Podium Finish for Van Zyl Highlights Day Two of SEC’s
5/14/2016 1:03:00 AM | Track & Field
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Junior Reinhard Van Zyl became the first Tiger to take the podium this weekend, highlighting the second day of SEC Championship competition with a second-place finish in the men's javelin. In all, Mizzou closed Friday's events with seven personal records, five qualifications into the finals on Saturday, five new All-Time Top Ten marks, and yet another school record performance from junior Valerie Thames.
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The SEC in the USTFCCCA Top 25 (Men): No. 1 Texas A&M // No. 2 Florida // No. 3 LSU // No. 4 Arkansas // No. 6 Georgia // No. 9 Alabama // No. 13 Mississippi State // No. 22 South Carolina
The SEC in the USTFCCCA Top 25 (Women): No. 1 Kentucky // No. 2 Arkansas // No. 6 Florida // No. 7 LSU // No. 10 Texas A&M // No. 11 Georgia // No. 13 Tennessee // No. 16 Mississippi State // No. 24 Auburn // No. 25 Ole Miss
#MIZTF RECAP - FRIDAY
Junior Valerie Thames highlighted the day's events once again on Friday for the Tigers, after opening her weekend on Thursday with a school record in the 400m hurdles (57.16). Thames returned to the track for the 100m hurdles where she reset her own school record with a 13.25 crossing. She will return on Saturday for finals in both the 100m and 400m hurdles.
Also set to return to competition on Saturday is freshman Kahmari Montgomery, who ran to a new PR and No. 2 All-Time performance in the 400m dash. The returning SEC Champion in the event from the indoor season, Montgomery ran the fifth-fastest preliminary time of the evening with a 45.83 crossing.
Five Tigers will continue on into the final rounds of competition, including Thames in both the 100m and 400m hurdles. Joining her on the Track on Saturday will be senior Markesh Woodson in the 100m dash, Montgomery in the 400m dash, senior Will Crocker in the 1500m run, and sophomore Karissa Schweizer in the 1500m run.
Junior-transfer Reinhard Van Zyl had a solid SEC Championship debut on Saturday, notching the Tigers' first podium finish with his efforts in the javelin. Van Zyl earned a new PR during the fifth round of throws, heaving a 75.91m (249-0) toss to take over second-place in the conference competition. He also moves up into the No. 2 spot on the All-Time Top Ten list, just behind Macauley Garton's 77.47m (254-2) record mark from the 2015 SEC Championships.
"Reinhard is a fierce competitor, and his biggest challenge is managing his technique within that ferocity," Head Coach Brett Halter said. "But we're getting the job done. He stayed with it, didn't cash in, he stayed with the process throughout the competition and delivered that big throw near the end and kind of shut things down."
Sophomore John Warren got his weekend rolling in the men's long jump, hitting a new outdoor PR of 7.58m (24-10.50) to close with a fourth-place overall finish. He will be back on Saturday for the men's triple jump along with senior Tony Carodine.
However, it was once again senior Ser Whitaker who got events rolling on Friday morning with the final five events of the ten-event decathlon. Throughout the two days of competition, Whitaker reset five PR's, including a new lifetime best in the pole vault with his top bar of 4.55m (14-11). Whitaker closed his weekend with a new decathlon PR, moving up into No. 5 on the All-Time Top Ten with his final point tally of 7488.
HEAR FROM COACH HALTER...
"Like we always talk about with the team, it's about having that consistent effort all season. They've been working really well as a team and have competed with incredible tenacity. And when we compete with that kind of tenacity consistently, and enter into an environment with the best athletes in the world, amazing things happen. PR's everywhere, national top ten and top fifteen marks, kids are putting points on the board, and Missouri is just really well-represented. I'm really proud of the way the athletes handled preliminaries tonight.
This was really exciting for Ser Whitaker, it's been a yearlong process to get to this point, he's done everything Coach Chamov has asked, and it shows. This is a great testament to him and the work he and Coach Chamov have done. Really excited for Valerie Thames, she's just having a ridiculous weekend with making two finals and taking down two school records. Reinhard Van Zyl and Alex Pascal both competed really well tonight and got some big points for the team. The qualifiers did a great job - Karissa Schweizer, Will Crocker, Markesh Woodson, Kahmari Montgomery, Valerie Thames."
#MIZTF RECAP - THURSDAY
Thames entered the weekend's events with the second-fastest 400m hurdles time in school history, after she timed through in 59.10 at the Arkansas Spring Invitational earlier this season. She cruised right through that time with a 57.16 performance on Thursday, qualifying into Saturday's final. That time not only shaves over 1.50-seconds off of her PR, but also takes down the 2012 record by Leslie Farmer (57.80) by over half-a-second.
