Track & Field Returns to Action This Week

// ON THE STARTING LINE
The University of Cincinnati track & field program is set to jump back into competition this week as the Bearcats will head to Lexington, Ky., for the 2020 Jim Green Invitational this Friday and Saturday inside the Nutter Fieldhouse on the campus of the University of Kentucky. The meet, the third of the 2020 season for the Bearcats and the first in 2020.

// QUICK SPLITS
• Cincinnati has already sent competitors to a pair of meets for the 2020 season as Bearcats posted solid marks at the Jingle Bells Open (UK) and Hoosier Open (Indiana) in December
• To date, Bearcats have posted 22 marks that rank among the all-time Top 10 in program history, including one school record (Chris Borzor, 300m)
• Heading into the week, the Bearcats have two marks that currently lead the American, including Arthur Greenlee IV in the 60mH (7.79) and Kennedy Marable in the triple jump (12.46m)
• On the national scene, Greenlee IV is currently #2 in the NCAA in his event to lead three Bearcats in the national Top 10, all in the same hurdle event, while Marable is #9 nationally and one of five women ranked in the NCAA Top 25 so far

// MEET INFORMATION
• The Jim Green Invitational will see the Bearcats and host Kentucky compete against individuals and relays from 17 other institutions 
• Several of the teams competing are regional foes, including Dayton, Thomas More and Xavier
• Additionally, several other big programs will be on hand to compete as well, including Ohio State, Kansas State, North Carolina A&T and Southern Illinois
• Action gets underway Friday at 1:30 p.m. with the men's and women's high jump with the first running events starting at 4 p.m. with the prelims of the women's and men's 60m dash
• Saturday, action starts in the field at 11 a.m. with three women's events, including the shot put, triple jump and pole vault, while the running gets underway at noon with the 60m semifinals
• There is no live stream of the meet, but live results will be available by clicking on the link in the red box above

// FAMILIAR PLACE
This weekend's meet will be the second time the Bearcats have competed at Kentucky in the 2020 season. It also will certainly not be the last. During the indoor season, UC will have one more meet at UK when it ventures south for the Rod McCravy Invitational (Jan. 24-25). Outdoors, the NCAA East Preliminary Round meet will be held at UK May 28-30.

// NATIONALLY KNOWN
According to the USTFCCCA Indoor Descending Order Lists (as of January 7, 2020), four men and five women currently hold marks that rank them among the Top 26 nationally, including Isaiah McCall, who is tied for ninth in the 60mH (7.92) and 26th in the 60m (6.82). Additionally on the men's side are Arthur Greenlee IV (7.79) and Connor Duricky (7.92), who are ranked #2 and tied for #9 in the 60mH, respectively, and Jeremy Hayton (2.10m), who is tied for #14 in the high jump. On the women's side, Kennedy Marable (12.46m) and Irati Mitxelena (12.06m) rank #9 and #24, respectively, in the triple jump while Angelica Lightfoot (3,579) and Sydney Spears (3,419) are #11 and #23, respectively, in the pentathlon. Lauren Kemper rounds out the UC women in the Top 25 as she is #25 in the 3,000m run (10:00.64).

// GETTING OVER IT
To say the men's hurdles have come out of the blocks well already this year might be an understatement as all three hurdlers - Arthur Greenlee IV, Connor Duricky and Isaiah McCall - are currently ranked in the national Top 10 through two weeks of competition. Not only are they highly ranked in the NCAA (#2, #9 and #9, respectively), they currently hold the Top 3 positions in the AAC as well. Added to it, the trio has decimated the all-time Top 10 chart at UC as they account for one half of the six men that have recorded times under 8 seconds in program history, all of which have come this season, as they currently rank #3 (Greenlee IV) and tied for #5 (Duricky and McCall).

// BREAKING AN OLD RECORD
Chris Borzor opened his season in fine form as the sophomore sprinter raced in a pair of non-NCAA events and turned in some of the best times in the nation and in the history of the program. In the first meet of the year, the Jingle Bells Open at Kentucky, Borzor blazed a time of 1:03.10 in the 500m to post the #3 time in program history and the fastest time in the NCAA that week. One week later, he took to the track at the Hoosier Open in Indiana and busted out a time of 33.98 in the 300m for the #2 time in the nation and the fastest recorded in school history. In fact, his time not only was the first in UC history to go under 34 seconds, it also snapped the 33-year-old record of 34.31 run by Chuck Kiser in 1986. Oh, and if you are doing the math, the 33 year-old mark was broken by... 0.33 seconds.

// TAKE ME TO YOUR LEADERS!
So far 29 marks have been recorded by the Bearcats are currently among the Top 5 in the American, including the top marks in two events with Arthur Greenlee IV leading the men's 60mH (7.79) and Kennedy Marable atop the rankings in the women's triple jump (12.46m). Additionally, the men have seven more marks that are currently #2 in the league and six more that sit #3 through #5. On the women's side, three marks are ranked #2 while 11 sit between #3 through #5.

// DEBUTS
Through the first two weeks of the 2020 season, 14 student-athletes have made their debuts for the Bearcats, including 12 women and two men. Of those 14, 11 are true freshmen, including David Endres and Lawrence Mitchell for the men and women's competitors Taylor Beard, Anna Evans, Carmela Henning, Hannah Jackson, Leah King, Calista Manns, Juliet McGregor, Jazmine Scott and Macy Urig. Additionally, redshirt freshman Carmen Licht, sophomore transfer Victoria Abunaw and junior newcomer Lauren Kemper all debuted this year as well.

// FOLLOW US
GoBearcats.com is your one-stop destination for all things UC Athletics. Socially, the team can also be followed on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram with all using the handle GoBearcatsTFXC. As always, fans are encouraged to join in the conversation using the hashtag #Bearcats.

// UP NEXT
Cincinnati will have one week off from competition before embarking on a stretch of four-consecutive weeks of competitions, starting with a return to Lexington for the 2020 Rod McCravy Memorial meet January 24-25.