Sooner T&F Travel To Lincoln For NCAA Midwest Regionals

NORMAN, Okla. - In the inaugural season for regional track and field qualifying, the OU track and field team has 28 student-athletes headed to Lincoln, Neb., this weekend for competition.

The meet, which will feature student-athletes from 11 of the 12 Big 12 schools (Missouri will compete in the Mideast Regional) as well as competitors from the states of Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Texas and Wyoming.

The Sooners will head north on Wednesday afternoon.

The Schedule
Competition in field events begins at 10 a.m. Friday with eight field event finals scheduled for the first day. Events on the track, which will include a mixture of prelims and finals on Friday, begin at 2 p.m. The meet resumes at 10 a.m. Saturday with eight more field event finals. The running event finals begin at 4 p.m. and continue through the 1600-meter relay final set for 7 p.m.

The Process
All competitors have met regional qualifying marks. The top five in each individual event and the top three relays from each of four regionals will advance to the NCAA Championships June 11-14 in Sacramento, Calif. Additionally, the NCAA field will include at-large entries from those who participated in regionals and were on the national ranking list.

Meet History
The 2003 season marks the first time for track and field to use the regional meet qualifying system. The plan was approved following the 2002 NCAA meet and provides the opportunity for more student-athletes to qualify for postseason competition in track and field. In addition to the regional meet, the NCAA meet has been re-structured to include more competitors in every event.

Big 12 Freshman of the Year
For DaBryan Blanton, his first year has been quite a ride, and the ride got better Monday when he was named the Big 12 Male Freshman of the Year for track and field. With the honor, he becomes the first Sooner in track and field to earn Big 12 freshman of the year honors.

Blanton won the Big 12 title in the 100 and was third in the 200 after posting the fastest qualifying time in the 200 at the conference championship just over a week ago. He was ranked number one in the league throughout most of the season and had been among the Big 12's top competitors in the 200.

Blanton had posted regional qualifying times every time he competed in the 100 and the 200 this season and is ranked first in the region in the 100 heading into this weekend's action. He also is ranked in the region in the 200 and ranks sixth in the nation in the 100 heading into regional action this weekend.

The Competitors
The Soone men scheduled to compete this weekend and their events include DaBryan Blanton, 100, 200 and 400 meter relay; Kevin Bookout, shot put and discus; Kyle Bookout, discus; Mark Bradley, 400 meter relay; David Coombs, 1600 meter relay; Cory Crosby, 400 meter relay; Dwayne Duhaney 400 and 1600 meter relay; L'eron George, 400 meter relay; Robin Hanna, Austin Landreth and Michael Westlund, pole vault; Aldwyn Sappleton, 800 and 1600 meter relay; Josh Scott, 1600 meter relay; Robert Smith, 400 meter relay and 1600 meter relay.

The Sooner women scheduled to compete this weekend and their events include: Lindsey Bourne, Leslie Dunlap and Mary Waytula, pole vault; Renea' Burns, javelin; Tiffany Davis, 100 meter hurdles and 400 relay; Natasha Franklin, 1600-meter relay and alternate on 400 meter relay; Ashley Freeman, alternate on 400 meter relay; Jimyria Hicks, 100 and 400 meter relay; Laverne Jones, 100, 200, 400 meter relay, 1600 meter relay; Nicola Maye, 800 and alternate on 1600 meter relay; Kelsey Moore, high jump; Aisha Stringer, 1600 meter relay; Lameisa Thomas, 1600 meter relay; Krystle Williams, 1600 meter relay.

Regional Rankings
Several Sooners are among the best in the region, led by freshman DaBryan Blanton who is ranked number one in the 100 meter dash heading into the meet. Blanton also is ranked fourth in the 200 and is on OU's 400-meter relay which is currently ranked 17th in the region. Other Sooners who are among the top five in the regional rankings heading into the meet include Aldwyn Sappleton (800); Michael Westlund (third-pole vault); Austin Landreth (fourth-pole vault); Robin Hanna (fifth-pole vault); and Laverne Jones (fourth-100). at the 2002 meet.

The Latest Trackwire Rankings
The University of Oklahoma men's track and field team moved from unranked to 17th in the top 25 poll released by Trackwire on May 20. The Trackwire ranking is based on the publication's predicted scores for the NCAA Championship.

The projection, using competition results and injury reports, generates the scoring by producing a Dandy Dozen, a power ranking of the top 12 athletes and relay squads in each NCAA event.

