March 30, 2006

Carolina sprint sensation Shalonda Solomon has been selected as the Southeastern Conference Female Track Runner of the Week for her efforts last weekend at the Walt Disney World Invitational, the league office announced today.

Solomon, a sophomore from Inglewood, Calif., turned in a scintillating effort in her first outdoor meet of the season, winning the 200 meters in an NCAA regional qualifying time of 22.77 seconds, just off her personal best of 22.74 seconds, the fastest collegiate time this season. The NCAA indoor champion at 200 meters also anchored USC’s winning 4×400 meter relay unit that posted an NCAA regional qualifying time of 3:38.96.

This is the first time that Solomon has won the award during the outdoor season, but the fourth consecutive time she has been selected by the league, as she was honored for the final three consecutive weeks of the indoor season.

Solomon and the rest of the South Carolina men’s and women’s track teams will travel to Gainesville, Fla. this weekend for the Diet Pepsi Classic, hosted by the University of Florida. Saturday’s meet will be held at James G. Pressly Stadium at Percy Beard Track.

Female athletes from 13 different schools, including eight from the Sunshine State, will take part in the meet. On the men’s side, several strong teams will travel to Gainesville, including squads from Florida State, Indiana, Georgetown, Virginia and East Carolina. The first event on the track is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. Live results of the meet will be available at www.GatorZone.com.