June 2, 2006

Columbia, SC – Hot off its outstanding finishes at the NCAA East Region Track and Field Championship, South Carolina’s women jumped up to No. 5 nationally and the men leaped into the top 25 at a season-high No. 12 after spending a week out of the rankings. The women won the region title for the second straight year and the men finished a program-high third.

With the NCAA Championships in Sacramento June 7-10, the women have qualified nine individuals in eight events and both its 4x100m relay and its 4x400m relay. The men qualified four individuals in five events in addition to its 4x400m relay.

“The women are ranked about right. I am also pleased to see them move from ninth to fifth. It’s a tribute to their finish last weekend at the regional. We have got a short at being fourth, but it will be tough,” said USC Head Coach Curtis Frye. “We are elated about the men being ranked 12th. We are excited Trackwire sees what we have accomplished with our fifth place finish at the SEC meet and the third place finish at the regionals. We are shooting to be top 10 and we have a shot, but I’d be happy with a top 20 finish as well.”

The women finished as the runner-up to Texas last year, while the men finished 26th. The USC women join only the Texas women, Arkansas men and the UCLA women as the only four programs nationally to finish in the top 10 at the NCAA Outdoor Championships the past 10 years, beginning with its ninth place finish in 1996. USC’s women won the school’s first NCAA title in any sport in 2002. The women have finished in the top five of the last six years with the men finishing in the top 11 five times in the last 10 years.