DES MOINES – Emily Sisson upset
four-time national champion Jordan Hasay to win the women’s 3,000m
while Iowa’s own Alex Gochenour won the heptathlon on Day 2 of the 2010
USA Junior Outdoor Track & Field Championships at Drake Stadium in
Des Moines, Iowa.
The USA Junior Championships will serve
as the selection meet for the 2010 IAAF World Junior Championships,
July 19-25, in Moncton, Canada. The top two finishers in each event
will compete in Moncton, provided that they have met the qualifying
standard.
Sisson over Hasay in women’s 3,000m
The women’s 3,000m was a battle between
Olympic Trials 1,500m finalist Jordan Hasay and 2010 World XC team
member Emily Sisson. With three laps to go, Hasay moved into the lead
with Sisson hot on her heels. With 200m to go, Sisson took the lead
from Hasay before Hasay came back even with her with 70m to go. Sisson
finally took the lead for good 25m from the finish, going on to win in
9:18.73 to Hasay’s 9:18.92.
Surprise! Local favorite Gochenour wins heptathlon
Local favorite Alex Gochenour,
competing for the Cornhusker Flyers, went into the last event of the
heptathlon needing to beat leader Ashley Smith by roughly 14 seconds
over 800m. Smith completed her 800 in 2:35.62. And Gochenour? She
finished in 2:19.14, securing the national title with 5,300 points.
Smith finished as the runner-up with 5,270 and Whitney Fountain, who
won the 800m in 2:17.39, was third with 5,179.
Wise holds on to win Dec
Leading the competition from start to
finish, Neamen Wise edged out Kevin Lazas, 7,300 points to 7,291, to
win the men’s decathlon. Heading into the final event, the 1,500m, Wise
needed to stay within four seconds of Lazas to maintain his lead and
win the national title. Lazas ran the 1,500m in 4:44.69 and Wise
finished in 4:48.67. Earlier in the day, Wise had won the 110m hurdles
in 14.50 while Lazas won the pole vault in 4.50m/14-9 and the javelin
with 55.78m/183-0. 2010 Youth Olympic Games team member Gunnar Nixon
finished third with 7,137.
Around the field
Nick Vena’s first heave of the evening
(19.95m/65-5.5) was enough to win the men’s shot put, but it was his
second throw of 20.14m/66-1 that guaranteed the win for the rising high
school senior from Morristown, N.J. Texas freshman Hayden Baillio was
the runner-up with a best effort of 19.89m/65-3.25.
Andrew Evans won the men’s discus with a toss of 59.10m/193-11, while Andrew Rose was the runner-up with 57.51m/188-8.
Soon-to-be Tennessee freshman Justin
Hunter won the men’s long jump with a leap of 7.89m/25-10.75 while 2009
World Youth team member Carlton Lavong was the runner-up with
7.50m/24-7.25. Southern University’s Micah Mcculloch took third with
7.17m/23-6.25. David Smith won the men’s high jump with a best
clearance of 2.23m/7-3.75 while Maalik Reynolds was the runner-up at
2.20m/7-2.5.
Kansas’ Andrea Geubelle soared into the
lead in the women’s long jump with 6.20m/20-4.25 on her first attempt
and held that lead through four rounds. On her fifth attempt,
Stanford’s Karynn Dunn leapt 6.21m/20-4.5 to edge out Guebelle and walk
away with the win. Guebelle finished second and Jen Clayton was third
with 6.04m/19-9.75.
With two fouls under her belt, Illinois
State freshman Brittany Smith was in a must-mark situation if she
wanted to move on to the final in the women’s shot put. On her third
attempt, Smith heaved the ball 15.41m/50-6.75. It was a mark that would
stand as the farthest throw of the day and win Smith the national
title. Rachel Roberts first throw of the day of 15.08m/49-5.75 landed
her in second place while TCU’s Kelsey Samuels was third with
14.96m/49-1.
Kyle Ballew won the men’s pole vault,
while Mark Thomas finished as the runner-up. Each cleared identical
heights of 5.10m/16-8.75, but Ballew achieved the mark on his first
attempt while Thomas needed two.
