June 25, 2014

Junior Jill Rushin

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COLUMBIA, Mo. - Kearsten Peoples and Jill Rushin have secured for themselves another series of throws at the U.S. Track & Field Championships after they qualified for the shot put finals in Sacramento, Calif., on Wednesday.  Peoples closed out the preliminary round in eighth with a top toss of 17.04m (55-11), closely followed by Rushin in ninth with a best mark of 17.03m (55-10.5).  

Set on the California State Capitol Lawn, the 12 remaining competitors will retake the ring at 4:30 p.m. PT (6:30 p.m. CT).  Peoples and Rushin are two of eight collegiates that advanced into the last round, which will also feature five of the top 20 female shot putters in the IAAF World Rankings.

The pair, who led the NCAA rankings in the event for much of the outdoor season, returned to the USATF Championships stage for the second consecutive year after placing sixth (Peoples) and 14th (Rushin) in 2013.  Peoples also qualified for the 2012 Championships, which served as the U.S. Olympic Trials, where she just missed out on making Team USA with her School Record toss of 18.22m (59-9.5).

It's been another exciting season for Peoples, who finished as Runner-Up at the SEC Championships before earning her seventh All-American finish, placing third in the shot put.  She also continued her streak of Missouri School Record performances from the indoor season, surpassing her own top mark in the discus at the Emporia State Mid-Week Open with a toss of 57.31m (188-0.5).  Her season's best mark of 17.90m (58-8.75) still holds as the top mark in the NCAA for the 2014 outdoor season.  Peoples' is one of the five U.S. shot put women currently holding a spot in the top 20 of the IAAF World Rankings, sitting at No. 19.

It's been a break-out year for Rushin, who led the NCAA briefly after throwing her second PR of the season at the Missouri Relays (17.45m/57-3).  She bested that again at the Tom Botts Invitational, closing her season with the No. 2 mark in the NCAA, 17.62m (57-9.75).  Rushin took the podium twice at the SEC Championships, claiming her first conference title in the shot put before placing third in the discus.  She went on to qualify for the NCAA Championships in the shot put, earning a Second Team All-American honor with her 12th-place performance.

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