Woodson Advances to #NCAATF Final on Day One
6/8/2016 10:09:00 PM | Track & Field
The Tigers kicked off the four-day NCAA Championships on Wednesday
EUGENE, Ore. – Five Mizzou Track & Field men got events rolling for the Tigers on Wednesday at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. The day was highlighted by senior Markesh Woodson, who cruised to a new 100m dash PR to qualify on to the event final on Friday (June 10).
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The 2016 schedule will match what was started in 2015, with men's and women's events alternating between each day. The only exception to this divided schedule is the combined events, as the men's decathlon will take place during the first two days of competition followed by the women's heptathlon on the final two days.
Live Broadcast (all times are in ET)
| Thursday, June 9 |
ESPNU (7:30 p.m. – 8 p.m.) ESPN (8 p.m. – 10:30 p.m.) ESPN3 (1:30 p.m. – 11:30 p.m.) |
| Friday, June 10 |
ESPN (8:30 p.m. – 11 p.m.) ESPN3 (3:30 p.m. – 11 p.m.) |
| Saturday, June 11 |
ESPN (6:30 p.m. – 9 p.m.) ESPN3 (2:30 p.m. – 9 p.m.) |
#MIZTF DAY ONE RECAP
Senior Ser Whitaker got events rolling for the Tigers on Wednesday with the men's decathlon competition. A first-time NCAA Championships qualifier, Whitaker was the No. 15 qualifier into the championship after hitting a PR during the SEC Championships.
Whitaker's first five events were highlighted by a PR in the long jump, placing tenth in the field with a top mark of 7.07m (23-2.50). He closed the first of two days in 15th with a point tally of 3827.
The field events were next up for the Tigers, starting with freshman Matthew Ludwig in the men's pole vault. Ludwig's exciting debut year in the black and gold was highlighted by a school record in the pole vault (5.46m // 17-11), and closed with a tenth place finish at the NCAA Championships (5.30m // 17-4.50).
Junior Reinhard Van Zyl was next up, taking 13th in the javelin competition with a top toss of 70.25m (230-5) .
On the track, Markesh Woodson secured an extension to his exciting senior year, hitting a new 100m dash PR during the semi-finals with his 10.05 crossing. That finish was good for third overall in the field heading into the final on Friday.
Freshman Kahmari Montgomery closed events on the track for the Tigers, just missing out on qualification into the 400m dash final with a ninth place finish (45.81). This closes the collegiate season for what has been a spectacular debut year for the freshman, culminating in two SEC titles, two school records, and two top 20 world times in the 400m dash.
Events will resume at Historic Hayward Field at 10:30 a.m. PT on Thursday with the concluding events in the men's decathlon. Track events will begin at 4:32 p.m. with the semi-final of the women's 4x100m. For the latest on your Tigers, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team on Twitter @MIZ_TrackField.
#MIZTF MEN BREAK INTO TOP TEN
This past week marked a historical move in the USTFCCCA national rankings for the Missouri men's track & field team, as they jumped nine spots to land at No. 9 in the NCAA. The highest ranking for both the men and women in program history, it was just the latest in a trio of record placing's for the team in the top 25 national poll. The jump began with a No. 19 ranking the week after the men's eighth place finish at the SEC Championships, followed by another small move into No. 18 on the eve of the NCAA Championships West Preliminary Round.
#MIZTF NOTES
- Senior Ser Whitaker kicked the week off for the Tigers on Wednesday with the start of the decathlon competition. Whitaker qualified for the NCAA Championships during his PR performance at the SEC Championships, where he finished sixth with 7488 points. He is the first Mizzou decathlete to qualify for the national championship meet since Lars Rise placed fourth in 2011.
- Coach Carjay Lyles and freshman Kahmari Montgomery earned regional honors this week, as they were named the 2016 Midwest Assistant Coach and Track Athlete of the Year, respectively. Lyles, who coaches the sprints/hurdles and triple jump, has been instrumental in the revival of the Mizzou sprints group, with his athletes hitting 19 school record marks throughout the indoor and outdoor season.
- Markesh Woodson has been an instrumental factor in the rise of the men's program throughout the national rankings. The senior is coming off his second podium finish at the SEC Championships, and currently ranks seventh in the NCAA with his 10.13 PR from the John McDonnell Invitational in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
- Rounding out the group of male qualifiers for the Tigers is the pair of triple jump specialists – senior Tony Carodine and sophomore John Warren. Both laid down huge PR's during the NCAA West Preliminary Round in Lawrence, Kansas, two weeks ago to secure their qualification into the finals this week. Warren returns to Hayward Field after a pair of exciting meets at the conclusion of the 2015 season. The then-freshman placed 11th at the NCAA Championships in the triple jump before going on to win the USATF Junior title in the event. He enters this week ranked eighth in the field with his 16.27m (53-4.50) performance at the Preliminary Round. Joining him on the runway will be Carodine, who qualified for his first NCAA Championships competition with a huge PR, topping his previous best by nearly a foot with his 16.14m (52-11.50) performance two weeks ago.
- On the women's side, two relays made history with their qualification as the 4x100m and 4x400m squads became the first women's relays to qualify for the NCAA Championships since the 1980s. Senior Alyssa Felton, juniors LaQuisha Jackson and Sandrae Farquharson, and freshman Maya Cody ran their third 4x100m school record time this season to qualify for the NCAA final, crossing in 44.40 at the NCAA West Preliminary.