After first throwing a foul, Shelby
Ashe took the lead in the women’s hammer throw on her second attempt
with a mark of 56.24m/184-6 and never looked back. Increasing her lead
on her third throw with 60.55m/198-8, Ashe’s fourth throw of the day of
60.76m/199-4 was her best effort of the day and secured her the win.
USC’s Lauren Chambers was the runner-up with 57.54m/188-9.
Men’s 3,000m steeplechase
High Point University’s Dakota Peachee
sat between second and fourth place for the first 2,600m of the men’s
3,000m steeplechase before moving into the lead on the final lap.
Peachee was passed by Virginia Tech’s Jared Berman on the backstretch
before his closing kick with 100m to go propelled him back into the
lead, where he would stay for the remainder of the race. Peachee won in
9:03.43 to runner-up Berman’s 9:04.76.
Women’s 100m hurdles
Texas A&M frosh Donique’ Flemings , the 2010 NCAA Outdoor champion, won the women’s 100m
hurdles in 13.33 seconds, which matches her career best from earlier
this season. Flemings posted the top time in the prelims with a
wind-aided 13.44 (+2.1mps). Penn State’s Evonne Britton was second in
13.37, while TCU’s Larissa Matthew placed third in 13.44.
Men’s 110m hurdles
Arkansas freshman Caleb Cross punched
his ticket to the World Junior Championships , winning the men’s 110m
hurdles in a personal-best 13.64. He finished sixth in the prelims
earlier in the day with a then-personal best of 13.91. Johnathan Cabral
was the runner-up in 13.70.
Men’s and women’s 100s
LSU’s Takeia Pinckney dashed to the win
in the women’s 100m, stopping the clock at 11.30. Pinckney had qualifed
for the final with the fastest time of the morning round at 11.38. 2009
World Youth 100 and 200m bronze medalist Ashton Purvis was the
runner-up in 11.39 while Clemson’s Stormy Kendrick was third in 11.40.
Ole Miss freshman Michael Granger won the men’s 100m in 10.30, just
ahead of TCU’s Charles Silmon who finished as the runner-up in 10.33.
Georgia’s Eric Harris was third in 10.48.
Men’s 5,000m
Trevor Dunbar, a University of Portland
freshman, took the lead with nine laps to go in the junior men’s 5,000m
and opened the gap all the way to the finish, winning in 14:34.63. N.C.
State’s Andrew Colley was the runner-up in 14:37.28.
800m 1st rounds
Penn State’s Casimir Loxsom had the
fastest men’s 800m qualifier on the day, winning heat 3 in 1:48.79.
Nicholas Kaiser won heat 2 in 1:50.13 while 2010 NCAA Outdoor runner-up
Robby Andrews of Virginia won heat 1 in 1:51.41. On the women’s side,
Shore AC’s Ajee Wilson, who won heat 2 in women’s 800m qualifying, had
the fastest time of the day, crossing the line in 2:07.16. Arkansas’
Stephanie Brown won heat 2 in 2:08.46 and Laura Roesler won heat 1 in
2:08.85.
USA Outdoor Championships network television coverage begins Friday night!
The 2010 USA Outdoor Championships will be televised on the following dates (All times Eastern):
June 25 – 8:00 – 10 p.m. on ESPN
June 26 – 1:00 – 2:30 p.m. on ESPNJune 26 – 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. on NBC
June 27 – 1:00 – 2:30 p.m. on ESPN
June 27 – 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. on NBC
USA Track & Field, in conjunction
with RunnerSpace, is providing real-time coverage of all events not
broadcast on television. Highlighted competitions in the webcast
include Thursday’s men’s and women’s 10,000m as well as extensive field
event coverage. Webcasts will also include the voices of elite athletes
as guest commentators. The webcasts will be found on the USATF 2010
Championships page in addition to an already posted video clip from
USATF CEO Doug Logan on the partnership at: www.usatf.org.
Tickets for the 2010 USA Outdoor Championships may be purchased by dialing 515-271-3647 or by visiting: www.godrakebulldogs.com.
For more information on the 2010 USA Outdoor Championships and the USATF Visa Championship Series, visit: www.visachampionshipseries.com.
by Larry Eder
Trevor Dunbar, en route to his victory in the junior 5,000 meters! photo by PhotoRun.net
