TicketsMarch 28, 2009
CINCINNATI - Junior Antione Drakeford broke his own school record, set the Gettler Stadium record, and met a regional qualifying time after running 45.83 in the 400 meters for the University of Cincinnati outdoor track and field team Saturday afternoon at the Oliver Nikoloff Invitational. Despite the fact that this is only the second weekend of outdoor competition, Drakeford's time in the 400 is tops in the NCAA to this point in the season.
Cincinnati men's team defeated eight teams with a score of 284, while the UC women's team also bested nine teams with a score of 198.
For the second week in a row, sophomore Natasha Burse took home three first-place showings with wins in the 100 meters, 200 meters, and in the 4x100 relay. Burse ran times of 11.84 and 24.46 in the 100 and 200, respectively, while the 4x100 team clocked a time of 46.21, the third fastest time in school history.
Junior Ashley Arnold took first-place honors in the 400 meters crossing the line in 55.08 seconds, and sophomore Lilian Jelimo collected top honors in the 5,000 meters with a time of 17:05.63.
In the field events, UC took top honors in the pole vault as freshman Mackenzie Fields cleared a first-place height of 12' 3-1/2" in the pole vault.
On the men's side, senior Randy King kicked off the running events with a winning-time of 9:25 in the 3,000 steeplechase, before freshman Eric Finan crossed the line in first to win the 1,500 with a time of 3:54.48.
Freshman Michael Rutherford topped his own freshman record in the 800 meters collecting a time of 1:50.44, five hundredths of a second better than his mark set one week ago at the Early Bird Relays.
In the sprints, junior Dayo Igeleke took the top spot in the 100 meters clocking in at 10.71 seconds. The Bearcats continued their success in the hurdle events as freshman Terrence Sommerville notched a victory in the 110 hurdles, before Troy Lammers was victorious in the 400 hurdles.
On the field, Ryan Beltz finished first in the high jump with a clearance of 6' 7", while UC's Shane Shockey snatched victory for the second week in a row in the pole vault with a mark of 16' 6-3/4".
The Bearcats compete in the third of three home meets on Saturday, April 4, when UC hosts the Southern Ohio Cup at Gettler Stadium.