Mark Maloney on Kentucky sports

If you love track and field — and I do — the University of Kentucky’s Nutter Field House is a slice of Eden right now.

Coming next weekend, Feb. 27-March 1, the Southeastern Conference Indoor Championships.

Just finished Saturday, the UK High School Invitational.

Entrants from 17 states. Winners from 10 states. Season-leading high school performances in seven events (although Nutter’s 291-meter track relegates marks made at distances over 200 meters to the “oversized track” category).

Kentucky had only one winner, Sacred Heart Academy sophomore Emma Brink in the mile. A strong finish enabled her to hold off the defending champion, Madeline Morgan of Alabama’s Mountain Brook Track Club, 4:55.75 to 4:57.28.

While Brink missed Morgan’s year-old meet record (4:52.70), she broke her personal best — set just three weeks earlier — by 14 seconds!

“Fast start. I know we did a 2:26 half,” Brink said in explaining her drop in time. “We had great leaders. I tried to just keep with the top group and then, with a lap-and-a-half to go, my coach said ‘surge!’ That’s his favorite word.

“So I knew just to push as hard as I can, opening my arms because that helps to open your stride. It was a great race to the end. Very close.”

A two-time Class 3A state cross country champion, Brink said it was “very exciting” to win one for the commonwealth Saturday.

As for those national-leading marks, four went to the girls:

* Jasmin Stowers, a junior from Pendleton, S.C., took her U.S.-leading time of 8.44 in the 60-meter hurdles down to 8.43.

* Another South Carolina junior, Briana Nelson of Greenville, zipped 400 meters in 54.34.

* Takeia Pinckney, a senior from Decatur, Ga., came in with a nation-leading 7.45. Saturday, she slashed her time to 7.33 to nudge out Chalonda Goodman (7.34). Stowers was fifth (7.65).

* Goodman, from Newnan, Ga., rebounded to defend her meet title in the 200 (23.79) and defeat both Nelson (second, 24.48) and Pinckney (fifth, 24.86).

Brittany Porter, another Decatur standout, didn’t get a nation-leading mark. However, she did sweep the long jump (meet-record 18-7.75) and triple jump (39-0.75).

Three nation-leading marks were set by the guys:

* Tavaris Tate, a senior from Starkville, Miss., took the 400 in 47.06. He also set a meet record of 21.41 in the 200.

* Wayne C. Davis II, a Texas A&M recruit from Raleigh, N.C., came in leading in the 60-meter hurdles at 7.79. He whacked a full tenth of a second off to 7.69.

* Zach Wills, a sophomore from Mason, Ohio, posted a meet-record 9:13.04. That’s the fastest two-mile this season, although there have been four better efforts registered when converting metric deuces to the imperial distance.

Wills outkicked University of Kentucky recruit Matthew Sonnenfeldt (9:15.56) of Knoxville, Tenn.

Another UK recruit, Patrick McGregor of Hoover, Ala., won the mile in 4:21.34 in sit-and-surge (with 500 meters left) fashion.

Comments from some of the winners:

Texas recruit Chalonda Goodman, after the 200, on where her training is now compared with a year ago: “I think that’ I’m kind of behind. But all my times are contrary to that because I’m running faster this year than I was at this time last year, especially in the 60. I PR’d today. So I’m happy.”

Briana Nelson, 400-meter winner (54.34): “I’m really satisfied with it. I was going for the (meet) record (54.07) but … I tried to put down a good time.”

Tavaris Tate, on his 200-meter strategy: “Get out strong, stay out in front and keep my pace.”

Tate on running the fastest 200 of the season: “I’ve been training for big events and I just thank the Lord for giving me the opportunity to come up here and showcase my talents. It’s a blessing to be No. 1, and that’s what I strive to do.”

Wayne C. Davis II on the 60-meter hurdles: “I just think my rhythm’s getting better as I go along this season. I’m getting better and better. And I really like that after I lifted a lot of weights this week. I felt sore. I thought I was going to do terrible. I actually came out and did pretty good.”

