Troy University Athletics
SBC Championship Update: Day 1
5/11/2007 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field
LAFAYETTE, La. -- The Sun Belt Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championship is underway and troytrojans.com will be providing updates as much as possible throughout the day. Check back often for the latest information and at the end of the day for a complete recap.
7:15 p.m. -- Only one Trojan still remains in the competition tonight as Sara Jackson prepares for the 10,000-meter run (6.2 miles) at 9:45 tonight. The team has headed back to the hotel and to dinner and will return to the UL Track and Soccer Complex tonight to cheer on their teammate.
7 p.m. -- Troy pulled a surprise in the men's discus as three Trojans earned spots in the nine-man final. However, the trio was not able to move up and finished 7-8-9. Drew Oliver placed ninth with a throw of 47.01 meters (154-feet, 2-inches), while Michael Heck was eighth at 47.77 meters (157-feet, 8-inches). Ryan Schmelling improved his mark on all three throws in the final round, finishing seventh at 47.94 meters (157-feet, 3-inches).
6 p.m. -- Two flights of the men's discus have been completed and Michael Heck and Ryan Schmeling currently stand seventh and eighth, respectively. With just nine throwers remaining, including Troy's Drew Oliver, Coach Bob Lambert expects two Trojans in the finals, which follow immediately after.
4:15 p.m. -- Freshman Tiphanie Baker has become the FIRST SUN BELT CONFERENCE CHAMPION at the 2007 meet. Setting the school record twice today -- and for fifth and sixth times this year -- she won the women's discus with a throw of 46.87 meters (153-feet, 9-inches) on her final attempt (having already clinched the championship. In the preliminary round, her second toss covered 46.78 meters (153-feet, 6-inches).
Suprisingly, Monique Jordan and Shenita Howell, who finished second and fourth last year, respectively, did not advance to the final round despite posting better numbers than in 2006.
3 p.m. -- Competition has shifted from the multi-events to individual categories this afternoon with the start of the women's discus an hour ago. Shenita Howell, Tiphanie Baker and Monique Jordan are all slated to compete. Immediately following, James Hargreaves, Ryan Schmeling, Michael Heck and Ryan Baker will take part in the men's event.
Later tonight at 9:45, Sara Jackson will end the day with the women's 10,000 meter run.
1 p.m. -- Day One of the Women's Heptathlon is complete and Trojan Juzil Rudolph is the overall leader by 165 points, winning three of the four events. Her latest victory came in the 200 meter dash with a time of 25.29 seconds. Erin Clymer ran a 27.29 in the event, falling to eighth overall at 2,703 points. The competion concludes tomorrow with the long jump, javelin and 800-meter dash competitions.
1 p.m. -- Juzil Rudolph won her second event of the heptathlon moments ago with a toss of 11.46 meters (37-feet, 7.25-inches) in the shot put. The resulting 625 points vaulted her back into the lead after three events with 2299 points. Erin Clymer finished seventh in the shot put competition at 9.30 meters and now stands seventh overall with 2,015 points.
12:15 p.m. -- Erin Clymer and Juzil Rudolph both cleared 1.63. meters (5-feet, 4.25-inches) to tie for second in the heptathlon's high jump competition. Rudolph is now second in the competition with 1674 points, trailing Florida International's Laurenie Louissaint by 55 points. Clymer is fourth with 1531 points.
11:45 a.m. -- The men's shot put portion of the decathlon has finished with Mike Conley throwing the ball 11.00 meters for 546 points. He now sits in fourth place after three events with 1949 points. Chris Hale was successful at 9.28 meters for 443 points and has climbed into ninth place.
10:40 a.m. -- After fouling on his first attempt, Mike Conley jumped 6.23 and 6.28 meters, respectively, on other two tries. His third jump of 20-feet, 7.25 inches was good for 648 points, but he fell to fourth in the overall competition Chris Hale remains in 10th place after a long jump of 5.44 meters (17-feet, 10.25 inches).
10:10 a.m. -- Women's action is underway with junior Juzil Rudolph winning the first event of the women's heptathlon, the 100 meter hurdles. She ran a time of 14.54 for 903 points, 12 more than Amy Fleddermann of Arkansas State. Erin Clymer was seventh with a time of 15.63 (760 points)..
9:45 a.m. -- The decathlon is underway with the completion of the 100 meter dash and Mike Conley is tied for second place among the 10 competitors. He ran an 11.49 for 755 points, 16 points behind the winner of his heat, Matt Vining of Arkansas State. Freshman Chris Hale was last in the event, earning 529 points for a time of 12.65.
