Colorado University Athletics
Colorado
Day 1
Vaughn Wins 5k; Set Another Regional Record
May 30, 2008 | Track and Field
Vaughn won in a time of 13:54.70, which also broke the meet record of 13:57.36 that Vaughn set in 2005. This is his third 5k regional title and is the fifth time a CU runner has won the event in the six years of the regional championship.
Stephen Pifer placed second (13:58.70) and Kenyon Neuman took fourth (14:00.28). All three will advance to the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in
“I feel good; I knew that Pifer and Kenyon were going to get through,” Vaughn said. “Those guys are incredible shape right now. We have a strong distance team this year and I'm very excited about NCAAs.”
The Buffs hung back to start out the race. Vaughn didn't make his big move until the 10th lap. At the same time, Pifer started picking off other racers and moved into third. Entering the bell lap, Vaughn had a 50-meter lead which he held onto the rest of the way.
“I decided to let some of the other guys do some of the work this time,” Vaughn said. “Jeremy Johnson from
Pifer wasn't as pleased with the execution of his race plan, but it worked out in the end to qualify him for nationals.
“I wanted to get through this as easy as possible, so I just hung back,” Pifer said. “I'm a little disappointed because I probably should have been up there and responded to what Vaughn was doing. That's the nice thing about regionals; you can get those kinks out before nationals.”
Matt Tebo placed seventh (14:06.04) and Richard Medina finished 13th (14:12.02). There is still a chance that both could advance to the NCAA Championship, but they will have to wait until next week when the declarations are made.
The men's 4x100-meter relay team advanced to the finals Saturday at 4:10 p.m. with the fastest time on the day. The team of Hugh Charles, Ryan Campbell, Nate Terry and Jeremy Dodson raced to a time of 39.80 in the first heat, just edging TCU. Dodson, the anchor, had a small lead and was able to hold onto it at the line as TCU's Otis McDaniel finished less than a thousandth of a second behind him.
Dodson also advanced to the finals in the 200-meter dash. Dodson won the first heat in 21.02, just beating out Steven Brown (Texas-San Antonio). The winner of each heat advanced to the finals along with the top three times. Dodson placed 16th in the 100 (10.57).
Charles competed in both the 100 and the long jump. He placed sixth in the long jump and was 23rd in the 100 (10.79). Charles recorded a jump of 24 feet, 8.5 inches with his third jump of the day to move from 10th to sixth and qualify for the finals. Charles did not record a higher jump in his next three attempts, just missing out an automatic berth to nationals.
“I feel good,” Charles said. “I don't think I came out with as much energy as I did for Big 12s, but all in all I had to make a big jump in my last jump during prelims and I did that. It got me to the finals and got me sixth, which isn't bad for my first regionals. I wish I could have done more in my collegiate years but I am excited to be where I am at.”
James Begley placed 17th in the shot put with a throw of 52-06.50. He will compete in the hammer throw and the discus on Saturday. Brandin Williams took 18th in the javelin with a toss of 198-09.
“We didn't have a day of miracles like two weeks ago, but we did have solid performances,” head coach Mark Wetmore said. “Jeremy is through in the 200 and Ryan just missed in the 200. They both ran very well and Ryan didn't miss by much. He ran his best time of the year today. Hugh did very well; I think that is his best outdoor, sea-level jump.
“It wasn't a great day for James Begley, but he still has two events tomorrow. The shot put isn't his best event that is the discus, so I am sure he will get fired up for that. The 5k went as well as we could reasonable hope. Three guys are definitely in and Matt and Richard are both still alive we think, but we will have to wait until Monday. Brent, Stephen and Kenyon executed perfectly and did what they needed to do. All in all it was a very good day and I am looking forward to another good day tomorrow.”
The championship will conclude on Saturday. The first event for the Buffs is the men's hammer throw at 1 p.m. The first track event for CU will be the 4x100-meter relay at 4:10. Live stats and streaming are available at www.huskers.com.
2008 NCAA
Ed Weir Stadium,
Field Events (CU Athletes Only)
Men's Javelin: 18. Brandin Williams, 198-09
Men's Shot Put: 17. James Begley, 52-06.50
Men's Long Jump: 6. Hugh Charles, 24-08.50
Track Events (CU Athletes Only)
Prelims:
Men's 4x100-meter relay: 1. Charles, Campbell, Terry, Dodson, 39.80
Men's 100-meter dash: 16. Jeremy Dodson, 10.57; 23. Hugh Charles, 10.79
Men's 200-meter dash: 5. Jeremy Dodson, 21.01; 10. Ryan Campbell, 20.92
Finals:
Men's 5,000-meters: 1. Brent Vaughn, 13:54.70; 2. Stephen Pifer, 13:58.70; 4. Kenyon Neuman, 14:00.28; 7. Matt Tebo, 14:06.04; 13. Richard Medina, 14:12.02
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