Monday, February 26, 2007
Expectations were high for Kansas heading into the Big 12 Indoor Championships, and several Jayhawks stepped up to the challenge and came away with top finishes.
Four Jayhawks came away with conference titles, which helped the women’s team finish sixth with 52 points and the men place seventh with 57.
Junior favorites Egor Agafonov and Kate Sultanova captured individual titles in the men’s weight throw and women’s pole vault. Agafonov, the defending Big 12 champion, matched his career best mark with a toss of 76-01, the longest collegiate throw this season.
“It was a very rewarding performance because I feel like all the work my coach and I do is paying off,” Agafonov said in a press release. “I really enjoy the guys I compete with and I just want to keep moving up and throwing farther.”
Sultanova tied a Big 12 championship meet record with her winning height of 13-09.25. Freshman Britany Parker also scored in the event, clearing 12-09.25 for seventh place.
In the men’s pole vault, Jordan Scott ignored his freshman jitters and cleared 17-05.50 to give Kansas a sweep of the event.
“It was my last jump at that height and as I came down the runway, I visualized myself clearing the bar and it was probably the best jump I have ever taken,” Scott said in a press release.
Junior Colby Wissel, the reigning Big 12 cross country champion, used a strong finishing kick to jump from fourth to first in the men’s 3,000 meters and win with a time of 8:06.72.
Kansas also found success in the men’s and women’s 60-meter hurdles, where junior Julius Jiles and sophomore Ashley Brown each surpassed the NCAA provisional mark. Jiles and Brown each set new personal records in their preliminary race with times of 7.85 and 8.38, then finished second and third in their finals.
Sophomore Sha’Ray Butler clocked in at 55.11 in the women’s 400 meters for a third-place finish.
“I was not expecting to reach the finals, so to go from that to surprising the team by making the finals to getting third in the conference, I feel very blessed,” Butler said in a press release.
Kansas racked up points in the 600-yard run. Sophomore Charity Stowers finished fourth and senior Janiece Gatson finished eighth in the women’s race. For the men, junior Matt Baysinger fished fourth and senior Clif Mitchell came in sixth.
In the men’s 5,000 meters, Wissel and fellow junior Paul Hefferon finished third and eighth.
The Jayhawks return to Ames, Iowa, next weekend for the Iowa State Invitational, the last chance for athletes to qualify for the NCAA Indoor Championships.
Kansan sportswriter Taylor Bern can be contacted at tbern@kansan.com
— Edited by Darla Slipke
Weight thrower earns national title
The Jayhawks were represented well at the NCAA Indoor Championships as Kate ...
Track and Field qualifies 3 for championship
Four athletes await tonight’s announcement to see if they will join the ...
Eight KU athletes compete track and field ...
The championships will be in Fayetteville, Ark.
Track wins seven events in Invitational
The Kansas track team won seven events in the John Jacobs Invitational. ...
Three to contend for national titles
The Kansas track and field team heads to Arkansas for the NCAA ...
Track heads to Big 12 Championships
The Kansas track and field team heads to Ames, Iowa focused on ...
Track opens first day at Texas Relays
The track team is also competiting at the Emporia State/State Farm Relays ...
Jumper, vaulter leap past records
Hawks fly high in Nebraska
The Jayhawks excelled in pole vaulting and weight throwing, winning almost half ...
Jayhawks set new records for men’s weight ...
Three athletes broke records and automatically qualified for the NCAA Championships in ...
Men's track team finishes 18th at NCAAs
The men's and women's track teams show strong finish in Sacramento, Calif.
Jayhawks can’t jump the hurdle to the ...
KU track and field athletes compete for spots on the U.S. Olympic ...
Jayhawks slip in place but still travel ...
Although the women fell from third to ninth, Wissel and Bonds will ...
Track and field team prepares for championships
This weekend's Big 12 Championships will bring together track and field teams ...
Track & field athletes advance to championship
Ten athletes will compete in the NCAA Outdoor Tack and Field Championship ...
Jayhawk runner sets record in 3,000-meter event
Team searches for NCAA qualifiers
In a last minute attempt to send athletes to the NCAA Indoor ...
Running to the Big Apple
Kansas took three titles last weekend at the Frank Sevigne Husker Invitational ...
Track team breaks out in Arkansas tournament
The Jayhawks head home for their first home meet.
Women’s track and field team finishes third
Two qualify for NCAA nationals at championship.
Jayhawks capture individual victories as team splits ...
As Jayhawks track and field were split up across the country, their ...
Women's track and field places third at ...
Members of the team qualified for the NCAA Indoor championships.
Track and field teams expect to compete ...
The Kansas women's track and field team is ranked nationally, with one ...
Jayhawks perform well in invitational
The Jayhawks came away from Norman with strong individual and team performances.
Weekend meets bittersweet
Junior Egor Agafonov continued his hammer-throw dominance at the Drake Relays. Kansas' ...
Five qualify for track and field regionals
While rain prevented pole vaulters from competing, athletes in other events fought ...
Wissel finishes fifth at Big 12 meet
The men’s cross country team finished seventh at Friday’s Big 12 Championships, ...
Track team gets All-Americans
Six Kansas Track and Field athletes became All-Americans at last weekend’s NCAA ...
Track & Field prepare for championships
At Big 12 Indoor Championships, women hope to improve, coach just wants ...
Track team splits up for weekend
Jayhawks succeed, break records in Kansas Relays
High school and college athletes, along with world-class Olympians, competed last week ...
Penn Relays disappointing for Jayhawks
Neither men’s nor women’s teams qualified in the 4x400 meter relays.
Scott vaults over the competition
After two Big 12 championships, Jordan Scott is going for a third, ...
Track and field team impresses at home ...
A new facility record, first-place performances and personal bests for the Jayhawks
Track team still optimistic despite losses
Overall, the men placed fourth and women second against Nebraska.
Kansas long jumper qualifies for nationals
Junior Andrea Geubelle moved up to sixth nationally in the long jump ...
Individual performances aren't enough for the Jayhawks
The Kansas track and field team competed at the Big 12 indoor ...
Six Jayhawks named All-Americans
After a weekend competing in Texas, six members came home as All-Americans.
Hammer thrower plans on third outdoor win
Two record holders will lead the Kansas team against the competition.
Jayhawks enjoy success at New Balance Invitational
Three Jayhawks placed in the top five of their events
From left: Kimberlee Hinkle, Libby Johnson and Hannah ...
1 comment
Kansas Jayhawk fans hold aloft a reproduction of ...
2 comments
Erin Saupe, a Ph.D. student from St. Cloud, ...
1 comment
0 comments
Armed robbers continue to threaten.
3 comments
Lecture from Greg Mortenson, co-author of New York ...
0 comments
Comments
Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.
Sign in to comment
Or login with:
OpenID