Feb. 1, 2006

University of South Carolina track standout Chelsea Hammond has been selected as the Southeastern Conference female Field Athlete of the Week, the league office announced today.

Hammond, a senior from Elmont, N.Y., won the pentathlon event at Clemson on Friday. She logged an NCAA provisional score of 4,014 points in the event, the best mark in the SEC this season. She currently ranks fifth in the nation in the heptathlon, according to Trackwire.com.

At Clemson, Hammond won the long jump and high jump events, finished second in the 60-meter hurdles, was third in the 800 meters and plaed fourth in the shot put.

Hammond is the second South Carolina athlete to be honored by the league during the indoor season, joining sprinter Amberly Nesbitt.

Hammond, Nesbitt and the rest of the top-ranked women’s track & field team will be in action this weekend at the New Balance Collegiate Invitational in New York.