Oklahoma is tied for 17th with Oregon, Arizona State, Colorado State and Missouri with 15 points. The Sooners are one of seven Big 12 teams listed in the Trackwire Top 25 as of May 20.

DaBryan Blanton, who won the Big 12 title in the 100 on Monday, is ranked third by Trackwire in the 100 and fourth in the 200. Michael Westlund, who finished second in the pole vault, is ranked fifth. Aldwyn Sappleton is ranked 10th in the 800 and Austin Landreth is ranked 12th in the pole vault.

While the Sooner women are not ranked, junior Laverne Jones is ranked 10th in the 100. Jones finished second in the 100-meter dash at the Big 12 Championship on May 19.

The Last Time Out -- The Big 12 Championships
The Sooner men finished sixth while the Sooner women were ninth, just eight points out of seventh place, at the seventh annual Big 12 Outdoor Track and Field Championships.

DaBryan Blanton's victory in the 100-meter dash was one of several highlights for the Sooners who battled through injuries to key performers to post their best team finishes since the last time the meet was held in Texas, in 2001 at College Station.

Day 1 results included sophomore Darren Hutchins finishing 10th in the 10,000-meter with a 32:04.21 in the final event of the first day. Sophomore Dan Strong posted career bests in the 100 meter dash, the 400 meter dash and the shot put to finish the first day of the decathlon with a career best score of 3331. He ranked 12th heading into Sunday's final day of competition. Strong's 100 time was just over .20 seconds better than his previous best. His 400 time, in the final event of the day, was nearly two seconds better and his shot put effort, 39-1.25 was nearly two feet better than his previous combined event performance this season. His first day total was 43 points better than his previous best, posted earlier this season at the College Station Combined. Chaundra Allard is 11th with 2,643 points in the heptathlon. She posted season bests in the 100-meter hurdles with a 14.85 and in the 200 with a 26.75. Barbara Phillips finished 14th in the hammer throw with a career best effort of 145-8. She posted that mark on her first throw in the competition, improving her career best by more than two feet.

Day two opened with sophomore Lindsey Bourne equalling a season best in the pole vault of 12-6 and, in the process, earning a third place tie. Junior Mary Waytula tied for seventh at 12-0 and Leslie Dunlap tied for ninth after clearing 12-0. Redshirt junior Jennifer Plank failed to clear the opening height. Senior Kyle Bookout finished fourth in the discus with a 184-11 while younger brother, Kevin Bookout, finished eighth with a 171-10. Junior Robert Smith finished fifth in the long jump with a 23-4.5. The Sooner women advanced five athletes to six finals as Laverne Jones qualified in both the 100 and the 200. The Sooner men advanced four athletes to five finals. DaBryan Blanton posted the best qualifying time in the 200 and had the third best time in the 100 to lead OU's efforts.

Day three brought Blanton's title in the 100 and a third place finish in the 200. Those performances ranked him fifth in the meet in overall points produced. Michael Westlund finished second in the pole vault with a season best 17-8.5 and sophomore Austin Landreth was third with a 17-4.5. Other top finishes for the Sooner men included a second place by Aldwyn Sappleton in the 800 with a season best 1:48.60 and a fourth place finish by Kevin Bookout in the shot put. He tied his season best with a 59-10.25. Laverne Jones was second in the 100 with an 11.48 and was fourth in the 200 with a 23.26. Jones also ran on OU's third place 400-meter relay and on the sixth place 1600-meter relay. She finished ninth in points produced with 15.25. Other top performances by the Sooner women today included a sixth place by Tiffany Davis in the 100-meter hurdles and a sixth place by Nicola Maye in the 800.

Reaching Regionals
OU added four first-time regional qualifiers during Big 12 action. They included Nicola Maye (800), Kevin Bookout (discus), Dwayne Duhaney (400) and Jimyria Hicks (100) met qualifying standards for the first time this season in those events. Several other Sooners used performances in the conference meet to improve their regional ranking. Included in that group were Laverne Jones in the 100 and 200; Tiffany Davis in the 100 hurdles; DaBryan Blanton in the 200 and Aldwyn Sappleton in the 800.

Academic All-Big 12 Honors
A total of 28 University of Oklahoma student-athletes were named to the 2003 Big 12 Track and Field Academic All-Big 12 teams prior to the Big 12 Championships. Those honored included junior Amanda Luksetich who received special recognition for earning a 4.0 grade point average over the last two semesters (spring 2002 and fall 2002).

