Jan. 23, 2016

BIRMINGHAM, ALA. – It was a thrilling finish on the final day of the Conference Clash, as the SEC split in its competition with the Power Four team Saturday evening. The men won 91-74, while the Power Four women edged out the SEC 85.5-84.5. The Gamecocks would finish the meet with six scorers, including four on the meet’s final day.

“The SEC is so tough, then when you throw in Southern Cal, Purdue, Texas, they all keep throwing Olympic-level athletes at you,” head coach Curtis Frye said. “This was a great meet for us to get out and see what it will be like at nationals.”

Carolina’s scoring started early on, starting with the men’s 60m hurdles. It would be a clean sweep of the podium for the SEC, with Isaiah Moore (7.89) placing second and Dondre Echols (7.91) third. Moore’s time was a new season best and ranks 13th nationally based on times entering the weekend.

David Winters would add to the SEC’s point total as he ran in the 60m dash finale. He finished as the conference’s top finisher, placing second overall with a time of 6.74. In other events on the track, Ty Jaye Robbins-Lockhart ran a new season best in the 400m and finished seventh overall. His time of 47.62 bumps him up into the top 25 nationally after he entered the weekend sitting 40th. Otis Jones also ran a season-best time, crossing in 1:55.24 in the 800.

For the women, Erika Rucker made a strong return to the track after missing almost all of last season. The senior ran fifth overall in the 400m, scoring for the SEC with a time of 53.74. The mark moves her all the way up to ninth in the nation based on times entering the weekend, giving South Carolina two women ranked in the top 10 in the quarter mile.

The team’s final scorer on the final day would be Josh Awotunde. The sophomore finished seventh overall in a stacked field that included four of the top seven throwers in the nation this season. His top mark of 59 feet, seven inches was the top mark of any SEC competitor.

Closing out the meet were the 4x400m relays. The three men’s teams placed sixth, tenth and 14th, with the `A’ team of Robbins, Echols, Ncincilili Titi and Winters running a time of 3:12.58. For the women, the quartet of Rucker, Aliyah Abrams, Ahtyana Johnson and Maiya Dendy finished eighth (3:40.59).

QUOTABLE: HEAD COACH Curtis Frye

“We didn’t have a great meet, we didn’t have a bad one. You can tell that our kids, coming off a long trip to Texas A&M and training with heavy loads, didn’t get their personal bests but we got good performances. We’re a lot better team than we were at this point last year, but we’re looking forward to getting a week off to get off the road and rest.”

UP NEXT

The team will send athletes to two meets next week, with the majority going to the Camel City Invitational in Winston-Salem, N.C. from Jan. 29-30. Also on the docket is the Penn State National meet, where the team’s multi-event athletes are scheduled to compete.