- The 4x400m squad also hit a new school record en route to their NCAA Championships qualification, with Jackson, Farquharson, Cody, and junior Valerie Thames crossing in 3:34.10 to place 10th in the West Preliminary. That performance is the fourth 4x400m record this outdoor season.
- All five of the relay women are first-time qualifiers into the NCAA Championships, including Farquharson and Thames who are set to return to the track as individual qualifiers. Farquharson will be featured in the 400m dash field, while Thames will take to the blocks in the 100m hurdles. Thames enters the competition as the school record holder in the event after timing through with three record performances throughout the season.
- Sophomore Karissa Schweizer rounds out the individual qualifiers on the track, entering the meet ranked eighth in the 5000m run with her 15:58.09 PR from the Mt. SAC Relays.
- Junior Alyssa Applebee is the lone women's qualifier in the field events after she jumped to a new school record in the pole vault during the West Preliminary Round (4.22m // 13-10).
#MIZTF EARNS REGIONAL HONORS
Coach Carjay Lyles and freshman Kahmari Montgomery earned regional honors this week, as they were named the 2016 Midwest Assistant Coach and Track Athlete of the Year, respectively.
For Montgomery, this honor is yet another addition to an already-impressive resume, as the freshman approaches the final stages of his historical debut year. His indoor and outdoor seasons both followed much the same path, starting relatively quiet but ending with SEC titles, school records, and top 20 world rankings in the 400m dash.
Montgomery's 45.78 indoor performance that earned him the conference championship, school record and No. 8 ranking in the world was left in the dust during his title run during the outdoor SEC Championships in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. There, he cruised to a 45.13 school record, putting him into the No. 2 position in the NCAA rankings and No. 18 in the world. For that, he was named the 2016 SEC Freshman Track Athlete of the Year and, now, the 2016 Midwest Regional Track Athlete of the Year.
Lyles, who coaches the sprints/hurdles and triple jump, has been instrumental in the revival of the Mizzou sprints group, with his athletes hitting 19 school record marks throughout the indoor and outdoor season, including two top 20 world ranked 400m dash records from Montgomery. A bulk of those records, though, emerged from the women's sprints group, led by junior LaQuisha Jackson, who ran top times in school history for both the indoor and outdoor 200m dash while also remaining a consistent member on both of the indoor 4x400m record teams and all six of the outdoor 4x400m record teams. Joining her on all six of those record squads was junior Valerie Thames, who also ran a series of individual records in both the 100m and 400m hurdles during the outdoor season.
The women's 4x100m also topped the previous school record on several occasions during the outdoor season, with the foursome of Jackson, freshman Maya Cody, junior Sandrae Farquharson, and senior Alyssa Felton holding the current record at 44.40.
The historical season will continue for Lyles this week as nine of his athletes prepare for NCAA Championship competition in Eugene, Oregon. Included in that number is No. 2 ranked Kahmari Montgomery (400m dash), No. 7 ranked Markesh Woodson (100m dash), triple jump specialists John Warren and Tony Carodine, juniors Sandrae Farquharson (400m dash) and Valerie Thames (100m hurdles), and the first women's 4x100m and 4x400m relays to advance into the national championship meet since the 1980s.
#MIZTF RESULTS – WEDNESDAY
Decathlon (after five events) - 15. Ser Whitaker, 3827 pts.
100m Dash – 13. Whitaker, 11.05 (850 pts.)
Long Jump – 10. Whitaker, 7.07m (23-2.50) PR (830 pts.)
Shot Put – 12. Whitaker, 13.31m (43-8) (686 pts.)
High Jump – 19. Whitaker, 1.86m (6-1.25) (679 pts.)
400m Dash – 17. Whitaker, 50.71 (782 pts.)
Pole Vault – 10. Matthew Ludwig, 5.30m (17-4.50)
Javelin – 13. Reinhard Van Zyl, 70.25m (230-5)
100m Dash – 3. Markesh Woodson, 10.03q PR #2
400m Dash – 9. Kahmari Montgomery, 45.81
| #MIZTF LINE-UP - THURSDAY (all times are in CT) | ||
| 12:30 p.m. | 110m Hurdles, Decathlon | Ser Whitaker |
| 1:20 p.m. | Discus, Decathlon | Ser Whitaker |
| 2:30 p.m. | Pole Vault, Decathlon | Ser Whitaker |
| 5:00 p.m. | Javelin, Decathlon | Ser Whitaker |
| 6:32 p.m. | 4x100m, Women | |
| 7:00 p.m. | Pole Vault, Women | Alyssa Applebee |
| 7:32 p.m. | 100m Hurdles, Women | Valerie Thames |
| 8:00 p.m. | 400m Dash, Women | Sandrae Farquharson |
| 8:56 p.m. | 1500m Run, Decathlon | Ser Whitaker |
| #MIZTF LINE-UP - FRIDAY (all times are in CT) | ||
| 7:30 p.m. | Triple Jump, Men | Tony Carodine // John Warren |
| #MIZTF LINE-UP - SATURDAY (all times are in CT) | ||
| 7:25 p.m. | 5000m Run, Women | Karissa Schweizer |
Players Mentioned
