May 17, 2009

Complete Results

Head Coach Curtis Frye | Johnny Dutch | Jason Richardson

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The South Carolina hurdlers stole the show on the final day of the SEC Outdoor Championships with titles in the 110m hurdles and the 400m hurdles, highlighted by a 1-2-4 finish in the 110m hurdles with Jason Richardson earning his second consecutive title. Johnny Dutch earned his first title with the win in the 400m hurdles. The duo then combined to run the second and anchor legs of the 4x400m relay team that won the SEC title at 3:04.49.

The Gamecock men finished fourth and the women were eighth. Arkansas won the men’s team title and host Florida won the women’s team title. South Carolina earned 14 medals during the four-day championships.

“It’s as good a team as we’ve ever had,” South Carolina head coach Curtis Frye said of the men’s team. “It fits up in the Brad Snyder and Terrence Trammell year. That efforts by Jason Cook and Jason Richardson show great leadership on their part to do that. To come away with four champions – we won the shot put, both hurdles and the 4×400 – it sets our kids up for a great national meet. We have to stay healthy, get some more kids through regionals and see if we can have a shot to finish in the top 10 at nationals. This is the greatest conference in the country, and to be fourth, you can’t be anything but proud.”

Richardson won his second consecutive outdoor title by running a nation-leading 13.29, which is also is the fourth-fastest individual time in the world this year. He was followed by freshman Booker Nunley who set a South Carolina freshman record in the event with a silver medal finish at 13.49, the third-best time in program history. Dutch came in fourth at a season-best 13.68 as the Gamecocks scored 23 points in the one event.

“Rain delays force you to bring out the competitor (in you),” Richardson said after the race was delayed for 90 minutes due to inclement weather. “Honestly, I have to give a big shout out to my teammate who came here and had a massive PR as a freshman. It’s letting me know that when I leave the tradition will stay alive.”

“It’s outstanding,” Frye said. “It’s the best group of hurdlers that we’ve ever had. Jason Richardson hadn’t had very much of an outdoor season, and he’s now back (in shape). He has a shot of winning a second NCAA championship. Booker Nunley is breaking Jason Richardson’s freshman records and going faster than Terrence Trammell ran.”

A little over an hour later, Dutch hit the track again as one of the favorites in the 400m hurdles and responded by running the third-fastest time in the world this year at 48.58. The 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials finalist defeated two-time defending champion Justin Gaymon of Georgia to earn his first conference title after finishing as runner-up in the event last year as a freshman.

“I just thank God right now,” Dutch said. “I’m so satisfied. I didn’t have a good 110 race so I had to make up for it. I give God all of the praise. I was really close to hitting the last hurdle, but I couldn’t let that stop me and I had to finish hard.”

“Johnny Dutch, coming off intermediate hurdles, that’s a pretty tiresome soreness,” Frye said. “For him to come back and to run that good, that was excellent for him.”

The duo then teamed with Obakeng Ngwigwa and Quentin Moore to win the men’s mile relay at 3:04.49, giving Richardson and Dutch two gold medals each. The title is Carolina’s first in the mile relay since 2003. Dutch accounted for 16.5 of Carolina’s 88 points, almost earning him the Commissioners Title for most points accounted for by an individual.

Not to be outdone, Janica Austin rallied for the women’s team with PR’s in both hurdle events as the sophomore earned bronze medal honors in the 400m hurdles and placed fifth in the 100m hurdles. Austin started by running a 13.55 in the 100m hurdles before, like Dutch, hitting the track again in an hour to medal at her first SEC Outdoor Championships. Running in lane nine, Austin began with a strong push and held on to cross the line at 58.06 for third place. Both time move her into the South Carolina all-time top 10 list.

Gabrielle Glenn’s third leg boosted the Gamecock women’s 4x100m relay team to silver medal honors after an earlier handoff slowed the team slightly. The team (Lakya Brookins, Shayla Mahan, Glenn and Breehana Jacobs) ran the race in a season-best 44.37 seconds. The Gamecocks have medaled in the event ever year since 1999, a streak that includes four titles and four runner-up finishes.

