BLUE_track.jpg
WVU Gears Up for Big 12 Championship
May 11, 2017 01:19 PM | Track & Field
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - The West Virginia University track and field team travels to Lawrence, Kansas, to compete at the 2017 Big 12 Outdoor Championship from May 12-14.
Live Stats | FloTrack ($) | Event Schedule | Heat Sheet | Championship Information | WVU Season Stats
“Every year we have a goal of achieving All-Big 12 accolades,” coach Sean Cleary said. “Going into this year’s championship we believe that we can return home with five to seven of these honors. Our jumpers and vaulters have been competing very consistently all year. A few of the distance runners also have gotten themselves into position to be successful at this level. Our belief is that we can maintain and exceed their individual level of performance from this outdoor season on this extraordinary stage.”
Kansas is host of the three-day event for the first time at Rock Chalk Park. The first day of competition kicks off on Friday at noon ET with the decathlon 100-meter dash. Saturday’s competition begins at 11 a.m. ET with decathlon 110-meter hurdles, and concludes on Sunday with the high jump starting at 3:30 p.m. ET.
Fans can follow the championship live at deltatiming.com. Also, FloTrack ($) will be providing live coverage of the three-day championship. Additional updates and information can be found by following WVUTrackField on Twitter.
Three Big 12 women’s teams rank in the top 25 in the U.S. Track & Field Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) national rankings, including No. 9 Texas, No. 11 Baylor and No. 12 Kansas State.
Throughout the 2017 outdoor season, the WVU squad has put up strong performances, as five Mountaineers are ranked within the top-seven of the Big 12 Conference in their respective events.
Ranking third in the 10,000-meter run, redshirt junior Maggie Drazba set a career-best time of 34:04.26 at the Stanford Invitational.
Senior Amy Cashin ranks in the top seven in two events, 1,500 meters and 3,000-meter steeplechase. She is No.4 in the 1,500 meters, thanks to a career-best time of 4:21.18 set at the Virginia Grand Prix. In the steeplechase, she holds the sixth-best time in the league (10:27.09), which was set at the Tennessee Challenge.
Sophomore Madelin Gardner set at WVU record in the pole vault, winning the event with a 4.13-meter mark (13’-5 ½”) at the Virginia Challenge. Gardner ranks No. 6 in the Big 12 in the pole vault.
In the long jump, sophomore Danique Bryan ranks sixth in the league after her victorious performance at the Bison Classic with a mark of 6.28 meters (20’-7 ¼ ”). Her mark is good for WVU’s fourth all-time best.
Junior Shamoya McNeil has continued to climb West Virginia’s top-five outdoor performance list as she sits at No. 3 in the triple jump with 13.01 meters (42’-8 ¼”). McNeil ranks seventh in the Big 12 Conference.
Last year, the Mountaineers collected eight All-Big 12 honors for finishing within the top eight - Hannah Stone, Millie Paladino, Cashin, juniors Sara Finfrock, Jillian Forsey, McNeil and Bryan and Faith Penny. WVU also added silver medals from Cashin and Paladino.
Cashin appeared on the Big 12 podium with a silver medal after finishing the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 10:23.68.
The second silver medal came from Paladino in the 1,500-meter run, as she crossed the finish line in 4:22.01.
West Virginia placed ninth at the 2016 Big 12 Outdoor Championship, while Texas won the title.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
T&F: DMR Team Big 12 Championship Post-Race Interview
Saturday, March 01
Petal Palmer - 2024 Wilma Rudolph Award Recipient
Monday, June 10
A Conversation with Wren Baker
Monday, December 05
Life as a Mountaineer - Haley Jackson
Monday, May 16