Davis on his recent national record in the 55-meter hurdles (7.05): “After that race I was the most sore I’ve been in my life. I took myself to the limit, so it takes a little time to recover from that.”

Kenneth Gilstrap, who nipped Titans Elite (Ga.) teammate Eric Harris in the 60, 6.86 to 6.87: “I didn’t run like I was supposed to. Bad drive phase. Bad finish. I tightened up. So I’ve got a lot of work to do.”

Gilstrap, a Middle Tennessee State football recruit (likely cornerback but possibly running back or receiver), on racing Harris: “We’re good friends. Competitors. He work(s) hard, I work hard. Just like to run against each other, have fun.”

Patrick McGregor, on his move from fifth place to first near the halfway point of the mile: “Just sit back for a little bit and try and find a gap. Because I was slowing down a lot, so I figured I’d get boxed in if I didn’t move soon. So I did.”

McGregor, on his time (4:21.34): “I’ve been sick all week, so expectations were not as high as they were a couple weeks ago in Boston (where he ran 4:09.41). I didn’t really have any expectations at Boston, but it’s going to be hard to try and repeat something like that. So I’m just trying to keep working hard. It’s all about finding the right race, run against good guys with that mindset and just try to compete and win. And the time is irrelevant.”

RESULTS

Top three finishers, plus Kentuckians placing among top six. Race distances in meters unless noted. No team scoring.

GIRLS

High jump — Alexandra Morgan (Mtn. Brook, Ala.) 5 feet, 8 inches; Alyssa Hall (Withrow, Ohio) 5-8; Mary Seward (Cobb, Ga., TC) 5-6.

Long jump — Brittany Porter (Triple Action, Ga.) 18-9 (breaks meet record of 18-7 3/4 set by Whitney Marsh, Mtn. Brook TC, Ala., 2003); Kawanna Brooks (Kenwood Academy, Ill.) 18-6; Hannah Cox (Tenn. Elite TC) 17-5. Also: 5. Samantha Smith (Mt. Vernon, Ky.) 17-0.

Triple jump — Brittany Porter (Triple Action, Ga.) 39-0 3/4; Kawanna Brooks (Kenwood Acad., Ill.) 36-1; Lexie Burley (Slipstream TC, Tenn.) 36-0 1/2. Also: 5. Samantha Smith (Mt. Vernon, Ky.) 35-1 1/2; 6. Michaela Hunter (Mt. Vernon, Ky.) 34-1 1/4).

Pole vault — Alyson Hasty (Precision TC, Tenn.) 11-0; (Tie) Laura Bedsole (Hoover, Ala., TC), Alex Metzger (Indianapolis), Sandi Morris (Quick Striders, S.C.) and Leigh Allen (Lexington) 10-6.

Shot put — Brittany Wilson (Harrison, Ohio) 39-7 1/4; Jessie Harrison (Houston TC, Tenn.) 35-11 1/2; Courtney Kruger (Cordova TC, Tenn.) 34-4 1/4.

Mile — Emma Brink (Louisville) 4:55.75; Madeline Morgan (Mtn. Brook, Ala.) 4:57.28; Allie Scalf (Johnson City, Tenn.) 5:06.27.

60 hurdles — Jasmin Stowers (Quick Striders, S.C.) 8.43; Christienne Linton (Mich. Accelerators) 8.67; DanHeisha Harding (Chaminade Juli., Ohio) 9.10. Fastest qualifier: Stowers, 8.56.

60 — Takeia Pinckney (Titans Elite, Ga.) 7.33; Chalonda Goodman (New Horizon TC, Ga.) 7.34; Mahagony Jones (Rhodes Rams, Ohio) 7.59. Fastest qualifiers: Goodman (7.4483) and Pinckney (7.4500), 7.45.

400 — Briana Nelson (Quick Striders, S.C.) 54.34; Lauren Ellis (Quick Striders) 56.88; Ashley Liverpool (Walnut Hills, Ohio) 57.24.

800 — Cory McGee (Pass Christian, Miss.) 2:14.74; Marie Demedicis (Mtn. Brook, Ala.) 2:17.46; Cristin Gonzales (Quiet Storm, Va.) 2:17.81.