Glenn and Jacobs later teamed with Austin – running in her third event of the day like Dutch – along with Porche Byrd to earn bronze medal honors in the 4x400m relay at 3:37.79. Austin finished the day with 11.5 of Carolina’s 51 points.

The men’s 4x100m relay team of Johnathan Hancock, Antonio Sales, Quentin Moore and Obakeng Ngwigwa placed third overall for bronze medal honors at 39.41. The time is a season-best for the Gamecocks and tenth best time in program history.

Brookins, the 60m NCAA champion indoors this season, took third in the 100m dash at 11.36, matching her bronze medal honors set at the SEC Indoor championships this year in the 60m dash. Mahan placed fifth in the event at 11.55, setting a regional time in her first race of the season in the 100m and just her third run this outdoor season overall. Glenn took seventh at a season-best 11.58.

Freshman Cory Bowen from Lexington took sixth in the high jump at 5-5 (1.65m), and sophomore Staley Foster tied for eighth with the same clearance. Junior Kettiany Clarke also cleared 5-5 and placed 11th while Kayla Blake placed 16th at 5-3 (1.60m).

Hancock also competed in the 100m dash where he placed seventh at a personal best 10.34. Sales competed in the 200m dash and claimed fourth at 20.78, the highest placement for a Gamecock in the event since 2004. Ngwigwa placed eighth in the 400m dash at 47.20.

For the second consecutive year, junior Sallie Gurganus placed seventh in the pole vault, crossing the bar at 13-01.50 (4.00m), tying her career best mark. Senior Liza Todd placed ninth at 12-07.50 (3.85m), just missing a chance to score when she cleared 4.00m but caused the bar to hop resulting in a foul. Junior Vica Shobe also cleared 12-07.50 to place 13th and earn her first regional qualifying mark of the year.

Freshman Stacee Roberts hit a new PR and won her flight to place eighth overall in the shot put in her first SEC appearance. Roberts hit 47-07.25 (14.51m) on her second throw to fight her way into the finals despite entering with the 11th-best mark heading into the conference meet. The mark is the first regional qualifying mark for the freshman and the first for South Carolina in the shot put this year. Katie Vuckovich (18th; 43-05.75), Aimee Kodat (19th; 43-02.50) and Shantelle Patterson (22nd; 41-05.25) also competed.

Junior qualifier Jeff Merkt placed ninth in the men’s discus throw with a top throw of 163-09 (49.91m). Seniors David Zaycek and Jason Cook followed behind at 12th and 13th, respectively, with tosses of 158-04 (48.25m) and 154-08 (47.15m).

In the men’s triple jump, junior Aaron Searles took 14th with a jump of 46-01.25 (14.05m), and sophomore Jarrett Gerald placed 17th at a season-best 43-10 (13.36m). Freshman Radiance Basden placed 15th in the women’s triple jump at 36-04.75 (11.09m).

The Gamecocks took a blow in the 400m dash when junior Brandi Cross, a favorite to win the event, was not able to finish due to a leg injury 200 meters into the race.

“Our girls have had such great years, but they’ll be on their way back,” Frye said. “Leadership is the big thing. We look forward to next year. We have Brittney James and Trier Young coming back along with KeKe Clarke, and that gives us a strong nucleus to come back with our girl sprinters. Mike Sergent is doing a great job with a freshman scoring in the shot put. We had two girls score in the high jump as freshman and sophomores. I look forward to the day when both of our teams are in the top five.”

South Carolina will return to the track in two weeks when the team competes at the NCAA East Regional Championships in Greensboro, N.C. Carolina’s regional qualifiers will compete at Irwin Belk Track on the campus of North Carolina A&T for the chance to advance to Fayetteville, Ark., for the NCAA Championships.