The day began, though, with Ser Whitaker in the first five of ten events in the men's decathlon. The senior kicked off his final combined event competition of his collegiate career with a series of PR's, starting with a 10.18 finish in the 100m dash, followed by 7.05m (23-1.75) in the long jump, 13.52m (44-4.25) in the shot put, and tied his PR of 1.93m (6-4) in the high jump.
Whitaker closed the day one with a total point tally of 3949, putting him in seventh overall in the field. He will begin his final five events of the competition starting at noon on Friday starting with the 110m hurdles.
Senior Markesh Woodson opened up the weekend with his first of two events, timing through with a new PR of 20.85 in the men's 200m dash preliminary round. That mark moves him into No. 7 on the All-Time Top Ten list. Woodson will be back on Friday in the men's 100m dash preliminary.
A series of rain delays, and a power outage during the men's race, pushed the 10,000m runs late into the evening. The women took to the line first, with freshman Jamie Kempfer leading the way for the Tigers with a fourth place finish. Kempfer's 34:13.68 just missed a podium finish, but was good for a PR and new No. 4 All-Time mark. Junior Kaitlyn Fischer was next across the line in sixth, followed by sophomore Ellyn Atkinson in ninth.
#MIZTF NOTES
- The week's events will kick off on Thursday morning with the combined events competition, where senior Ser Whitaker will take on his final decathlon as a Tiger.
- The Tigers enter the championship weekend with nine top-five individual rankings in the conference with senior Markesh Woodson, sophomore Karissa Schweizer, senior Sam Dickerson, junior Teylar Adelsberger, freshman Matthew Ludwig, junior Reinhard Van Zyl, and sophomore Alex Pascal.
- Freshman Kahmari Montgomery is the sole SEC Champion returning from the indoor season, after he hit a top-ten world ranking in the 400m dash (45.78). He currently ranks tenth in the conference for the outdoor 400m with his 46.00 PR, the No. 2 time in Mizzou history.
- Senior Markesh Woodson is set to take the blocks for his final conference championship. He is set to take the 100m dash field ranked third with his newest PR of 10.13. Woodson has earned one SEC title (60m dash) and three All-SEC finishes (100m) throughout the last four years.
- Sophomore Karissa Schweizer holds a pair of top-five rankings in the conference, entering the week at No. 3 for the 1500m run and No. 2 for the 5000m. Schweizer currently holds the second-fastest time in school history for the 1500m with her 4:17.46 PR from the John McDonnell Invitational. Her 15:58.09 crossing from the Mt. SAC Relays is the third-fastest time in school history.
- Senior Sam Dickerson ranks fourth in the conference for the 3000m steeplechase, after he ran just off his PR time with an 8:53.83 finish.
- In the women's 3000m steeplechase, junior Teylar Adelsberger holds the fourth-fastest time in the conference this season after she dropped 39-seconds off her previous PR throughout the season. Her current PR of 10:12.39 is the second-fastest time in Mizzou history.
- This week marks the return of freshman Matthew Ludwig after his school record performance in the pole vault at the Memphis Tiger Invitational two weeks ago. Ludwig is ranked third in the conference with that 5.46m (17-11) bar.
- A pair of Tiger men sit within the top five of the men's javelin rankings. Junior newcomer Reinhard Van Zyl leads the duo with his third-ranked toss of 74.54m (244-7), followed by sophomore Alex Pascal at No. 5 (73.52m // 241-2).
- Other events to look out for include the women's 4x100m and 4x400m relays, as the Tigers continue to rewrite the record books in the sprint events. So far this season, the Tiger women have ran to two 4x100m and three 4x400m records.
- This week marks the final opportunity for qualification into the NCAA Championships West Preliminary Round. The Tigers already have 31 athletes set to move on into the first round of national championship competition, hosted in Lawrence, Kansas, on May 26-28.
Events at the Sam Bailey Track and Field Stadium will resume Saturday morning at 11:00 a.m. CT with Karissa Roman in the women's high jump. For the latest on your Tigers, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team on Twitter @MIZ_TrackField.
