Anderson Takes Three Titles in Tucson
April 5, 2009
Team Results
Individual Results
LAWRENCE, Kan. – Nickesha Anderson regionally qualified with victories in the 100 meters and 200 meters, helped the 4×100-meter relay take home the title, and led the 4×400-meter relay to a second-place finish to pace the Kansas track & field team Saturday at the Jim Click Shootout in Tucson, Ariz.
Anderson had not competed for KU since last outdoor season, but she quickly refreshed the memories of anyone who may have forgotten what she was capable of on the track. The senior from Hanover, Jamaica, took home the championship in the 100 meters with a regional qualifying time of 11.53 and won the 200 meters with a regional qualifying time of 23.56. Anderson along with Kendra Bradley, Aubree Dorsey and Victoria Howard clocked in at 45.89 to take the title in the 4×100-meter relay, and the 4×400-meter relay team of Anderson, Sha’Ray Butler, Shayla Wilson and Charity Stowers placed second with a time of 3:48.35.
“Nickesha had a great day today,” Kansas head coach Stanley Redwine said. “She qualified for regionals in the 100 with the win, qualified for regionals in the 200 with the win, she was on the winning 4×1 team, and she was also on the second-place 4×4 team. She had a full day today in relation to number of events, and she just performed awesome. Anything we asked her do, she was more than happy to do it.”
“It definitely shows the rest of the team what can be done,” Redwine explained. “She’s definitely a leader on and off the track. When someone sees her doing that, they want to step up and get the job done. As a result, Victoria Howard was third in both the 100 and 200 and she was on the winning 4×1 team, so she had a really good day today also.”
Howard finished with a time of 11.96 in the 100 meters and 24.53 in the 200 meters, earning a pair of third-place finishes.
Senior Emily Reimer regionally qualified in the shot put with a personal-best throw of 15.23 meters (49-11.75 ft.), good for a third-place finish. Senior Stephanie Horton regionally qualified in the shot put as well with a throw of 14.49 meters (47-06.50 ft.) to place fifth. Senior Zlata Tarasova posted a regional-qualifying mark in the hammer throw with a toss of 55.50 meters (182-01 feet) to finish second.
Junior Lauren Bonds placed fourth in the 1,500 meters with a personal-best time of 4:28.27 and sophomore Amanda Miller finished third in the 3,000 meters with a personal-best time of 9:53.31.
“For our women’s team, it was a very good team effort on everyone’s part,” Redwine said. “I was definitely happy for those who regionally qualified. That was one of our goals in coming out here. Most of them had a pretty good meet.”
On the men’s side, Corey Fuller won the triple jump after posting a personal-best mark of 15.34 meters (50-04.00 ft.) en route to qualifying for regionals.
“I thought it was really good to have a freshman, Corey Fuller, win the triple jump,” Redwine said. “It was his PR (personal record), and I think to PR at your first outdoor meet, good things are going to happen for you.”
Junior Brian Bishop also regionally qualified in his first outdoor meet as a Jayhawk. The Cantrall, Ill., product placed second in the discus with a personal-best mark of 52.11 meters (170-11 ft.).
Senior Patrick McGowan placed third in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, recording a time of 9:41.33. The men’s 4×400-meter relay team of Reggie Carter, Chandler Frigon, Jarrell Rollins and Keron Toussaint also took third with a time of 3:13.73.
The Jim Click Shootout was a unique event team-wise, as the scoring was done by conference. The Big 12, Pac-10 and Big Ten each were represented by two schools and battled it out for conference supremacy. Kansas, Nebraska and the Big 12 came out on top by scoring 496.50 points, defeating the runner-up Big Ten (Penn State and Wisconsin) by 37.50 points (459.00). The Pac-10 (Arizona and Washington) placed third with a score of 453.50.
“We represented the Big 12 Conference well,” Redwine said. “That was good for the athletes and good for the Big 12. It was fun in that the goal was to definitely come out and do our very best individually, but also when you’re representing the Big 12 you want to always do your best. As we’ve always said, the Big 12 is one of the premier conferences in the nation and this just proves it.'”
Kansas is back in action next weekend, as the Jayhawks travel to Norman, Okla., for the John Jacobs Invitational April 11.
“I think taking the momentum from this meet, we will be ready to compete next week and then from then on,” Redwine explained. “We’re looking forward to having our one and only home meet, the Kansas Relays. We’re gearing up for that. We should be sharp and ready to go.”
The 2009 Kansas Relays will take place April 15-18 at Memorial Stadium. Tickets can be purchased during the Kansas Relays at Memorial Stadium, or in advance at www.kuathletics.com on the Ticket Office page. Contact the ticket office by e-mail at kutickets@ku.edu or by phone at 800-34-HAWKS.
