April 19, 2011
COLUMBIA, Mo. - Mizzou track and field fans will get to see something special this weekend as the Tigers will battle the Georgia Bulldogs in a true outdoor track and field dual meet, pitting the best athletes from each team in a head-to-head competition. The meet will begin at 10:45 a.m. in Athens, Ga., on Saturday (April 23) at Spec Towns Track. The meet is the first outdoor dual competition for the Tigers since April 4, 2009, when the Tigers topped Virginia in the Jefferson Cup in Columbia.
Georgia's men come into the weekend ranked 19th overall by the US Track and Field/Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) this week. The Bulldog women come in at 20th as well. Mizzou's men, despite finishing 26th at the NCAA Indoor Championships, are unranked this week as are the Tiger women.
The meet will offer several exciting one-on-one battles in a variety of events, making it one of the most exciting track meets that the Tigers will participate in all season long. Starting in the sprint events, Mizzou freshman Tre' Chambers (Colorado Springs, Colo.) has given the Tiger men a presence in the sprints that has not been seen in quite some time at Mizzou. He looks like the clear-cut favorite to win the men's 100m dash this weekend as he owns the nation's No. 30 time in the event at 10.37 while no Georgia runner ranks in the nation's top 100. However, Chambers will be part of an explosive 200m dash field that will likely feature UGA's Torrin Lawrence and Waymon Storey, who rank sixth and 29th nationally, respectively. Chambers owns a season-best of 21.11, ranking him 54th nationally as he should provide a great challenge for the two Georgia runners.
Chambers will also run as a member of the Tigers' 4x100m relay team this weekend. Its season-best time is 40.85 after setting the Tom Botts Invitational meet record two weeks ago while Georgia's top time is 40.31, setting up what should be a great race as both rank among the nation's best times this season.
The 400m hurdles should also offer an exciting matchup on both the men's and women's sides. Mizzou's Leslie Farmer (Jefferson City, Mo.) should be the front runner in the women's 400m hurdles. She is the school record holder in the event at 58.92 and is an NCAA first round qualifier from a season ago. The men's side will pit Georgia's Phillip Adams against Mizzou's Chris Davis (Riverdale, Ga.) and Kellyn Fogarty (Marshalltown, Iowa). Davis returns to his home state for the meet as well.
Moving to the middle-distance events, the women's 800m run should offer an intriguing matchup. Georgia's Megan Malasarte should come in as the favorite, owning a top time of 2:07.10 this season. But Mizzou's Layne Moore (Emporia, Kan.) has run a top time of 2:09.42 this season and should offer some stiff competition for Malasarte. The men's 800m run will also likely feature a great matchup between Georgia's Aaron Evans and the Tigers' pair of NCAA qualifiers in the event - Blake Irwin (Bettendorf, Iowa) and Aaron Dixon (Lee's Summit, Mo.). Evans has clocked a season-best time of 1:50.61, but both Dixon and Irwin have run in the 1:47 range in their careers, giving Mizzou an advantage in the 800m run.
Moving to the distance events, both the 3,000m run and the 3,000m steeplechase will be contested at the meet. For Mizzou, look for runners like Bailey Belvis (Prosper, Texas), Megan Kowalik (Florissant, Mo.) and Aimee Bonte (Fenton, Mo.) to make an impact for the women while Max Storms (Kansas City, Mo.) and Hayden Legg (Mexico, Mo.) will highlight the Tiger men in those events.
Moving to the field events, Mizzou will have a notable advantage in the men's pole vault as senior Brian Hancock (Monroe City, Mo.) comes into the meet with a season-best clearance of 5.36m (17-7), ranking him sixth nationally. Georgia's John Smith is also one of the nation's best pole vaulters as he comes into the competition having cleared 5.25m (17-2 ¾) and ranking 17th nationally, setting up one of the most intriguing head-to-head competitions of the meet.
Staying on the topic of intriguing head-to-head matchups, the men's shot put should be a great competition between Mizzou's Brooks Mosier (Lee's Summit, Mo.) and Georgia's Teonor Davilamr, who both enter the competition with the same season-best mark of 17.67m (57-11 ¾). The two rank just outside of the nation's top 25 at 29th. Chris Holly (Topeka, Kan.) should also be locked in a tight battle in the men's hammer throw with Georgia's Justin Welch, who enters the meet with the nation's fifth-best hammer mark. Holly however is ranked 24th nationally.
Megan Collins (Lee's Summit, Mo.) leads the women in the Tiger throwers on the women's side as she will enter as the favorite in the discus with a season-best mark of 49.36m (161-11).
For a complete recap of the meet, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and be sure to follow Mizzou track and field on twitter @MIZ_TrackField.