UK’s Saunders’ gets Silver Medal in Long Jump in SEC Championships Day Two

Sha’Keela Saunders claimed the long jump silver medal to pace the top-ranked Kentucky women’s team on Friday the penultimate day of the Southeastern Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Alabama’s Sam Bailey Stadium.

Saunders struggled through the prelims, but squeaked into the final to earn three more attempts. There she moved into third place on her fifth attempt before leaping 21’8.25″/6.61m on her final attempt to earn silver. Alabama’s Quanesha Burks repeated as SEC Champion, this time competing on her home runway, with a mark of 22’2.5”/6.77m.
The Arkansas women lead the team standings with 44.0 total team points, while Texas A&M is second with 28 and Alabama is third with 27. Tennessee (4th, 26) and Kentucky (5th, 24) round out the women’s top-five through seven of 21 events scored.
Destiny Carter placed seventh with a mark of 20’6.5”/6.26m to earn two points to go along with the eight Saunders scored.
Katy Kunc and Caroline McCaslin placed seven-eighth in the steeplechase to combined to score three points. Kunc’s personal-best time 10:14.66 broke McCaslin’s school record.
Beckie Famurewa scored a point in the shot put with an eighth-place mark of 50’4.75″/15.36m. She scored 10 points by winning the hammer throw on Friday, and is entered as the No. 2 seed in the discus.

Men’s Friday Scorers

The Georgia men lead the team standings with 46 total team points, while Arkansas is second with 45 and Texas A&M is third with 34. Alabama (4th, 30) and Kentucky (5th, 27) round out the men’s top-five through seven of 21 events scored.
Tim Duckworth & Cameron Short combined for nine points in the decathlon. Duckworth placed fourth with a 124-point PR: 7709, while Short turned in a 128-point PR 7588
Duckworth tied Georgia’s Maicel Uibo with the top pole vault clearances in the decathlon – 16’6.75″/5.05m to score 926 points. Duckworth also won the decathlon long jump and high jump on day one.
Nik Huffman placed sixth to score three points in the shot put. His threw his best mark 60’3.75″/18.38m on his final throw.
Fred Dorsey placed sixth in the long jump as his mark was 24’6.5″/7.48m on his opening jump. He scored three points.
Elijah Marta placed seventh in his first SEC javelin championship as he improved his mark to 211’7″/64.49m on final attempt. He earned two points.
How to watch Championship Saturday
Saturday action will be broadcast on SEC Network+ at will 3:55 p.m. ET.
ESPN2 will air a comprehensive broadcast of the meet on Sunday at 3 p.m. ET.
The championships continue with the final day on Saturday beginning at noon ET. Adult single day tickets are $10, while student single day tickets are $5. VIP adult tickets are $15 and VIP student single day tickets are $10.
Friday qualifiers
The Kentucky women’s team sent eight Wildcats to preliminary heats on Friday. Three advanced.
Freshman Jasmine Quinn was the top qualifier into the 100m hurdles final with a wind-legal PR 12.80. Jacklyn Howell was the No. 3 qualifier in 13.09.
Jasmine Mitchell qualified for the 400m final with a PR 52.90q.
In total the UK women’s team qualified seven athletes into Saturday finals by virtue of performances in prelims over the past two days.
Of the 11 events to be contested on Saturday, the UK women’s team will have at least one entry in all but three of the events.
Nick Anderson qualified for the 110m hurdles with a time of 13.82.
UKTF SEC Outdoor Precedent
The Kentucky women’s team finished third behind Arkansas and Texas A&M at the SEC Outdoor Championships last year in Starkville, Mississippi.
 
