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Vanderbilt’s Schneble Continues Torrid Distance Running 5/2/2004 Sophomore Breaks Team 5,000-Meter Mark For Third Time PALO ALTO, Calif. — Vanderbilt sophomore Erika Schneble turned in the fastest 5,000 meters this season by a Southeastern Conference female runner while slashing her own team record nearly 20 seconds late Friday night at the Cardinal Invitational. Schneble, a native of Hendersonville, N.C., rose to the occasion late Friday against the finest 5,000-meter field assembled in the United States this year. Schneble was the top collegiate runner among 32 participants, finishing in 16:08.18, more than 18 seconds faster than her winning effort last weekend at the prestigious Drake Relays. The race featured several of today’s top women in distance running. The winner, Sonia O’Sullivan, turned in the fastest time in the world this year with a 14:58.43 performance. Despite being the top collegiate runner, Schneble finished 10th overall. The nine competitors in front of Schneble represented a Who’s Who of former Olympians, national champions, All-Americans and international athletes. Jim Spivey, Schneble’s coach at Vanderbilt, was delighted in the race. “Erika performed great in front of an excellent field. She really looked good and showed she belongs with these runners. I’m very excited about watching her in the coming weeks,” Spivey said. A second Commodore teammate competing at the Cardinal Invitational, freshman Ashleigh Wetzel, narrowly missed setting a personal best and NCAA qualifying standard in the 1,500-meter run. Wetzel finished her race in 4:30.78, more than a second off her previous best. A larger contingent of Commodore athletes battled poor weather at the Ole Miss Invitational Saturday. The top Vanderbilt efforts in Oxford were turned in by distance runner Debbie Huss, the 4×400-meter relay squad, and senior thrower Vensherrie Campbell. Schneble’s performance moves her to the top of SEC runners at 5,000 meters, and stamps the sophomore as a contender at the SEC Outdoor Track and Field Championships in two weeks. Schneble’s closest rival in the SEC, Maureen Scott of Arkansas, ran 16:26.64 last month at the Stanford Invitational nearly a month ago. Schneble has shown remarkable improvement in her sophomore season. Aided by a solid cross country campaign, Schneble ran impressively during the indoor season, concluding with a second place finish in the 5,000-meter run at the SEC Indoor Championships. Since the start of this outdoor season, Schneble has taken her form to a higher level. On three occasions, she has set new team records at 5,000 meters. On Friday, she finished 40 seconds fastest than Beth Van Dusen’s Vanderbilt mark entering this year. In the past year, Schneble also has lowered her best at the 5,000-meter distance by a remarkable 77 seconds. Leading the Commodores’ effort in the rain-shortened Ole Miss Invitational was the winning 4×400-meter relay squad of Garnetta Holloway, Latisha Bryant, Kyshia Ewing and Vanessa Lagois. In other action at the Ole Miss Invitational: |