#MIZTF RESULTS – FRIDAY
Heptathlon - 6. Ser Whitaker, 7,488 PR #5
110m Hurdles – 3. Whitaker, 14.60
Discus – 12. Whitaker, 34.38m (112-9)
Pole Vault – 7. Whitaker, 4.55m (14-11) PR
Javelin – 3. Whitaker, 60.21m (197-6)
1500m Run – 10. Whitaker, 4:57.73
100m Dash, Women – 24. LaQuisha Jackson, 11.78 // 32. Alyssa Felton, 12.07
100m Dash, Men – 6. Markesh Woodson, 10.36q // 28. Niager Mathis, 10.92 // 29. Jonathan Holder, 10.93
400m Dash, Women – 17. Sandrae Farquharson, 54.04 // 29. Ayo Adewole, 55.64 // 33. Maya Cody, 56.77 // 35. Sydney Wells, 57.49 // 37. Erika Lark, 59.65
400m Dash, Men – 5. Kahmari Montgomery, 45.83q PR #2
1500m Run, Women – 5. Karissa Schweizer, 4:23.85q
1500m Run, Men – 5. Will Crocker, 3:47.16q // 26. Thomas George, 3:53.64 // 31. Luca Russo, 3:58.71
100m Hurdles, Women – 7. Valerie Thames, 13.25q PR SR // 14. Alyssa Felton, 13.55
110m Hurdles, Men – 14. Charles Graham, Jr., 14.40
3000m Steeplechase, Women – 9. Teylar Adelsberger, 10:30.23
3000m Steeplechase, Men – 5. Sam Dickerson, 8:52.50 // 12. Sheldon Keence, 9:05.18 PR
Long Jump, Women – 16. Lynnsey Brim, 5.97m (19-7)
Long Jump, Men – 4. John Warren, 7.58m (24-10.50) PR #9 // 15. Tony Carodine, 6.45m (21-2)
Shot Put, Men – 11. Will Fife, 16.21m (53-2.25)
Javelin, Men – 2. Reinhard Van Zyl, 75.91m (249-0) PR #2 // 6. Alex Pascal, 67.91m (222-10)
#MIZTF RESULTS – THURSDAY
Decathlon (after five events) - 7. Ser Whitaker, 3949 pts.
100m Dash – 4. Whitaker, 10.18 PR
Long Jump – 8. Whitaker, 7.05m (23-1.75) PR
Shot Put – 6. Whitaker, 13.52m (44-4.25) PR
High Jump – 8. Whitaker, 1.93m (6-4) PR-t
400m Dash – 7. Whitaker, 50.74
200m Dash, Women – 21. LaQuisha Jackson, 23.66w // 31. Jacqueline Obi, 24.56
200m Dash, Men – 16. Markesh Woodson, 20.85 PR #7-t // 25. Kahmari Montgomery, 21.13 // 35. Niager Mathis, 21.53 // 37. Beresford Sweeney, 21.72
800m Run, Women – 10. Valeska Halamicek, 2:07.57 PR #10
800m Run, Men – 16. Mark Sheridan, 1:52.18 PR
10,000m Run, Women – 4. Jamie Kempfer, 34:13.68 PR #4 // 6. Kaitlyn Fischer, 34:26.18 // 9. Ellyn Atkinson, 35:39.16
10,000m Run, Men – 11. Ollie Lockley, 30:29.75 // 14. Dan Roe, 31:03.00 // 18. Drew White, 31:55.71
400m Hurdles, Women – 7. Valerie Thames, 57.16q SR
Hammer Throw, Women – 9. Rebecca Keating, 56.20m (184-4)
Hammer Throw, Men – 18. Nick Sublett, 55.82m (183-2)
| #MIZTF LINE-UP - SATURDAY | ||
| 11:00 a.m. | High Jump, Women | Karissa Roman |
| 11:30 a.m. | Discus, Women | Gabi Jacobs |
| 11:35 a.m. | Triple Jump, Women | Danielle Williams |
| 11:40 a.m. | Pole Vault, Men | Matthew Ludwig |
| 3:35 p.m. | Pole Vault, Women | Rayce Albino // Alyssa Applebee |
| 3:40 p.m. | Triple Jump, Men | Tony Carodine // John Warren |
| 3:45 p.m. | Discus, Men | Tanner Buschmann |
| 5:40 p.m. | 5000m Run, Women | Teylar Adelsberger // Ellyn Atkinson // Kaitlyn Fischer // Jamie Kempfer // Nicole Mello // Karissa Schweizer // Kate Smith |
| 6:00 p.m. | 5000m Run, Men | Jordan Cook // Will Crocker // Sam Dickerson // Marc Dubrick // Ollie Lockley // Dan Roe // Drew White |
Players Mentioned
