March 31, 2018
Outdoor Meet #3 ââ’¬” Florida Relays
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Alycia Springs earned her first shot put victory of the season on Saturday as the University of South Carolina track & field team wrapped up the 2018 Florida Relays. Springs was victorious in the collegiate flight to grab Carolina’s second victory of the week at Percy Beard Track.
The sophomore from Charlotte, N.C., notched a throw of 51-5 ¾ on her second attempt of the day, and it held up for the win through the final four rounds. It was a new PR for Springs, who is ranked seventh in Carolina history in the event.
On Friday, a Gamecock stepped into the winner’s circle for the first time this weekend as Ncincilili Titi was triumphant in the 200m invitational flight. The senior’s time of 20.36 is the top mark in the nation this outdoor season.
KD Young had the best day of her outdoor career in the shot put invitational flight on Saturday. The freshman threw 50-8, the eighth-best outdoor mark in program history. She finished seventh in the event.
One week after Hailey Sweatman cleared four meters in pole vault for the first time outdoors, the sophomore put together another solid outing. Sweatman finished fifth in Gainesville with a mark of 3.95m | 12-11 ½.
Coming off an SEC title and NCAA bronze medal in the indoor season, Josh Awotunde is looking for big things outdoors in his senior shot put campaign. The three-time All-American hit a mark of 64-10 ¾ on Saturday, finishing second at the meet and notching the fourth-best effort in the NCAA so far this season.
Hanifah Abdulqadir joined Awotunde as part of Carolina’s NCAA Indoor Championships squad, and she joined him as a podium finisher Saturday in Gainesville. The junior jumped 42-11 ¾ to finish third in her outdoor Carolina triple jump debut; that’s the fourth-best mark in Carolina history and the fifth-best effort in the NCAA this season.
The bulk of Saturday’s track action consisted of various relay races, and the Gamecocks performed admirably in several events. The Gamecock women took third in the shuttle hurdle relay, as Milan Parks, Caitlyn Little, Jordan Fields and Funlayo Oluwole turned in a time of 54.99. On the men’s side, Markus Leemet, Spencer Flores, Kaden Briggs and Matt Froschauer ran 1:00.46 to finish fourth.
The men’s sprint medley relay team took a podium spot, finishing third. Titi, Darrell Singleton Jr., Simon Gyllensten and Otis Jones stopped the clock in 3:22.29.
FROM THE COACH
“Our women in the field had a great day. Alycia finished with a personal best, and Hanifah had a really good series in the triple jump. KD also did a good job as a freshman competing in the invitational. Josh had a really good season-opener, and although Eric missed the finals in the shot put, he has done some good stuff this year, and it was a good thing for him to be competing in the invitational. Our sprint medley was great on the men’s side. Titi had another good run, Darrell ran very well and Otis showed a lot of promise. We’re going to focus on that event in the coming weeks with the goal of running really well at Penn Relays. All of our women posted solid runs on the shuttle hurdle relay. They can use that to build momentum for the stretch run. We’re excited to get home and heal up, get some rest and run in warm weather next week. I hope we have a big crowd.” – Head Coach Curtis Frye
UP NEXT FOR THE GAMECOCKS
The majority of the Gamecocks return to Cregger Track next weekend for the 2018 Gamecock Invitational. The one-day meet begins at 9 a.m. ET on Saturday, April 7.
Select athletes will travel to Athens, Ga., next week to compete in the Spec Towns Invitational and Bulldog Decathlon. That meet runs Friday and Saturday on the University of Georgia campus.
| SATURDAY, MARCH 31, 2018 – FLORIDA RELAYS – MEN’S RESULTS | ||
| Shuttle Hurdle Relay | ||
| 4. Leemet, Flores, Briggs, Froschauer | 1:00.46 | |
| Sprint Medley Relay | ||
| 3. Titi, Singleton, Gyllensten, Jones | 3:22.29 | |
| Collegiate Pole Vault | ||
| –. Armand Woodley | NH | |
| Shot Put Invitational | ||
| 2. Josh Awotunde | 19.78m | 64-10 3/4 | |
| 11. Eric Favors | 17.50m | 57-5 | |
| SATURDAY, MARCH 31, 2018 – FLORIDA RELAYS – WOMEN’S RESULTS | ||
| Shuttle Hurdle Relay | ||
| 3. Parks, Little, Fields, Oluwole | 54.99 | |
| Shot Put Invitational | ||
| 7. KD Young | 15.44m | 50-8 | |
| 4x100m | ||
| 18. Little, Parks, Stanley, Pennamon | 45.69 | |
| Collegiate Shot Put | ||
| 1. Alycia Springs | 15.69m | 51-5 3/4 | |
| Collegiate Triple Jump | ||
| 3. Hanifah Abdulqadir | 13.10m | 42-11 3/4 | |
| Collegiate Pole Vault | ||
| 5. Hailey Sweatman | 3.95m | 12-11 1/2 | |
| 4x200m Relay | ||
| 6. Pennamon, Abrams, Holmes, Mills | 1:35.59 | |
| Tom Jones 4x400m Invitational | ||
| 7. Abrams, Mills, Fields, Pennamon | 3:47.17 | |
