Senior Katrine Haarklau during the 2013 NCAA Preliminary Round, hosted by Univ. of Texas in Austin
AUSTIN, Tx. - The outdoor season is kicking off this week for Mizzou Track & Field, who will represent the black and gold at three meets across the country, including at the 88th running of the prestigious Texas Relays. The Texas group will also see a few competitors at the neighborhing Texas State Bobcat Invitational, while the rest of the team will travel to Nashville, Tenn., for Vanderbilt's Black and Gold Invitational. Both the Texas Relays and the Bobcat Invitational will run from Thursday (March 26) through Saturday (March 28), while the Black and Gold Invitational will be held only on Friday (March 27) and Saturday (March 28).
The women are starting the season ranked No. 15 in the preseason release, put out on Tuesday by the USTFCCCA (U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association). This is the highest pre-season ranking for either team since the release began in 2008. Joining them in the top 25 of the NCAA are seven SEC schools - (1) Texas A&M | (2) Florida | (5) Kentucky | (6) Georgia | (7) Arkansas | (18) LSU | (21) Auburn.
The team had a similar start to the indoor season, coming in at No. 24 in the NCAA for the highest preseason indoor ranking in team history. They peaked at No. 13 during the second in-season release before closing with the best NCAA Indoor Championships finish since 2001 at 15th overall.
TEXAS RELAYS
Meet Headquarters // Schedule // Start Lists - Men| Women // Live Results
One of the premier meets of the outdoor season, the Texas Relays will feature 218 collegiate teams and a total of 7,080 high school, collegiate, and post-collegiate athletes. Included in that field will be 20 Mizzou student-athletes, including five returning All-Americans from the 2013 season.
Of the fiveAll-Americans taking the track this week in Texas at the Texas Relays is senior Kearsten Peoples, who returns to the ring for the first time since her NCAA Championship title in the weight throw two weeks ago. Peoples, who led the country for the majority of the season, claimed the national title in Fayetteville, Ark., earlier this month. She is currently the No. 7 weight throw athlete in collegiate history after her PR of 22.84m (74-11.25) at the Missouri Collegiate Challenge.
Peoples will be featured in Saturday's shot put competition at the Texas Relays, along with fellow-senior Jill Rushin, who also closed her indoor season with an All-American performance after placing fifth in the shot put. Both Peoples and Rushin represented the Tigers at the 2014 NCAA Outdoor Championships in the event, placing third and 12th, respectively.
Also making his first appearance since the NCAA Indoor Championships is junior Markesh Woodson, who placed fifth in the 60m dash with a final time of 6.62. Woodson entered the meet after timing through with his third All-SEC finish during the indoor championships in Lexington, Ky., clocking through with a new school record time of 6.58.
Senior school record holder, and returning NCAA Outdoor All-American, Katrine Haarklau will be featured in Friday's pole vault competition, joined by sophomore Alyssa Applebee. Haarklau, whose PR height of 4.35m (14-3.25) is the top bar in Mizzou history for the women's team, was overtaken by Applebee on the indoor All-Time Top Ten list after Applebee hit a new lifetime best mark(4.06m // 13-3.75) at the Missouri Collegiate Challenge. Applebee currently sits at No. 5 on the outdoor All-Time list with her outdoor best, 3.87m (12-8.25).
Senior Macaulay Garton rounds out the returning All-Americans with his first competition since his eighth-place finish during the 2014 NCAA Outdoor Championships. Garton currently sits at No. 3 on the Mizzou All-Time Top Ten list for his PR of 71.02m (233-0). Joining him in Friday's javelin competition is one of the seven Tiger newcomers who made the trek this week, freshman Alex Pascal.
Another newcomer featured in the Tigers' line-up at the Texas Relays is sophomore LaQuisha Jackson who, in her first season in the black and gold, broke school records in the 60m (7.31) and 200m (23.58) dashes and landed at No. 2 on the All-Time Top Ten in the 400m dash (54.50). Jackson will open her first outdoor season as a Tiger on Friday with the 100m dash, and will be featured in Saturday's 200m dash invitational section.
Other first-year Tigers include freshman Jonathan Holder (100m dash), freshman Kwadarrius Smith (100m dash), freshman John Warren (triple jump), junior Alyssa Felton (100m hurdles, 100m dash), sophomore Valerie Thames (400m hurdles, 100m hurdles), and freshman Ally Zerbe (javelin).
TIGERS' LINE-UP: THURSDAY
3:30 p.m. - Hammer, Men (Brian Duncan)
4:30 p.m. - 400m Hurdles prelim, Women (Valerie Thames)
5:00 p.m. - 400m Hurdles prelim, Men (Jerrad Mason // Andy Schuckenbrock)
5:30 p.m. - Javelin, Women (Ally Zerbe)
TIGERS' LINE-UP: FRIDAY
4x100m Relay, Men
100m Hurdles, Women (Alyssa Felton // Valerie Thames)
100m Dash, Women (Alyssa Felton // LaQuisha Jackson)
100m Dash, Men (Jonathan Holder // Kwadarrius Smith // Markesh Woodson)
4x400m Relay, Women
High Jump, Women (Camille Hayes // Morgan Whitson)
Pole Vault, Women (Alyssa Applebee // Katrine Haarklau)
11:30 a.m. - Javelin, Men (Macauley Garton // Alex Pascal)
12:30 p.m. - Triple Jump, Men (Jonathan Ilori // John Warren)
High Jump, Men (Mitch Hatten)
TIGERS' LINE-UP: SATURDAY
4x200m Relay, Men
3:55 p.m. - 200m Dash, Women (LaQuisha Jackson)
4:00 p.m. - Shot Put, Women (Kearsten Peoples // Jill Rushin)
BOBCAT INVITATIONAL
Meet Schedule
Several Mizzou track & field student-athletes will also be featured in the Bobcat Invitational, hosted by Texas State in San Marcos, just up the road from Austin and the Texas Relays. Kicking this meet off on Thursday are seniors Kearsten Peoples and Jill Rushin, who will take on the discus competition before Saturday's shot put at the Texas Relays. Peoples currently owns the school record in the event (57.31m // 188-0), while Rushin sits at No. 2 All-Time (17.62m // 57-9.75).