Kentucky earned 99 points, its best finish since 1982 (third) when eight teams were in the league. UK’s best SEC outdoor finish was second place in 1981, the first year the meet was held.
The Kentucky men placed sixth with 58 points last season, equaling the team placement from the previous season, which was the best since 1996.
How the SEC Championships work
Athletes earn points for their teams at the SEC Championships based on top-8 finishes on a 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis.
The meet features 21 events per gender, and the team with the most points at the end wins.
The most up-to-date coverage of the UK track and field program is available via @KentuckyTrack handles on TwitterInstagram and Facebook.
Friday, May 13 – Watch Replay
Field Events

EVENT UK RESULT
Women’s Long Jump 2. Sha’Keela Saunders: 21’8.25”/6.61m (+0.6) – 8 points
7. Destiny Carter: 20’6.5”/6.26m (+1.3) – 2 points
Foul – Marie-Josee Ebwea Bile
Women’s Javelin 11. Sarah Blake: 156’1”/47.58m – PR –
Men’s Shot Put 6. Nikolas Huffman: 60’3.75”/18.38m – 3 points
Men’s Long Jump 6. Fred Dorsey: 24’6.5”/7.48m (+1.2) – 3 points
Women’s Shot Put 8. Beckie Famurewa: 50’4.75”/15.36m – 1 point
Men’s Javelin 7. Elijah Marta: 211’7”/64.49m – 2 points

Running Events

EVENT FIELD EVENT UK ENTRY
Women’s 110M Hurdles Prelim 1. Jasmine Camacho-Quinn: 12.80Q (+0.4) – PR —
3. Jacklyn Howell: 13.09Q (+0.1)
Men’s 110M Hurdles Prelim 5. Nick Anderson: 13.82Q (-0.6)
11. Caleb Wilt: 14.23 (+0.7) – PR –
Men’s 1500M Prelim 29. Lou Styles: 3:57.80
Women’s 400M Prelim 7. Jasmine Mitchell: 52.90q – PR –
Women’s 100M Prelim 9. Destiny Carter: 11.44 (+0.4)
11. Kianna Gray: 11.51 (+0.8)
14. Precious Hitchcock: 11.62 (+0.4)
17. Javianne Oliver: 11.69 (-0.1)
29. Donatella Asemota: 11.91 (-0.1)
Men’s 100M Prelim 15. Fred Dorsey: 10.59 (-0.2)
Women’s 3000M Steeplechase Final 7. Katy Kunc: 10:14.66 (School Record) – 2 points
8. Caroline McCaslin: 10:22.60 – 1 point
Men’s 3000M Steeplechase Final 11. Spencer Hrycay: 9:01.63
14. Gabe Harm: 9:12.90

Thursday, May 12
Decathlon

EVENT FIELD EVENT UK Entry
Men’s Decathlon Score Day One 4. Cameron Short: 4125
5. Tim Duckworth: 4036
Men’s 100M Decathlon 5. Duckworth: 10.85 (+0.6) – 894 points – PR –
8. Short: 11.12 (+0.9 – 834 points
Men’s Long Jump Decathlon 1. Duckworth: 24’5”/7.44m (+1.3) – 920 points
6. Short: 23’6.75”/7.18mw (+2.1) – 857 points
Men’s Shot Put Decathlon 3. Short: 47’1.75”/14.37m – 751 points
13. Duckworth: 36’7.75”/11.17m – 556 points
Men’s High Jump Decathlon 1. Duckworth: 6’11”/2.11m – 906 points
3. Short: 6’11”/2.11m – 906 points
Men’s 400M Decathlon 9. Short: 50.83 – 777 points
12. Duckworth: 51.21 – 760 points
Field Events
Women’s Hammer Final 1. Beckie Famurewa: 210’1”/64.05m – 10 pts
Foul – Brandi Walker
Men’s Hammer Final 13. David Cline: 199’5”/60.79m
14. Logan Bryer: 198’7”/60.52m

Running Events

RUNNING EVENT HEAT UK Entry
Women’s 800M Prelim 2. Ariah Graham: 2:05.52Q
Women’s 200M Prelim 2. Destiny Carter: 22.41w q (+2.6)
8. Kianna Gray: 22.90q (+1.6)
11. Jasmine Camacho-Quinn: 22.93 (+1.9) – PR –
18. Precious Hitchcock: 23.35 (+1.5) –PR-
19. Donatella Asemota: 23.51 (+1.5) –PR—
Men’s 200M Prelim 27. Ini-Oluwa Oye: 21.22w (+3.4)
Women’s 400M Hurdles Prelim 2. Kiah Seymour: 56.35Q
11. Daje Pugh: 57.85 – PR –
Men’s 10,000M Final 1. Jacob Thomson: 29:47.89

 
by Jake Most

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