👟 Bradford, Anderson Win Titles on Final Day of Big 12 Championship
MANHATTAN, Kan. –  Kansas added two more individual Big 12 Champions on the final day of the Big 12 Outdoor Championship in Manhattan, Kansas on Sunday, including Zach Bradford in the pole vault and Rylee Anderson in the high jump.
The Jayhawks finished with three individual Big 12 Champions throughout the entirety of the meet, including Bradford (pole vault), Anderson (high jump) and Gleb Dudarev (hammer throw). The Kansas women finished fifth as a team with 77 points, while the KU men finished seventh with 63 points.
Texas won both the men’s and women’s team titles, as the Longhorn women scored 207 points and the Texas men scored 173 points.
In addition to the individual Big 12 champions, the Jayhawks accounted for 32 podium finishes throughout the weekend, including eight individuals placing in the top-three of their respective events.
In the men’s pole vault, sophomore Zach Bradford won his first career outdoor Big 12 title by clearing a meet record 5.73m (18-9.5 ft.), breaking the previous record of 5.63m (18-5.5 ft.) set by KU’s own Hussain Al-Hizam in 2018. Sunday’s pole vault competition was contested indoors due to weather.
The Kansas pole vault unit set the Big 12 record for the most points in the event by scoring 27 total points. Al-Hizam was the runner-up to Bradford’s title, while Kyle Rogers and Christian Champen tied for fourth with a clearance of 5.21m (17-1 ft.).
Anderson also secured her first Big 12 outdoor title in the women’s high jump on Sunday, after also winning the high jump championship indoors this season. On Sunday, Anderson won with a clearance of 1.82m (5-11.5 ft.), while Adia Eberle and Toni Englund tied for fifth with a jump of 1.66m (5-5.25 ft.). The high jump competition was also contested indoors due to weather.
In what was a day filled with cloudy skies and rain, the Jayhawks competed despite the conditions. Kansas accounted for four top-five finishes on the track and five in the field.
In the women’s triple jump, freshman Victoria Gorlova made use of her Big 12 outdoor debut, placing second overall with a personal best jump of 13.45m (44-1.5 ft.), recorded on her third attempt.
The Jayhawks will send qualifying individuals to the NCAA West Preliminary in College Station, Texas on May 27-29. Qualifiers will be announced at a later date.