Student-athletes who earned a 3.20 or better grade point average cumulative or for the last two semesters and who have competed in 60 percent of the team's meets were named to the first team. Student-athletes with a 3.00 grade point average, cumulative or over the last two semesters, who competed in at least 60 percent of the team's meets were named to the second team. Freshmen and transfers are not eligible in their first year of academic residence. Senior student-athletes who have participated for a minimum of two years and meet all the criteria except competition are eligible as well.

First team honorees for the OU men included Kyle Bookout, Sr., Management Information Systems, Stroud, Okla.; Andrew Crabbe, Jr., Zoology, Grand Prairie, Texas; Kris Glenn, RS-So., Journalism, Healdton, Okla.; Austin Landreth, So., Construction Science, Elk City, Okla.; Dan Strong, So., English, Enid, Okla.; Jason Brown, Sr., Mechanical Engineering, Meridian, Idaho; Jimmy Buchanan, Jr., Health and Sport Sciences, Toronto, Ontario; Trevor Gillum, Jr., Health and Sport Sciences, Durant, Okla.; Darren Hutchins, Jr., Math, Choctaw, Okla.; Aldwyn Sappleton, Jr., International Business, James Hill, Clarendon, Jamaica; and Freddie Stephens, Jr., Mechanical Engineering, Lawton, Okla. First team honorees for the Sooner women were Taylor Cates, Sr., Sociology, Pittsburg, Kan.; Alaina Dearman, Sr., Zoology, Dallas, Texas; Jackie Dubois, So., Meteorology, Lawrence, Kan.; Leslie Dunlap, Jr., Finance, Oklahoma City, Okla.; Jimyria Hicks, Sr., Elementary Education, Arlington, Texas; Sara Justice, Sr., Health and Sport Sciences, Pauls Valley, Okla.; Emily Leonard, So., Finance, Plano, Texas ; Amanda Luksetich, Jr., Civil Engineering, Houston, Texas; Kelsey Moore, So., Health and Sport Sciences, Yukon, Okla.; and Cicely Williams, So., Chemistry, Oklahoma City, Okla.

Second team honorees for the Sooners included Robin Hanna, Sr., Marketing, Monahans, Texas; Michael Westlund, Sr., Management Information Systems, Choctaw, Okla.; Joe McNair, Jr., History, Bartlesville, Okla.; Barbara Phillips, RS-So., Sociology-Criminology, Cherokee, Okla.; Aisha Stringer, Sr., African American Studies, Miami, Fla.; Michelle Thomas, Jr., Microbiology, McAlester, Okla.; Krystle Williams, Jr., Finance, Houston, Texas.

More Academic Honors Possible
Eight Sooner student-athletes were nominated this week for the Verizon Cross Country/Track and Field Academic All-America Eight Sooner student-athletes were nominated this week for the Verizon Cross Country/Track and Field Academic All-America team. A district ballot will be sent to all members of the College Sports Information Directors of America and those who are named to the first team district list will advance to a national ballot.

Nominees had to be at least a sophomore in academic standing and have a 3.20 cumulative grade point average.

Sooner nominees included Austin Landreth, Jimmy Buchanan, Darren Hutchins, Aldwyn Sappleton, Taylor Cates, Alaina Dearman, Amanda Luksetich and Kelsey Moore.

Hutchins earned first team district and third team national honors in 2002 while Sappleton was a second team district honoree.

Big 12 Weekly Honors
OU freshman DaBryan Blanton became the first two-time Big 12 Track and Field Athlete of the Week award winner for the Sooners this spring. Blanton was honored on April 28 for his performance at the Penn Relays. In addition to finishing second in the 100, Blanton ran on the 400-meter relay.

Kevin Bookout won the award on April 21 for his performance in the shot put at the Michael Johnson Classic, his third win in three meets. His older brother, Kyle Bookout, was the first honoree of the season, winning the award on March 24. Blanton also was honored March 31.

Up Next
The NCAA Championship is scheduled for June 11-14 in Sacramento, Calif. Sooners who finish in the top five of individuals events and relays that are in the top three at the regional meet will advance to Sacramento. Additionally, Sooners who qualify for the regional meet and are on the national ranking list will be eligible for at-large selection to the NCAA Championship. The final list of competitors will be announced on June 2. Should an athlete have to pull out for medical reasons, additional competitors could be added as late as June 9. v

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Sooner T&F Travel To Lincoln For NCAA Midwest Regionals

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