Host of Jayhawks Walk Away with Hardware at Rock Chalk Classic

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LAWRENCE, Kan. – In his final collegiate performance at Rock Chalk Park, senior Michael Stigler assured it would be a memorable one as he contributed to two of Kansas’ 16 event titles Saturday afternoon at the Rock Chalk Classic. Stigler posted another one of the world’s top times in the 400-meter hurdles and anchored the men’s 4×400-meter relay to victory in the Jayhawks’ final home meet of the year.
 
Two weeks removed from claiming a 400-meter hurdle victory at the Kansas Relays, Stigler returned to the Rock Chalk Park track in hopes of leaving an even more lasting impression in one of his final outings in front of the home fans. Stigler did just that as he hurdled to another win in the event by nearly taking down his own school record in the event. The three-time First Team All-American had already put more than 10 meters between himself and the field less than halfway through the race before kicking it into high gear over the final 100 meters. He soared over the final hurdle and leaned across the finish in 48.86 for the second-fastest time of his career. Stigler’s clocking ranks fourth on the world charts this year, with his 48.44 posted at the Texas Relays in March still making him the world-leader.
 
To close out the day on the track, Stigler, along with teammates Drew Matthews, Jaime Wilson and Kenneth McCuin, tallied the Kansas’ men’s final win of the afternoon with the victory in the 4×400-meter relay. The first three legs kept KU narrowly in the lead for the first 1,200 meters but a pesky Oral Roberts squad was shoulder-to-shoulder with the Jayhawks heading into the final leg. Running as the anchor leg, Stigler refused to settle for anything less than first place. He quickly put space between himself and the ORU anchor and brought the KU baton home in a time of 3:11.97.
 
Freshman Cole Ceban and sophomore Mitch Cooper both turned in outstanding outings in the discus throw. The Jayhawk duo took the top-two collegiate finishes with marks that rank them each among the top-10 discus throwers in school history. Ceban managed to edge his elder teammate by less than an inch when he launched the disc to a mark of 58.06 meters (190’6″). Cooper came close but could not surpass the freshman with his toss of 58.05 meters (190’5″). Both throws moved the Jayhawks to eighth and ninth, respectively, among Kansas’ all-time discus throwers and into the top-25 of this season’s NCAA ranks.
 
Sydney Conley tallied another impressive day in front of the hometown crowd as she collected wins in both the long jump and 100-meter dash. She entered the day still ranked as one of the top-five of the long jump and again proved she belonged in that company when she tallied another one of the farthest leaps in the NCAA this year. She soared to a mark of 6.57 meters (21’6½”) to win the event easily, topping the rest of the field by over a foot.
 
In the 100 meters, Conley reached a number few Jayhawks have been able to attain as she sprinted to the win in a time of 11.28. The time would have ranked as one of the fastest times in Kansas history had it not been for the strong tail wind. The junior’s performance still ranks as one of the top-five in any condition in school history.
 
Sharon Lokedi tallied her second 5,000-meter victory in as many appearances on her home track. The freshman ran at the front of the lead pack for the first 3,000 meters before she and Wichita State’s Sidney Hirsch pulled away from the rest of the field. Lokedi and Hirsch were neck-and-neck entering the final 200 meters, however Lokedi used a strong kick to outpace the Shocker down the homestretch. The first-year Jayhawk crossed the finish in a new personal best of 16:59.76 for a new Rock Chalk Park record. The performance also made Lokedi just the ninth Kansas female in program history to break the 17-minute barrier in the event.
 
Junior Dasha Tsema was the top collegiate finisher in both the discus and hammer throws. She began the day by posting a mark of 54.04 meters (177’3″) in the hammer throw, topping the next best collegiate thrower by over three feet. Tsema then hit the discus ring where she unleased a top mark of 52.78 meters (173’2″), outdueling teammate Daina Levy, who was the next finisher with a personal-best toss of 54.04 meters (169’7″).
 
Senior pole vaulter Jaimie House also backed up an impressive Kansas Relays performance with a win in her final outing at her home track. She cleared a bar of 4.17 meters (13’8¼”) to take home her second win in as many meets at Rock Chalk Park this season. The vault was enough to shake freshman teammate Laura Taylor, who claimed the runner-up finish with a career-best clearance of 4.07 meters (13’4¼”). 
 
Other individual Jayhawk winners Saturday included senior Kianna Weinzheimer in the javelin (45.49m/149’3″), sophomore Zainab Sanni in the 200 meters (23.58), sophomore Nashia Baker in the 1,500 meters (4:32.56), sophomore Courtney Coppinger in the Steeplechase (10:53.01) and freshman Anthonio Humphrey in the 800 meters (1:51.41).
 
The Kansas track & field teams will now take a week off before heading to Ames, Iowa for the Big 12 Outdoor Championships, May 15-17. The Jayhawk women will look to finish among the conference’s top-four teams for the fourth-straight year, while the KU men will try to improve upon a seventh-place finish in 2014. Keep track of all the Jayhawk performances by logging on to KUAthletics.com for complete updates and results and follow through Twitter at @KUTrack.
 
 
 
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