COLUMBIA, S.C. — Fresh off the program’s most successful national meet in a decade, the University of South Carolina track & field team begins the 2019 outdoor season this weekend at the Black and Gold Challenge, hosted March 15-16 by UCF. Events begin at 11 a.m. ET and continue Saturday at 10 a.m. ET.

Carolina and the hosts from UCF will compete against a deep and eclectic field in Orlando. Participating schools include Alabama State, Albany, Amherst, Central State, Embry-Riddle, Florida Southern, Florida Tech, Franklin & Marshall, Keiser University, Marquette, NC State, NJIT, Northern Illinois, Northeastern, Providence, Rhode Island, Rowan, Seminole State, Southeastern, Southern Nazarene, Southern New Hampshire, Tampa, UMass Amherst, Valparaiso and Worcester State.

QUOTABLES

“(Last week’s national championship) is what can happen on a regular basis. Those are expectations you can have from this program because of the commitment of the University. When you have athletes like that, you start dreaming the dream. You have to see a picture before you can dream a dream. This right here gives our kids the picture and the dream of how they can be a top-four team.”– Head Coach Curtis Frye

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUPS (Click to Expand)

LAST TIME OUT: 4X400M CHAMPIONSHIP HIGHLIGHTS NCAA INDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS

The Gamecocks enter the outdoor season on the heels of the program’s best NCAA Indoor Championships in over a decade. The Carolina women finished tied for seventh, their first NCAA top-10 finish since 2007, while the Gamecock men tied for 20th, their best result at the national indoor meet since 2010.

The highlight of the meet was Carolina’s national championship in the women’s 4x400m relay. Stephanie Davis, Aliyah Abrams, Tatyana Mills and Wadeline Jonathas ran 3:30.76 to edge Texas A&M (3:30.85) and Arkansas (3:30.86) for the crown. It’s the 47th NCAA event championship in Gamecock history and the first since 2015. It’s also the program’s seventh women’s 4x400m relay NCAA title and the first since 2007.

The women’s mile relay was one of five first-team All-America finishes for the Gamecocks. Abrams placed second in the women’s 400m, and Quincy Hall took fourth in the men’s 400m then led the men’s mile relay to a fifth-place result. Isaiah Moore added an eighth-place finish in the men’s 60m hurdles.

Jonathas (women’s 400m) and Arinze Chance (men’s 400m) earned second-team All-America laurels while Yann Randrianasolo (men’s long jump) was an honorable mention finisher.

LAST SEASON AT THE BLACK AND GOLD CHALLENGE

This is the second-straight season the Gamecocks have opened the outdoor season at the Black and Gold Challenge. Last season, Carolina won four events in Orlando, including three victories by current student-athletes. Aliyah Abrams won the women’s 400m, Rivaldo Leacock took the men’s 400m hurdles and Hailey Sweatman was the women’s pole vault winner.

In addition to the victories, Carolina recorded a slew of podium finishes last season in Orlando. Among current student-athletes, Eric Favors (men’s shot put), Anna Kathryn Stoddard (women’s 1500m), Yann Randrianasolo (men’s long jump) and the women’s 4x100m and 4x400m relays took home top-three finishes to start the 2018 outdoor season.

GAMECOCKS TAKE HOME THREE ALL-SEC HONORS

South Carolina earned three All-SEC nods at the 2019 SEC Indoor Championships, held Feb. 22-23 in Fayetteville, Ark. Junior Quincy Hall collected first-team All-SEC honors by winning the individual men’s 400m championship. Hall set a school record in the final, running 45.69 to earn Carolina’s first SEC title on the indoor track since Jason Richardson took the 60m hurdles in 2009.

The Carolina women’s 4x400m relay squad and senior hurdler Isaiah Moore earned second-team All-SEC honors. The 4×4 quartet of Stephanie Davis, Aliyah Abrams, Tatyana Mills and Wadeline Jonathas won silver with a time of 3:29.56, second-fastest in the nation this season. Moore tallied his second-career SEC medal by winning bronze in the 60m hurdles.

Overall, Carolina finished 10th in the men’s competition and 12th on the women’s side.

RETURNING ALL-AMERICANS LOOKING FOR MORE OUTDOOR SUCCESS

The Gamecocks feature seven student-athletes with past outdoor All-America finishes. On the women’s side, Aliyah Abrams, Stephanie Davis, Maiya Dendy, Milan Parks and Makyla Stanley already own All-America honors from past seasons, with Abrams taking first-team status as part of Carolina’s 2016 bronze-medal winning 4x400m relay.

On the men’s side, Isaiah Moore and Yann Randrianasolo each return with outdoor All-America results under their belts. Moore was a first-team finisher in 2017 after taking eighth in the 100m hurdles.

The 2019 NCAA postseason begins May 23-25, as the top-48 qualifiers in individual events and the top-24 qualifiers in each relay compete at the NCAA East Regional Preliminary Round in Jacksonville, Fla. The top-12 finishers at each Regional go on to the 2019 NCAA Outdoor Championships, June 5-8 in Austin, Texas.

UP NEXT FOR THE GAMECOCKS

The Gamecocks stay in the Palmetto State for the Buccaneer Invitational, hosted by Charleston Southern. The one-day meet runs Saturday, March 23 in Charleston, S.C.