Peoples will return to the meet on Friday for the hammer throw competition, an event in which she holds the No. 2 position on the Mizzou All-Time Top Ten list (62.38m // 204-8). Joining her in the ring will be fellow-senior Camille Hackamack.
Other competitors at the three-day Texas State Bobcat Invitational include sophomore Tanner Buschmann (discus), sophomore Ahren Bohanan (hammer), senior Brian Duncan (hammer), senior Maggie Givens (pole vault), freshman Shammai Ilis (triple jump), and sophomore Danielle Williams (triple jump).
TIGERS' LINE-UP: THURSDAY
1:00 p.m. - Discus, Women (Kearsten Peoples // Jill Rushin)
Following Women's Discus - Discus, Men (Tanner Buschmann)
TIGERS' LINE-UP: FRIDAY
1:00 p.m. - Hammer, Women (Camille Hackamack // Kearsten Peoples)
Following Women's Hammer - Hammer, Men (Ahren Bohanan // Brian Duncan)
TIGERS' LINE-UP: SATURDAY
11:00 a.m. - Pole Vault, Women (Maggie Givens)
2:30 p.m. - Triple Jump, Women (Shammai Ilis // Danielle Williams)
BLACK and GOLD INVITATIONAL
Meet Schedule // Live Results
Another contingent of Mizzou athletes will also be taking the track in Nashville, Tenn., with Vanderbilt's Black and Gold Invitational. Scheduled for Friday (March 27) and Saturday (March 28), the meet will feature several field athletes as well as a number of mid-distance and distance athletes.
Included in the line-up is yet another returning All-American in sophomore Kaitlyn Fischer, who placed ninth at the 2014 Outdoor Championships in the 10,000m run with a school record time of 33:12.37.
Joining Fischer in the the 3000m run is freshman Karissa Schweizer, sophomore Teylar Adelsberger, and junior Courtney Wood. Adelsberger and Wood both own All-Time Top Ten marks for the 3000m Steeplechase, and Wood also sits at No. 9 for the 5000m run. Schweizer, who kicked off her Tiger career with an SEC Freshman of the Year honor and an NCAA Championships qualification during the cross country season, continued impressing during the indoor season with All-Time Top Ten performances in the mile and 3000m runs.
Other names to look out for include juniors Will Crocker and Sam Dickerson, who will take to the track in the 800m and 1500m runs, respectively. Crocker was one of the highlightsthe indoor season with the second-fastest mile performance in school history, hitting 4:01.34 at the Tyson Invitational. Dickerson, primarily a 3000m Steeplechase specialist, currently sits at No. 5 All-Time for the event with his PR from last year (8:51.74).
TIGERS' LINE-UP: FRIDAY
4:00 p.m. - Shot Put, Men (Nick Sublett)
4:00 p.m. - Pole Vault, Men (Parker Brush // Luke Darrough)
Following Women's Hammer - Hammer, Men (Sean Harrell // Nick Sublett)
Following Women's Triple Jump - Triple Jump, Men (Thomas Taylor)
5:00 p.m. - 200m Dash, Women (Chelsie Stevens)
6:00 p.m. - 1500m Run, Women (Bailey Hession // Libby Luciani)
6:30 p.m. - 1500m Run, Men (Sam Dickerson // Chandler Dye)
7:00 p.m. - 5000m Run, Women (Sam Garrett)
TIGERS' LINE-UP: SATURDAY
TBA - Javelin, Women (Jennifer Berilla)
11:00 a.m. - Long Jump, Women (Keyoni Mbroh)
12:30 p.m. - 2000m Steeplechase, Women (Madison Waymire)
12:40 p.m. - 2000m Steeplechase, Men (Tim Johnson)
1:30 p.m. - 400m Dash, Women (Erika Lark // Emma Vickers // Sydney Wells)
2:00 p.m. - 100m Dash, Women (Chelsie Stevens)
2:30 p.m. - 800m Run, Women (Valeska Halamicek // Liz Reida)
2:45 p.m. - 800m Run, Men (Will Crocker // Chandler Dye // Ben Goodman // Mark Sheridan // Cain Winebrenner)
3:15 p.m. - 400m Hurdles, Men (Drake Stuedemann)
3:30 p.m. - 3000m Run, Women (Teylar Adelsberger // Becca Batliner // Courtney Brown // Megan Cunningham // Kaitlyn Fischer // Karissa Schweizer // Courtney Wood)
3:45 p.m. - 3000m Run, Men (Jordan Cook // Marc Dubrick // Sheldon Keence // Chris Mooneyham // Tyler Schneider // Drew White)
4:00 p.m. - 4x400m Relay, Women
4:15 p.m. - 4x400m Relay, Men
For the latest on your Tigers, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team on Twitter @MIZ_TrackField.