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University of Oklahoma Athletics
Sooners Remain on NCAA Top-16 List, Hold Three Top Spots in Big 12
February 11, 2016 | Track and Field
NORMAN - Starting strong can allow for a moment of rest every so often.
After a break from competition last weekend, the Oklahoma track and field teams remain on the NCAA top-16 qualifying list in eight events. While some of the Sooners' positions have dropped slightly, if the qualifying period ended today, OU would be represented in four men's events and four women's events.
"At some point, you're going to lose some training time traveling to meets and competing," said head coach Jim VanHootegem. "It was an opportunity for some people to get some rest. But more so, what we saw, was an opportunity to train and continue to work in practice to get better. I think that after having three meets, we were at a point where the coaches know where we're at. We could go and work on some things that the athletes need to work on based on those meets."
After three competitions, Daye Shon Roberson leads the team with qualifying times in both 200- and 400-meter dash. Her times of 52.62 in the 400 and 23.14 in the 200 are fifth nationally, down from second and third, respectively, two weeks ago.
The distance medley relay foursome - Allen Eke, Trae Armstrong, Jacob Goldberg and Jacob Burcham - remained in ninth place with a time of 9:37.28. Mackenzie Shell (14-0.50) also held her 11th-place spot in the pole vault.
Thomas Cheval, Hayden McClain, and Jessica Woodard moved down one spot in the heptathlon, triple jump, and shot put, respectively. Cheval is now 11th with 5,671 points and McClain's 52-7.50 is eighth. Woodard's 54-6.00 mark in the shot put moved to 15th and Chase Sammons (61-7.00) fell two spots in the shot put to 14th.
"If we have eight marks now, we'd love to have eight marks at the end of the season going into the NCAA championships," said VanHootegem. "However, we highly suspect that the majority, if not all, of those marks are going to have to be improved to make it in. We're certainly looking forward to those upcoming opportunities we have to better ourselves."
Three Sooners also sit atop the Big 12 list. Cheval is ahead of Iowa State's Taylor Sanderson (5,619) by 52 points in the heptathlon, while Roberson leads the 200 women's group and Burcham's conference-leading mile time, 4:00.43, is 23rd on the NCAA list.
Additionally, more than 25 Sooners have recorded top-10 performances in more than 20 events.
OU has three weeks of scheduled competition before the qualifying period ends on Feb. 28. The Sooners resume action this weekend as the teams split to contend in two different meets for the first and only time of the indoor season.
The majority of the team will head to Albuquerque, N.M. to compete in the Don Kirby Elite Invitational, while the distance runners head to the Husky Classic in Seattle. Competition in both events begin on Friday, Feb. 12.
For more information on OU track and field, follow them on Twitter @OU_Track, on Facebook at OUTrackandXC, and on SoonerSports.com.
Players Mentioned
Sprints
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Distance
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Multis
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Distance
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Throws
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