caprario (5,000m)
Austin Bussing (3,000m)
Donny Wasinger (1,00m – 3,000m – DMR)
Zach Zarda (3,000m)
KU WOMEN’S BIG 12 CHAMPIONSHIPS LINEUP
Lauren Bonds (Mile – 3,000m – DMR)
Kara Windisch (3,000m – 5,000m)
Amanda Miller (3,000m – 5,000m)
Rebeka Stowe (Mile – 3,000m – DMR)
Cori Christensen (800m – 3,000m – DMR)
Tara Grosserode (600 yds)
Taylor Washington (600 yds – 4×400 – DMR)
Shayla Wilson (600 yds – 4×400 – DMR)
Andrea Geubelle (Long Jump, Triple Jump)
Kathryn Lupton (60h)
Kendra Bradley (400m – 4×400 – DMR)
Denesha Morris (60m – 200m – 4×400)
Anna Barber (600 yds)
Kate Colvin (Pole Vault)
Alena Krechyk (Weight Throw)
Taissa Makhmayeva (400m – 4x400m – DMR)
Abby Jones (Pole Vault)
Jaci Perryman (Pole Vault)
Julia Cummings (Pole Vault)
Tara Turnbull (Pole Vault)
Liz Beisner (High Jump)
Kelsey Erb (High Jump)
Rebecca Neville (Pentathlon – High Jump)
Sara Noonan (Pentathlon – Triple Jump)
Riley Wertenberger (3,000m – 5,000m)
