TicketsApril 24, 2009
DRAKE, Iowa - The University of Cincinnati outdoor track and field team kicked off its first day of competition at the 100th running of the Drake Relays Friday at Drake Stadium. Freshman Terrence Somerville and sophomore Kaylon Eppinger highlighted the day for UC individually as both ran well in the preliminaries of the 110 hurdles and 100 hurdles, respectively, qualifying for the finals on Saturday, April 25. In the relays, the women's 4x800 team shattered the school record by five-plus seconds almost eclipsing nine minutes.
Somerville finished first in the preliminaries of the 110 hurdles with a time of 14.11, while sophomore Kaylon Eppinger finished seventh in the preliminaries of the 100 hurdles with a time 14.30. Both will run in the finals of their respective events on Saturday. In the field events, Shane Shockey finished in fourth place with a clearance of 17' 3/4", which is tied for the fourth best mark in UC history, while Troy Cooper finished in 15th in the shot put with a toss of 53' 11".
The team of Megan McAuley, Jenny Harsh, Jenna Heaton, and Kathy Klump finished in eighth and shattered the school record in the 4x800 with a time of 9:01.52. The mark was 5.51 seconds faster than the previous record set by McAuley, Chelsea Gerken, Courtney Hentz, and Myeeah Scott in 2008.
The women's 4x100 team of Mandi Boykin, Natasha Burse, Courtney Wicks, and Aricka Rhodes finished in 14th place in the preliminaries with a time of 49.65, while the men's 4x100 team of Anthony Chandler, Antione Drakeford, Chase VanCura, and Dayo Igeleke finished in 13th with a time of 41.15.
Action continues on Saturday, April 25.