KU Track & Field Scatters Country in Search of Regional Marks
April 27, 2007
LAWRENCE, Kan. –
The University of Kansas track and field teams will disperse throughout the country at several prestigious meets with hopes of adding to their bevy of regional qualifying marks. Various KU student-athletes will be competing at the Drake Relays, the Penn Relays, the Cardinal Invitational and at UMKC over the weekend.
Among the Kansas contingency heading to Des Moines, Iowa, to compete at the Drake Relays are hammer throwers Egor Agafonov and Zlata Tarasova. Both own the school record in the event, are currently ranked first in the Big 12 Conference and were winners at the Kansas Relays. Joining them will be long jumpers Barrett Saunders and Eric Babb. The pair ranks first and second, respectively, in the event in the Big 12 Conference and in the national rankings among all Division I student-athletes. Babb won the event at the Kansas Relays with a career-best leap of 25-09.25.
Venturing to the Penn Relays will be junior hurdlers Ashley Brown and Julius Jiles. The pair have enjoyed tremendous success this season, as both have set new personal bests in the 100 and 110-meter hurdles, respectively. Also competing in Philadelphia will be a pair of relay teams: the men’s 4×800-meter and the women’s 4×400-meter teams.
Several Kansas distance runners will take on some of the nation’s elite at the Cardinal Invitational in Palo Alto, Calif. Juniors Colby Wissel, Paul Hefferon and Patrick McGowan will compete in the men’s 5000, 10,000 and 3000-meter steeplechase, respectively for the Jayhawks. Senior Melissa O’Rourke will race in the 1500-meter run while freshman Lauren Bonds will participate in the 3000-meter steeplechase.
At UMKC, senior Laura Gjerde and junior Libby Harmon will look to improve their marks in the pole vault while junior Josh Kirk hopes to refine some techniques in several events that constitute the decathlon. All three earned regionally qualifying marks at the Kansas Relays.
Keep up-to-date with kuathletics.com for all the Kansas track and field results throughout the country over the weekend.
– KU –
