KU Women Win DMR, Shatter School Record
March 5, 2010
SOUTH BEND, Ind. –
Not only did the Kansas women’s distance medley relay squad turn in the best performance of the season, Friday evening at the Alex Wilson Invitational, but the quartet of Rebeka Stowe, Taylor Washington, Cori Christensen and Lauren Bonds recorded the best race in school history. The Jayhawks’ DMR team finished first in the event with a school-record-breaking time of 11:07.96.
“It was a great race,” said KU distance coach Michael Whittlesey. “Each of our four girls ran a great leg, but there were definitely four to five teams in the mix the entire time. It came down to the final 400 meters and then Bonds just kicked it in and pulled away from the other leaders. She really had a fantastic race.”
There were six teams, including the Jayhawks, that met the NCAA provisional standard in the event, but KU turned in the top time, beating Indiana, Michigan and conference-foe Baylor by more than three seconds each.
Stowe ran the first 1,200 meters in 3:27.6, followed by Washington, who clocked a 400-meter split of 52.8. Christensen ran the 800-meter leg in 2:09.7, while Bonds finished strong with a mile-split of 4:37.7.
With that performance, the Jayhawks have an excellent shot at earning a bid to nationals, as their time of 11:07.96 currently ranks sixth on the national list.
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – While members of the women’s middle distance and distance squad were breaking records in South Bend, the Jayhawks’ top field athletes were competing in Fayetteville, Ark., at the Arkansas Final Qualifier.
Sophomore Nick Canton and senior Kelsey Erb both matched their season-best mark in the high jump. Erb cleared 1.70 meters (5-7 feet) to finish second in the women’s event, while Canton leaped 2.05 meters (6-08.75 feet) in the men’s, which was also good for runner-up honors.
Freshman Andrea Geubelle took sixth in the long jump with a mark of 6.00 meters (19-08.25 feet). She was followed by freshman Rebecca Neville, who recorded a personal record of 5.76 meters (18-10.75 feet) to finish ninth.
Junior Jareb Stallbaumer turned in his season-best performance in the men’s long jump, leaping 7.13 meters (23-04.25 feet).
Abby Jones led a pack of six KU women in the pole vault, as she finished 10th with a career-best mark of 3.73 meters (12-02.75 feet). Juniors Jaci Perryman and Tara Turnbull and sophomore Julia Cummings tied for 11th after finishing with the same mark of 3.58 meters (11-9 feet).
On the men’s side, four-time Big 12 Champion Jordan Scott, took second in the pole vault with a mark of 5.25 meters (17-02.75 feet). Freshman Corey Shank easily cleared 4.95 meters (16-02.75 feet), but fell short when the bar was raised to 16-8. Senior Ryan Hays took ninth with the same mark as Shank at 4.95 meters (16-02.75 feet).
In the men’s triple jump, sophomore Corey Fuller recorded a mark of 15.09 meters (49-06.25 feet) to finish third, while Geubelle and fellow freshman Sara Noonan finished seventh and eighth, respectively, in the women’s triple jump. Noonan leaped to a career-best 12.26 meters (40-02.75 feet).
There is still one meet left for KU this weekend, as part of the team traveled to Ames Iowa for the ISU NCAA Qualifier, which kicks off at 10 a.m. tomorrow. Complete results and a meet recap will be available on www.kuathletics.com/trackandfield following competition.
Arkansas Final Qualifier Complete Results 
