Colorado University Athletics
Track Preps for Outdoor Conference Championship
May 14, 2009 | Track and Field
BOULDER-The University of Colorado track and field team will head to Lubbock, Texas to compete at the 13th annual Big 12 Outdoor Track and Field Championships this Friday through Sunday, May 15-17 at the Terry and Linda Fuller Track on the campus of Texas Tech University. Â
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Jenny Barringer is the lone Buff who owns an outdoor title who is making the trip to Texas. She won the 3,000-meter steeplechase crown as a sophomore in 2007. Barringer owns the NCAA record in the event at 9 minutes, 29.20 seconds and has the American and CU record, which is 9:22.26.
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Barringer has not yet run the steeplechase this season; her last run in the event was when she finished ninth at the Olympics, setting the American record.
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The Buffs will have others in the steeplechase that could add some points for the team score. Emma Coburn, who set the U.S. Junior record in the event just two weeks ago (10:06.54), currently ranks second in the conference. Emily Hanenburg also ranked eighth on the descending order list with a time of 10:49.54.
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In the sprints, Cassie Hirschfeld has been the top short distance runner for CU. She became the seventh fastest performer in the 100-meter dash at CU when she clocked a time of 11.96 at the Texas Relays. That time is 20th overall in the conference. Dyamond Seay leads the Buffs in the 400 and is closely followed by Veronica Maul.
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Brianne Beemer and Joi Windham rank 10th and 11th in the Big 12 in the 400-meter hurdles. Both of their marks were set last weekend at the CSU Ram Open. Beemer will also be competing in the heptathlon, along with Alyssa Frank and Katie Dreher.
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Kaity Kark is the lone thrower for the CU women. She will throw the hammer and discus. Kark's best ranking in the league is 13th in the discus.
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The men will see a large group of throwers competing this weekend. Brandin Williams, who took third at last year's meet in the javelin, currently ranks fourth in the league. Kevin Waldron, who is 25th in the Big 12, will also look to score for the Buffs in the javelin.
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Patrick Bachmann, Chase Dukes and Trey Mullen will compete in the discus and hammer throws. Dukes has the best mark of the three in the hammer. He ranks seventh in the conference. Bachmann is 11th in the discus.
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In the men's sprints, A.J. Whitaker is 19th in the 100-meter dash and has the best time for the Buffs. He should be joined by Quinton Dodson in the 100 and 200. Adrian Gomez has picked up the 400-meter hurdles very quickly this season and is on the verge of recording a regional mark. He is 15th in the league.
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Colorado will also look to pick up some points in the distance events. Matt Tebo, Jordan Kyle and Andy Wacker are a 1-2-3 punch in the 5,000-meter run. Tebo is fifth while Kyle and Wacker are seventh and ninth, respectively. Kyle also owns the top time in the conference in the 10k and could be looking for his first Big 12 title.
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The men's steeplechase will have a pair of Buffaloes as Christian Thompson and Dan Edwards have put up some strong times this season. Thompson is fourth in the league.
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The combined events will kick off the championship on Friday at 11 a.m. (CT). Live stats for the championship can be found at www.big12sports.com and www.flashresults.com.
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