Kansas Track and Field Teams Head to Columbia

April 13, 2006

LAWRENCE, Kan. –

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This week for the Jayhawks…
The men’s and women’s track and field teams travel to Columbia, Mo., this weekend for the Tom Botts Invitational. The meet kicks off on Friday, April 14, with the women’s hammer at 4 p.m. and ends on Saturday, April 15, with the men’s 4×400-meter relay. The Jayhawks will look for continued success on the track in Columbia. They are coming off a solid performance at last week’s Texas Relays in Austin that saw several top-flight showings in the throws group from Egor Agafonov, Sheldon Battle and Zlata Tarasova. Looking past the Tom Botts Invite, the two teams will return home the following weekend for the 79th Kansas Relays in Memorial Stadium on April 20-22.

Texas Relays Leftovers…
Kansas’ top hammer throwers enjoyed very successful weekends in Austin. Freshman Zlata Tarasova broke KU’s hammer record with her toss of 193-10. Sophomore Egor Agafonov flirted with the school’s hammer record himself, but his throw of 217-8 fell just inches short of Scott Russell’s standard of 218-5. Both tosses were regionally-qualifying marks for the throwers.

Indoor All-American Charisse Bacchus opened her season with a second-place performance in the long jump. Her jump of 20-7 was a regional mark.

All-American Sheldon Battle moved up one spot from fifth to fourth on KU’s all-time performance list in the discus in Austin as well. His throw of 191-8 moved him past former Kansas great Karl Salb. The toss was good for fourth place overall in Section A of the meet and was also a regionally-qualifying performance. Battle also took home a third-place result in Section A of the men’s shot put. Battle’s throw of 64-4 gave him the finish, besting three Big 12 rivals in the process. The toss was also a regionally-qualifying mark.

Tarasova Breaks Women’s Hammer Record…
On the second day of competition from the Texas Relays, freshman Zlata Tarasova broke the school’s hammer throw record by over 10 feet. Tarasova’s heave of 193-10 broke Jennifer Widerstrom’s previous record of 183-2, a standard that Widerstrom broke at the same meet a year ago. This is the second record Tarasova has broken in her young career. The Togliatti, Russia, native holds the school’s indoor weight throw record as well.

Regional Marks for the Jayhawks…
Several members of the men’s and women’s track and field teams have already achieved regional marks for their respective events. They include: Julius Jiles (110m hurdles), Sheldon Battle (discus and shot put), Egor Agafonov (hammer), Cody Roberts (discus), Charisse Bacchus (long jump), Stephanie Horton (shot put), Abby Emsick (discus), Zlata Tarasova (hammer) and Denita Young (javelin). The NCAA Midwest Regional Championships will be held in Austin, Texas, on May 26 and 27.

Men’s Team Ranked…
The University of Kansas men’s track and field team is ranked at No. 18 in the country with a projected 13 points in the new Trackwire.com national poll. It is tied with Baylor and South Carolina for that position. The Trackwire 25 projects a hypothetical score for the NCAA meet, factoring in injury reports and other variables supported by information gathered from coaches and NCAA-qualifying competitions across the country. Kansas’ projection this week was 19 points for the NCAA Indoor Championships. This projection is generated by scoring the Dandy Dozen, a power ranking of the top 12 athletes and relay squads in each NCAA event.

Jayhawks in the Dandy Dozen…
This week’s edition of the Trackwire Dandy Dozen showcases mainstays Sheldon Battle, Egor Agafonov, and Charisse Bacchus. Battle is at third in the shot put and sixth in the discus while Agafonov is ranked sixth in the hammer. Bacchus, who finished second in the long jump at the Texas Relays, is on the list at number six. The Dandy Dozen is a power ranking of the top 12 athletes and relay squads in each NCAA event. The list is used in compiling Trackwire’s weekly top 25 team rankings.