Cheval Sets OU Heptathlon Record, Teams Finish Eighth in Arkansas

Saturday, January 30

Fayetteville, Ark.

11:00 AM

University of Oklahoma

Razorback Invitational

Cheval Sets OU Heptathlon Record, Teams Finish Eighth in Arkansas

January 30, 2016 | Track and Field

By: Akilah Laster

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - The old saying goes, "start the way you want to finish."

Sophomore Thomas Cheval did just that.

After posting career bests in the first three events of the heptathlon on Friday (the 60-meter dash, long jump and shot put), Cheval completed the event in record-breaking fashion at the Razorback Invitational on Saturday.

He scored 5,671 points to become OU's program record holder, breaking the record set by Justin Conkling (5,594) in 2001. Cheval got the record, competing with some of the best in the country. He finished behind seventh-ranked Georgia's trio of Garrett Scantling (6,020), Maicel Uibo (5,854) and Karl Saluri (5,686). On the current NCAA list, Scantling and Uibo hold the top two spots while Cheval's score would be sixth in the nation.

Thomas Cheval set the OU program record in the heptathlon on Saturday earning 5,671 points. He set a personal best in pole vault clearing after clearing 14-5.25.

"It's hard to articulate, but the great athletes appreciate coaching. They also have this great level of responsibility that they are the ones to get it done," said head coach Jim VanHootegem. "He's easy to coach and he takes it upon himself to be good. He has an enthusiasm level for the sport that everybody should want to have."

Cheval finished with his fifth PR in the heptathlon after running a 2:47.76 in the 1,000-meter run. He also recorded a best in the pole vault with a 14-5.25 mark and ran an 8.21 in the 60-meter hurdles.

The Arkansas teams swept the meet with the top-ranked women tallying 127.50 points and the 11th-ranked men 122.20. The Sooner women finished eighth with 30 points on the weekend, finishing ahead of 20th-ranked Texas A&M, Florida State, Iowa and UCLA. The OU men scored 35.70 points for the weekend, finishing ahead of Iowa State, Oklahoma Stste, Iowa and Florida State.

Overall, the Sooners posted more than a dozen personal bests and continued to change the program's all-time list.

 Belle Wallace joins OU's all-time list after posting a career best 4:47.56  in the mile at the Razorback Invitational. She is seventh in school history.

Dylan Blankenbaker and Belle Wallace had noteworthy performances in the mile. Wallace posted a 4:47.56 that beat her previous best by more than 12 seconds. With that mark, she moved to seventh on OU's all-time list.

Blankenbaker joined the program list as well after recording a 4:04.34. He is now 10th all-time for the Sooners.

He and Wallace ran in a similar fashion on Saturday in their respective races. Both ran in the top half of the field throughout the race before taking control of the race in the final laps.

Jacob Burcham also posted a best in the mile invitational race. His 4:00.43 time moves him up to sixth all-time at OU.

"We left with a lot of PRs, we left with several marks that will be on our OU all-time top-10 list and we left with a school record, so we're pleased with the people that were able to step up to that level of competition," VanHootegem said. "It was a hard meet to make a final and a hard meet to score a point, but that's what you want to face. It'll prepare us for the Big 12s and hopefully get more people to the NCAA Championships."

Other distance runners earned PRs as well. Allen Eke (1:50.99) and Zac Randall (1:51.41) earned bests in the 800-meter run, while Kelsey McKee (4:54.88) posted a best in the mile.
Improvement, however, was not limited to the distance groups.

Jacob Burcham moves to sixth all-time at OU in the mile after posting a 4:00.43 at the Razorback Invitational

Avione Allgood sealed a top-three spot in the second round of the shot put with a personal best of 54-1.75. That mark moved her up to fourth on OU's all-time list.

Newcomer Baileh Simms, also joined the all-time list, with a 20-5.00 PR in the long jump. That mark ranks third best in program history.

Sprinters Payton Baker (55.61) and Daunicia Demerson (55.70) set career bests in the 400-meter dash. Baker faced Bedlam competition as she ran against two Oklahoma State runners in her heat. She led the entire race and won by nearly three seconds.

Ama Pipi remained consistent on the final day of competition, earning her second PR of the weekend with a 7.57 in the 60-meter dash. She also posted a best time (24.07) in the 200-meter dash on Friday.

The Sooners opened running events on Saturday with a battle in the women's 3,000-meter run. Juniors Elena Arriaza (9:46.08) and Brittany Tretbar (9:49.99) finished third and fifth, respectively.

 Avione Allgood posted a career best 54-1.25 in the shot put to move her up to fourth on OU's all-time list.

The Sooner duo worked their way to the front within the first five laps of the 15-lap race. Arriaza and Tretbar were one and two, in that order, when three Iowa State competitors pushed to the front heading into lap 11. Arriaza had a burst of energy in the last straightaway to inch pass ISU's Anne Frisbie to finish in the top three.

The Sooners also closed the final day of the meet with several scorers. Chase Sammons (61-7.00) finished fourth in the shot put and Hayden McClain placed fifth in the triple jump with a 51-7.00 mark. Trae Armstrong also scored for the men in the 60-meter dash with a 6.74 time. For the women, Jess Woodard (52-5.25) scored after she placed fifth in the shot put.

"You set a standard for the program and you hope that each group of athletes that comes along beats it," the third-year head coach said. "We want to continue the tradition. I think the highest level of honor is to actually try to be something. We want to set those marks and continue to make it even harder to get on those lists."

The OU track and field teams will have a break from competition next week after competing for three consecutive weekends. Action will resume on Feb. 12 as the team splits for the first time this season. The majority of the Sooners head to Albuquerque, N.M., for the Don Kirby Elite Invitational while distance runners, primarily, will head to Seattle for the Husky Classic.

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