Track And Field To Conclude Season At SBC Championships
5/10/2007 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field/XC
Florida International was pegged as the favorite on this year’s women’s side with 81points, while on the men’s side it is South Alabama getting the nod slightly over
For the Mean Green, the women will be in search of their first outdoor title since 2003; however, the team has not finished any less than third since claiming that last title, including a third-place finish a year ago also in Lafayette.
The women will return two of their three conference champions from a year ago with hopes of a repeat performance.
Ryan Hill’s leap of 5-8 was enough to claim her first conference title at last year’s meet, and with a regional-qualifying mark in her back pocket she can concentrate solely on defending that title. Her toughest competition looks to be a trio of jumpers that include Amy Fledderman of
Senior thrower Heather Wood is the second of those defending champions that will have a bulls-eye on her back for the weekend. The
The women have also had a number of other successes this season including regional-qualifying 4x100-meter relay team that has gone under that regional mark twice on the year. Sophomore jumper Brandi Stanfield has also notched her place in
On the men’s side it will be a trio of field performers that will be counted on to lead the way as they search for their first outdoor title since 2002. The Mean Green men have not finished higher than fourth in any of the last three seasons.
Senior Heath Smith is one of only a handful of athletes in the Sun Belt in 2007 that has regionally qualified in multiple events. He currently holds the conference’s longest toss in the javelin, and trails Louisiana-Monroe’s Walt Williams by mere inches for the SBC’s best in the shot put.
The Mean Green also has a pair of high jumpers that have fared well throughout this season’s campaign. Toby Edwards claimed his first conference title at the indoor championships in February, and has qualified for the regional meet for the first time as well in the outdoor season. Senior Mark Lee will be looking to defend his crown at his final conference meet this weekend. Lee took first with a jump of 2.05 meters last year and has already leaped 2.10 meters this season.
Events begin on Friday with the decathlon, while the bulk of the meet begins at 12:30 on Friday with field events. Competition will continue through Sunday evening with the final event, the men’s 4x400-meter relay, scheduled to take place at 9 pm.