May 5, 2005

2005 O'Reilly/ OVC Track & Field Championship Schedule
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2005 OVC Outdoor Track & Field Best Lists
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BIRMINGHAM, Ala.--- The Samford University track and field teams will head to the 2005 O'Reilly/ OVC Championships on Friday-Saturday, May 6-7, hosted by Austin Peay State University. The competition will take place at the APSU Governors' Stadium in Clarksville, Tenn., with the field consisting of 10 women's teams and seven men's teams. Teams competing in conference play on both sides are as follows: Eastern Illinois, Eastern Kentucky, Morehead State, Murray State, Samford, Southeast-Missouri and Tennessee State. Austin Peay and Tennessee Tech will only compete on the women's side of the championships. The EIU Panthers are the defending champions on the men's side, while the EKU Lady Colonels will defend their title on the women's side. The meet is set to begin at 1 p.m. on Friday afternoon, while Saturday's competition is set for a 10 a.m. start. All results will be posted at www.ovcsports.com and www.samfordsports.com once received from the host school.

"We are looking forward to the conference championships this weekend," said head coach Glenn McWaters.

"Currently our men's team is ranked fourth in the OVC, while the women's team is fifth. We hope to improve on both sides, although the top two teams in the conference appear untouchable due to depth."

"Our men's team is very young as ten out of our eighteen male competitors are currently freshmen, while the women's team is very eager to compete. On the men's side, some of our better athletes will not compete this weekend due to injuries, but I know all the student-athletes will give their best effort in conference play. This is the way this team competes, week after week."

For the season, the Bulldogs have grabbed 77 spots on the 2005 OVC Outdoor Track and Field Best List with two OVC Female Track Athlete of the Week honorees, while the Bulldogs broke eight Samford all-time records and recorded several personal-best marks for the outdoor season.

The Bulldogs currently listed in first place in the OVC from Samford are as follows: OVC Female Track Athlete of the Week honoree Lauren Blankenship (1500m and 5000m), Mark Holmes (pole vault), Laura Malnati (high jump), Brittney Mensen (10,000m) and OVC Female Track Athlete of the Week honoree Jessica Brewer (3000m steeplechase).

Also taking top spots for the Bulldogs on the 2005 OVC Outdoor Best List, April Howell is listed second in the triple jump and third in the 100m hurdles, while Michelle Brewer is listed second in the 5000m. Robyn DeBenedet and Britney Almaguer are listed fourth and fifth, respectively in the 1500m, while Derek Simmons takes second place in the discus. Michael Smith is listed second in the 400m hurdles and fourth in the 110m hurdles, while Michael Hanson and Chad Johnson are listed in third and fourth, respectively in the 3000m steeplechase. Bryan Baddorf takes third in the 5000m, while Patrick Weaver is listed fourth in the 800m. On the men's side in the pole vault, the Bulldogs are listed in five out of ten spots for the event.

For the season, Mensen broke a Samford all-time record time of 37:19.52 in the 10,000m with a second-place finish at the Alabama Relays, while Malnati finished fourth overall in the high jump with a Samford all-time record leap of 5-07. The women's 4x1500m relay team (J. Brewer, DeBenedet, Almaguer and Blankenship) took the team crown with a Samford all-time record time of 19.02, while the women's 4x200m relay team (LaToya Cunningham, Sarah Aultman, Mary Nunnally and Tiffany London) also won its event with a Samford all-time record time of 1:42.09.

Competing at the Mississippi State Bulldog Invite, Smith took the individual crown in the men's 400m hurdles with a time of 53.92, while Holmes won in the men's pole vault event with a leap of 15-00. On the women's side, J. Brewer won the 3000m steeplechase (11:01.65), while Malnati took the crown in the high jump with a leap of 5-06.

At the Texas Relays, Blankenship finished third in the 5000m with a Samford all-time record time of 16:56.55, while the women's distance medley team (Blankenship, Almaguer, DeBenedet and Nunnally) finished 11th out of 20 teams with a Samford all-time record time of 11:54.01.

Competing at the Jace Lacoste Invite hosted by Mississippi State, J. Brewer won the 5000m with a time of 18:08, while Hanson hit his personal-best mark in the men's 3000m steeplechase (9.31), and Kevin Carnall posted his personal-best mark in the 400m hurdles (55.42).

At the Spec Towns Invite hosted by the University of Georgia, the Bulldogs won three events, broke two Samford all-time records and tied for first place in one event for the invitational. Bryan Baddorf won the 5000m with a time of 15.09, while Malnati tied for first place in the high jump (5-07). J. Brewer took the individual crown in the 3000m steeplechase with a Samford all-time record time of 10:59, while Blankenship recorded a second-place finish in the 1500m with a Samford all-time record time of 4:32.

The O'Reilly/ OVC Championships will not conclude the Bulldogs' outdoor season competition, as Samford will head to the Georgia Tech Invitational on Friday-Saturday, May 13-14. Competition will be held at the George C. Griffin Track in Atlanta, Ga. Friday's meet will begin at 6 p.m. EST, while Saturday's competition is set for 9 a.m. EST.