200 — Chalonda Goodman (New Horizon TC, Ga.) 23.79; Briana Nelson (Quick Striders, S.C.) 24.48; Mahagony Jones (Rhodes Rams, Ohio) 24.74.

 Two-mile — Amber Zimmerman (Knoxville, Tenn., TC) 11:15.35; Claire Turner (Red Bank TC, Tenn.) 11:25.84; Mary Cumbee (Wildrbeast TC, Tenn.) 11:32.88. Also: 4. Emme McAtee (Louisville) 11:45.18; 6. Tenny Ostrem (Campton, Ky.) 11:50.34.

4-by-400 relay — Mich. Accelerators 3:53.95; Withrow, Ohio 4:00.60; Mountain Brook, Ala. 4:04.97.

4-by-800 relay — Mountain Brook, Ala., 9:45.75; Mich. Accelerators 9:46.79; Action TC, W.Va., 9:55.90.

BOYS

High jump — Anthony May (Hoover, Ala., TC) 6-10 1/2; J.R. Leonard (Mtn. Brook, Ala.) 6-4; Justin Meyer (Elder, Ohio) 6-4. Also: 6. Bud Fancer (Hebron Skywalker) 6-0.

Long jump — Damar Forbes (Sprint Athletics, Ga.) 24-7 1/2; Tyler Anderson (21-9) Tyler Anderson (Antioch, Tenn.) 21-9; Reggie Mitchell (Elder, Ohio) 21-8. Also: 5. Dylan Millay (Owensboro) 21-5.

Triple jump — C.J. Davidson (Carolina Rdrn, S.C.) 46-11 1/2; Tyler Anderson (Antioch, Tenn.) 45-7 1/2; J’Don Short (Knoxville, Tenn., TC) 42-8.

Pole vault — Ryan Cook (Precision TC, Tenn.) 15-0; John Greenlee (St. Xavier, Ohio) 15-0; Cory Duggan (Mnsgr Farrell, N.Y.) 15-0.

Shot put — Bruck Brucker (Purple-Gold TC, Tenn.) 57-4 3/4; Cameron Frazier (Owensboro) 55-5; Brandon Turner (Indy Elite TC, Ind.) 52-8 3/4. Also: 5. Tony Pogue (FRSI TC, Ky.) 51-7; 6. Patrick Stuart (American Big Guys, Ky.) 51-1.

Mile — Patrick McGregor (Hoover TC, Ala.) 4:21.34; Scott Lasiter (Flashes TC, Ind.) 4:23.52; Ryan Eaton (Team Gator TC, Ky.) 4:24.49. Also: 4. Robbie Scharold (Northern Ky. TC) 4:25.25.

60 hurdles — Wayne C. Davis III (SE Raleigh, N.C.) 7.69 (breaks meet record of 7.73 set by William Wynne, Titans Elite, 2008); Renaldo Powell (Mich. Accelerators) 8.04; Damar Forbes (Sprint Athletics, Ga.) 8.13 Fastest qualifier: Davis, 7.85.

60 — Kenneth Gilstrap (Titans Elite, Ga.) 6.86; Eric Harris (Titans Elite) 6.87; Blake Heriot (Pacesetter, Ohio) 6.90. Fastest qualifier: Gilstrap, 6.84.

400 — Tavaris Tate (Starkville, Miss.) 47.06; Blake Heriot (Pacesetter, Ohio) 47.53; Will Henry (Trotwood, Ohio) 47.91.

800 — Moise Frisch (Toledo Whitmer, Ohio) 1:54.94; Geoff Spencer (Louisville) 1:56.86; Jordan Cheney (Knoxville, Tenn., TC) 1:56.89. Also: Thomas Canary (Lexington) 1:57.03.

200 — Tavaris Tate (Starkville, Miss.) 21.41 (equals meet record set by Mike Lloyd, unattached N.C., 2002); Eric Harris (Titans Elite, Ga.) 21.54; Blake Heriot (Pacesetter, Ohio) 21.71. Also: 4. Ben Mason (Lexington) 21.90.

