Jan. 24, 2006

Columbia, SC – Both of South Carolina’s women’s and men’s teams jumped a few spots in the Trackwire.com top 25 poll released today and put it this way, the women can’t go any higher than this right now. Behind Greenville sprinter Amberly Nesbitt break-out year (J.L. Mann H.S.), Shalonda Solomon’s blinding speed, the long and high jumps of Chelsea Hammond, the 400m and 800m performances of Stephanie Smith and Shay Shelton, respectively, and an overall well-balanced women’s team – the South Carolina women jumped over Texas and Tennessee to take over the No. 1 spot in the Trackwire top 25.

The USC men jumped up to No. 15 from No. 18 last week.

It is the first time USC the Carolina women have been ranked No. 1 indoors since January of 2002 (according to records kept). That season they finished fourth indoors at the NCAA meet, but won the SEC and NCAA Championships outdoors – the school’s first ever NCAA title. (see full rankings and Dandy Dozen below).

“There is a long time until the NCAA Championships – seven weeks – and it’s hard to hang on to No. 1, but we got a pretty good little team,” said USC Head Coach Curtis Frye in his 10th year at the Gamecock helm. “There are a lot of good teams out there that haven’t shown everything. Texas is still a tough team and so is Tennessee. LSU had a great weekend and Stanford hasn’t shown a lot yet, but sprints show up faster indoors than distance runners. It’s early. We’ve had two good weeks.. I am just glad to have the ranking right now. Shay Shelton is No. 1 right now nationally in the 800m and she’s really emerging as a leader for us We have some other kids who will end up moving up in the scoring and they are excited about being No. 1, but there is a lot of work to be done.

“On the men’s side, we haven’t shown how good we can be,” continued Frye. “There is still a lot of speculation on the pollsters part. Jason Richardson needs to get healthy and Leroy Dixon hasn’t shown us his potential yet. Greig Cryer is leading the way right now and doing a great job. We just have a lot of talented individuals with a lot of potential, but potent ional doesn’t always get it, they have to be productive.”

“We have had so much of the staff together over the years and that helps so much,” said Frye. “We have great coaches here at USC and longevity gives recruits a reason to come to this school. We have a great supportive administration and it’s a good thing that helps us. We are lucky to be Gamecocks and to be together – we are solid as a rock.”

Trackwire said of USC’s No. 1 ranking: ‘South Carolina takes over the top billing in the Trackwire 25 for Women, edging ahead of No. 2 Texas and setting up another epic battle for the NCAA Indoor track & field championship.

The Trackwire 25 for Women, including team rankings and projected national meet scores: 1. South Carolina, 65; 2. Texas, 64; 3. Stanford, 41; 4. Nebraska, 34; 5. Tennessee, 26; 6. USC, 23; t7. Arizona State, 18; t7. Texas A&M, 18; t9. Michigan, 17; t9. Southern Illinois, 17; t11. UCLA, 16; t11. Alabama, 16; 13. Georgia, 15; 14. Auburn, 14; t15. Duke, 12; t15. Virginia Tech, 12; t17. Oregon, 11; t17. LSU, 11; t19. BYU, 10; t19. Akron, 10; t19. Northern Arizona, 10; t19. Harvard, 10; t19. Notre Dame, 10; t19. Cal Poly, 10; t19. Providence, 10.

A strong trip to New Mexico provided the setting for Florida State to take over the No. 1 position in the Trackwire 25 for men. The Seminoles handily outpoint defending champion and previous No. 1 Arkansas. The Trackwire 25 for Men, including team rankings and projected national meet scores:

1. Florida State, 59; 2. Arkansas, 49; 3. Wisconsin, 47; 4. Texas, 39; 5. LSU, 29; 6. Tennessee, 28; t7. Nebraska, 23; t7. Arizona, 23; 9. Baylor, 22; 10. Virginia Tech, 20; 11. Oregon, 18; t12. Texas A&M, 17; t12. Michigan, 17; 14. Indiana, 16; t15. TCU, 15; t15. Texas Tech, 15; t15. South Carolina, 15; 18. Kansas, 14; 19. Florida, 13; 20. USC, 12; 21. Auburn, 11; 22. BYU, 10; 23. Middle Tennessee State, 9; t24. Akron, 6; t24. Missouri, 6; t24. Liberty, 6.

The women have seven student-athletes and a relay ranked in seven events in the Dandy Dozen (considered the top 12 at the NCAA meet done on a form chart.

TRACKWIRE.COM dandy dozen — WOMEN
January 24, 2006
60 Meters
2. Amberly Nesbitt, So. Carolina
3. Shalonda Solomon, So. Carolina

200 Meters
1. Shalonda Solomon, So. Carolina
2. Amberly Nesbitt, So. Carolina

400 Meters
1. Stephanie Smith, So. Carolina
4. Natasha Hastings, So. Carolina

60-Meter Hurdles
7. Ronnetta Alexander, So. Carolina

4 X 400-Meter Relay
2. South Carolina

Pole Vault
12. Cheryl Terrio, So. Carolina

Long Jump
2. Chelsea Hammond, So. Carolina

The men have three student-athletes ranked in four events in the Dandy Dozen (considered the top 12 at the NCAA meet done on a form chart)

TRACKWIRE.COM dandy dozen — MEN
January 24, 2006
200 Meters
12. Leroy Dixon, So. Carolina

60-Meter Hurdles
2. Jason Richardson, So. Carolina

Long Jump
3. Greig Cryer, So. Carolina

Triple Jump
8. Greig Cryer, So. Carolina