Feb. 23, 2007
Lexington, Ky. – Vanderbilt senior Garnetta Holloway finished third in the pentathlon during opening day activities at the Southeastern Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships Friday.
Holloway produced solid performances in the high jump, shot put, long jump and 800-meter run after opening with a disappointing 60-meter hurdles to climb from 10th place to third overall. She finished with an accumulation of 3,832 points.
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| Garnetta Holloway produced the second highest pentathlon accumulation in Vanderbilt history on Friday, trailing only Josie Hahn’s 4,064-point effort at the 2004 SEC Championships. |
Holloway’s freshman teammate, Cherice Robertson of Memphis, finished seventh in the event, accumulating 3,447 points.
Holloway, from Cleveland, Tenn., achieved a personal record with the performance, and produced the second highest pentathlon accumulation in Vanderbilt history, trailing only Josie Hahn’s 4,064-point effort at the 2004 SEC Championships. Holloway topped her previous best, set at the 2006 SEC Championships, by 129 points.
Holloway, the reigning SEC outdoor heptathlon champion, would have contended for the pentathlon individual title captured by Shaunette Davidson of LSU with a better effort in the hurdles. Holloway’s clocking of 9.11 in the event was a half second off her previous best. After the hurdles, Holloway was 10th among 11 competitors.
Holloway moved up two positions after a 5’4.5″ clearance in the high jump, then moved into third place with a personal best of 40’11.75″ in the shot put. The throw was four feet beyond Holloway’s previous indoor best and 18 inches better than her outdoor personal record.
In the long jump, Holloway fell one position to fourth despite a solid 18’4.25″ effort in her third and final attempt.
In the final pentathlon competition, Holloway posted the fastest 800 meters – an indoor personal best of 2:26.16 – but it was not enough to catch Davidson (3,896 points) or runnerup Etienne Chaplin of Arkansas (3,865 points).
Robertson opened the competition in superb fashion, setting a personal best of 8.70 in the 60-meter hurdles. She added a solid 5’4.25″ clearance before falling in the overall standings after a 31’11.5″ shot put toss. The freshman came back to earn seventh overall with a 17’4.75″ long jump and 2:43.31 effort in the 800.
A third Commodore in the pentathlon, freshman Mallory Hitt, finished 10th overall with 3181 points.
The SEC Championships continue through Sunday at the Nutter Fieldhouse on the University of Kentucky campus.
Officials are expected to stage all of the track preliminaries and several field finals on Saturday. The lone track final Saturday features a pair of Commodore contenders, senior Erika Schneble and sophomore Carmen Mims, in the 3,000-meter run.