Two-mile — Zach Wills (Mason, Ohio,TC) 9:13.04 (breaks meet record of 9:13.76 set by Chad Balyo, Springboro, Ohio, 2006); Matthew Sonnenfeldt (Knoxville, Tenn. TC) 9:15.56; Clint McKelvey (Knoxville TC) 9:26.92. Also: 5. Jackson Carnes (Louisville) 9:36.57.

4-by-400 relay — Trotwood, Ohio 3:20.66; Monsgr Farrell, N.Y., 3:22.34; Mich. Accelerators 3:24.03. Also: 4. Radcliff, Ky., 3:27.72.

4-by-800 relay — Monsgr Farrell, N.Y., 8:05.29; Zip Express, Ky., 8:14.35; Wilderbeast TC, Tenn., 8:15.95. Also: 4. Louisville 8:17.76.

Olympic rings.

Jose Acevedo

First-place finishes by Jose Acevedo and Mikel Thomas, both veterans of the Beijing Olympics, led Kentucky. Chase Madison made it a UK hat trick, winning the shot put.

Top female performer at UK’s Nutter Fieldhouse was double-winner Hyleas Fountain, the Olympic silver-medalist in the heptathlon from Dayton, Ohio.

The meet was the second and last home competition for UK before it plays host to the Southeastern Conference Championships, Feb. 27-March 1.
Acevedo, who competed at 200 meters for in the Olympics, tied the Venezuelan national record for 60 meters in Saturday’s finals, placing third. He later won the 200 in 21.22, an NCAA provisional qualifying mark.

In all, 20 collegiate performances met NCAA provisional standards. Twelve non-collegians also reached provisional standards and four hit automatic qualifing marks.

“It was good. The 60, I opened with my PR (personal record). I was impressed about that – 6.79,” Acevedo said. “It was awesome. And I was trying to do better in the finals. My start wasn’t as good as the prelims, so that cost me a chance to run under 6.70. That was the goal, but I still feel really good about 6.76.”

Rondel Sorillo

His 6.76 matched the Venezuelan record set by Victor Castillo, who placed 15th in the long jump at the 2004 Athens Olympics.

D’Angelo Cherry, who set a national high school record for 55 meters last year, won the 60 in 6.64. UK senior Gordon McKenzie took second, with a personal-best and NCAA provisional mark of 6.68. Acevedo was among three runners timed in 6.76. Going to ten-thousands of a second, Acevedo’s 6.7511 edged unattached David Dickens’ 6.7547 and Eastern Kentucky’s Shannon Davis’ 6.7575.

UK freshman Justin Austin ran a provisional-qualifying 6.74 preliminary, but did not test a sore leg in the finals.

In the 200, Acevedo topped UK newcomer Rondel Sorillo, 21.22 to 21.33. EKU’s Davis took third in 21.55.

“I was feeling a little bit tight just because of the 60,” Acevedo said. “That (60) is not my event; I’m not used to it. … But I tried to do my best. I got out with Rondel. He’s a really good competitor. He’s a really good runner.

“I was just trying to run with him more than run my race, and I think that was my mistake in the 200. But 21.22 is a provisional mark. It’s a pretty good day.”

Sorillo, from Trinidad and Tobago, competed in the same Olympic qualifying heat as Acevedo. That August day, Sorillo won in 20.58; Acevedo was fifth in 21.06. Jamaica’s Usain Bolt, the eventual gold-medal winner and world record-setter, ran second in the heat.

Mikel Thomas

Sorillo, who has two years of college in Trinidad under his belt, ran unattached as he is not yet eligible for UK.

Thomas, also a Trinidad Olympian last summer, met the NCAA provisional standard by winning the 60-meter hurdles in 7.80. Runner-up Terence Somerville of Cincinnati matched the provisional cut of 7.91.

“In the trials, I didn’t really get out of the blocks,” Thomas said of his 7.95 prelim. “I got out better (in the finals). This one was cleaner, but in between (hurdles) it’s not really where I need to be. A little tight. A little slow.”
UK’s Madison, a senior, won the shot put by more than four feet over Louisville’s Steve Hnat. Madison’s mark of 61 feet, 7 3/4 inches is an NCAA provisional qualifier.

