May 14, 2014
On Thursday, South Carolina track and field begins competition at the 2014 SEC Outdoor Championships at the Kentucky Track & Field Complex on the campus of the University of Kentucky. The event is set for Thurs., May 15-Sun., May 18.
WEEKEND INFORMATION
Date: Thurs., May 15-Sun., May 18
Time: Thurs. – 12 p.m. ET | Fri. – 12 p.m. ET | Sat. – 1 p.m. ET | Sun. – 11 a.m. ET
Location: Lexington, Ky.
Facility: Kentucky Track & Field Complex
Live Results: BranchSportsTech.com
Championship Sites: SEC Championship Central & Kentucky Host Site
Live Stream Schedule
ESPN3 Saturday | ESPN3 Sunday
Live coverage of the meet will air on ESPN3.com on Saturday and Sunday. The coverage will air from 3:40 p.m. ET-6:50 p.m. ET on Saturday and 1:50 p.m. ET-5:50 p.m. ET on Sunday, including the trophy presentations. ESPNU will air the 2014 SEC Outdoor Championships as part of a two-hour show on ESPNU on Thursday, May 22 beginning at 8 p.m. ET. The broadcast talent includes Dwight Stones (play-by-play), Larry Rawson (analyst) and Lewis Johnson (reporter)
Competition beings with the multi-events on Thursday at 12 p.m., with Sarah Graham and Alexandre Asselin representing the Gamecocks. The decathlon and heptathlon continue on Friday along with the primary rounds of the 800 meters, 200 meters and 400-meter hurdles before the day ends with the 10,000-meter finals. Saturday and Sunday feature the bulk of the meet’s events. Competition beings at 1 p.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m. on Sunday.
The Gamecock men return three of four individual scorers from last season’s outdoor squad in Chris Royster (100m – 7th), Jermaine Collier (110mH – 5th, 400mH – 3rd) and Dondre Echols (110mH – 6th). The men will look to improve upon last season’s 13th-place finish. There are four individuals ranked in the SEC top 10 of their respective events – Collier (400mH), Jussi Kanervo (110mH, 400mH), Kaleb Zuidema (Javelin) and Alexandre Asselin (Decathlon). Kanervo is the top-ranked freshman in the SEC in the hurdle events and Zuidema is the top freshman in the country in the javelin.
With the loss of departing seniors Kierre Beckles and Breana Radford along with Erika Rucker and Jeannelle Scheper redshirting for the 2014 outdoor season, the women have just four returning scorers in Lexington this weekend. Tamera Harris and Tyler Brockington had a breakout meet at the 2013 championships, finishing fifth and eighth, respectively, in the 400-meter hurdles. The Gamecocks also have returning scorers in the pole vault with school record holder Petra Olsen (7th) and the discus with Kaysee Sullivan (8th). The women took eighth-place in 2013.
Six women sit in the SEC’s top 10. Precious Holmes is the second-fastest freshman entering the meet in the 400 meters, Tamera Harris and Tyler Brockington will look to score in the 400-meter hurdles for the second-straight year, school record holder Petra Olsen who owns the third seed, Natasha Dicks in who makes her SEC Outdoor Championship debut in the triple jump and pentathlon All-American Sarah Graham who will look to score in the heptathlon.
A nation-leading 17 SEC men’s and women’s teams are ranked in the latest U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Division I National Team Computer Rankings entering the SEC Outdoor Championships. Nine men’s teams appear in the latest rankings, including five in the top-10. On the women’s side, eight teams are ranked, with six landing in the top-10. Florida tops both the men’s and women’s rankings.
Up Next
The Gamecocks who post a qualifying time or mark will be included in the NCAA East Region field (May 29-31, Jacksonville, Fla.). The preliminary round offers the chance to punch a ticket the NCAA Outdoor Championships (June 11-14, Eugene, Ore.).
For the fifth-straight season, the country has been split into two regions – East and West – with the top 48 athletes (24 relays) in each region qualifying for the Preliminary Round. The top 12 finishers in an event at each regional preliminary will advance to the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