“That’s definitely the best series of my life,” said Madison, who had efforts of 59-6 3/4, 59-0 1/4, foul, 60-2, 59-10 1/4 and 61-7 3/4. “Building consistencey now through SECs and through the national meet, that’s what I want.”

Chase Madison

Madison beat his previous best (59-2 3/4) four times.

“A lot more technical work,” he said in explaining his improvement. “A lot more quality work. Not just quantity, but quality.

“Focus on technique, not distance. … Let the distance come in competition, not practice.”

UK’s Colin Boevers placed eighth in the shot. Teammate Rashaud Scott, the NCAA discus champion and a provisional qualifier in Friday’s weight throw, fouled twice and passed his third turn.

Fountain, who won SEC titles for Georgia in the high jump, long jump and pentathlon (collegiate-record 4,417 points) here in 2004, was the Saturday’s quality performer among the women.

Hyleas Fountain

Fountain set a meet record of 21-5 1/2 in the long jump, then beat the meet and fieldhouse record with an 8.02 in the 60-meter hurdles.

“Right now, training for USAs (championships) and just trying to retain my title in the long jump there,” Fountain said of her 2009 goals. “The biggest meet, of course, is the World Championships in Berlin.”

A timing malfunction made it necessary to re-run Fountain’s preliminary heat of the hurdles. She won both times, 8.13 in the one that counted.
“I just kind of looked at it as a good warmup,” she said.

Furman’s Patrick Morgan, a former standout for Boyle County High School, came off the final turn to kick past Middle Tennessee State’s Festus Chemaoi and win the men’s mile in a personal-best and school-record 4:05.90. Chemaoi, timed in 4:065.29, caught Morgan by surprise and surged to a big lead with about two laps left.

Patrick Morgan

“He made a really good move there,” Morgan said. “I didn’t think I could catch him. I started to kick with about 300 to go, and he just slowly came closer, so I knew I had to (catch him).”

Eastern Kentucky’s Joseph Maina edged UK’s Luis Orta by three-hundredths of a second for third place, finishing in 4:10.59.
Former EKU all-American Jacob Korir, like Maina a Kenyan, used similar tactics to win the 3,000 meters in a meet-record 8:07.09. Mississippi State’s Matt Cameron, competing unattached, led until the final 200 meters.

Western Kentucky swept the 4-by-400 relays for men (3:12.90) and women (NCAA-provisional 3:37.97). Janet Jesang (9:26.68) and Eimear O’Brien gave the Hilltoppers a 1-2 finish in the women’s 3,000, and Valerie Brown snared the 400 (53.58). Jesang and Brown both met NCAA provisional standards.

Janet Jesang

Jesang, a junior from Uganda, hopes to qualify for NCAAs at 5,000 meters next week.

Kelly McNeice, from Northern Ireland, swept the women’s 800 (2:09.45) and mile (4:45.71), followed each time by Zamzam Sangau, a Middle Tennessee State junior from Uganda.

Saravia Richardson gave Louisville its lone win with a provisional qualifying time of 7.44 in the women’s 60.

Other female winners included Chandra Brewer in the shot (55-5 1/2), Chelsea Taylor in the high jump (5-11 1/2) and Trish Bartholomew in the 200 (23.64).

Brewer, a South Florida graduate, placed fourth at last summer’s U.S. Olympic Trials.

Taylor, a top-20 ranked jumper and multi-eventer, is scheduled to return here in three weeks, competing for Alabama.

Jeff Chakouian

Ohio Northern’s James O’Brien scored one for the smaller schools, taking the lead with 50 meters left en route to winning the men’s 800 in a provisional qualifying time of 1:49.70.

Elvis Forde

Carl Morgan upheld Middle Tennessee’s reputation as a perennial power in the jumps, taking the long jump (24-3 3/4).

Other winners were unattached Jamil Hubbard in the 400 (46.58) and Cincinnati’s Shane Shockey in the pole vault (16-0 3/4).