Commodores ready to shine at SEC Championships

May 13, 2015

After a regular season that was stamped with success, the Vanderbilt track and field team heads into the postseason with optimism and excitement. This week the Commodores travel to Starkville, Miss., for the three-day SEC Championships that open Thursday. Here’s a closer look at the meet:

Event: SEC CHAMPIONSHIPS
Day, Date: Thursday-Saturday, May 14-16
Host: Mississippi State (Starkville, Miss.)
Site: Mike Sanders Track Complex
Meet Home page: HERE 
Schedule: HERE
Full SEC Release: HERE  
Live Results: HERE 
Viewing: SEC Network-Plus 
Friday: HERE 
Saturday: HERE  

l BIG NAMES, BIG CHALLENGE 
The SEC meet is always like a “Who’s Who” in the world of college track, and this year is no exception. This week’s meet will feature a total of 18 ranked teams — nine on the women’s side and nine more on the men’s side — which represents the most ranked teams of any conference in the nation. The women’s meet will include six teams that are ranked among the Top-10 — No. 1 Arkansas, No. 3 Georgia, No. 4 Florida, No. 6 Kentucky, No. 8 LSU and No. 9 Texas A&M — along with No. 16 Alabama, No. 19 Mississippi State and No. 25 Missouri. The SEC has the country’s top-ranked teams in both the men’s (Texas A&M) and women’s (Arkansas) fields.

l FRONT RUNNERS
The Arkansas women captured the SEC Women’s Outdoor Championship last season, and the top-ranked Razorbacks are obvious favorites again this year. But the LSU women enter the meet with history on their side: The Lady Tigers have won a conference-best 13 SEC Outdoor titles, including five of the last eight. On the men’s side, Tennessee has won a league-leading 25 SEC Outdoor Championships, but Arkansas has won 18 of the last 23 titles. Texas A&M won the SEC title last year.

l COMPETING FOR THE COMMODORES
The Commodores will have representatives in more than a dozen events from Thursday through Saturday. Here’s a look at who will be wearing the Star-V this week:
THURSDAY
Noon Heptathlon — Sarah Goodale
6:45 pm 800 — Reagan Anderson, Courtney Clayton, Maddie Criscione
7:25 pm 200 — Erin Edmond
7:55 pm 400H — Skyler Carpenter, Emma Radan, Faith Washington
9 pm 10K — Claire Benjamin, Vanessa Valentine
FRIDAY
11 am Heptathlon — Sarah Goodale
4 pm Pole Vault — Sarah Bell, Megan McCabe
4 pm 1500 — Reagan Anderson, Sara Barron, Maddie Criscione, Katherine Delaney, Megan Huebner, Courtney Kriegshauser, Lily Williams
4 pm High Jump — Ellie Tidman
5:35 pm 400 — Erin Edmond
6:45 pm Steeplechase — Becca Chandler
SATURDAY
1 pm Triple Jump — Simone Charley, Tierney Price
1 pm 1500, 400, 800, 400H Finalists
6 pm 5K — Carmen Carlos, Vanessa Valentine
6:35 pm 4×400

l QUOTING THE COACH
Vanderbilt head coach Steve Keith sat down with vucommodores.com this week to discuss the SEC Championships. Here is what he had to say:

On his team’s potential to make a statement at the meet:
“We have a much deeper team this year than last year, and I can see us possibly doubling last year’s point total. If we do that, it will be a great meet for us.”
On the high level of competition his team will face:
“First of all, you have to relax. And then, you also have to embrace it. You have to go into the meet prepared to go against the best.”
On the overall outlook for his team:
“The girls are very excited. Like every team, our athletes have had ups and downs during the course of the season, but by and large, we should be able to make an impact. We want to have a strong showing.”

l HOLDING THEIR OWN
During their highly-successful regular season, the Commodores compiled a total of 24 times/distances that ranked among the SEC’s Top-25 for the season, including nine marks that rank among the conference’s Top-10. The list features Simone Charley’s 42-11.75 leap in the triple jump, which ranks No. 3 in the conference in the season, and the VU 4×400 relay team that set the conference’s fifth-best time at 3:34.98. Here’s a look at the complete list:
400
23 – Ren Edmond – 54.40 – Miami Hurricane Alumni Invitational  
800
8 – Courtney Courtney Clayton – 2:07.05 – Virginia Challenge  
12 – Katherine Delaney – 2:09.29 2015 – UT Challenge  
13 – Sara Barron - 2:09.38 – Virginia Challenge  
14 – Reagan Anderson - 2:09.65 2015 – UT Challenge  
25 – Maddie Criscione - 2:11.52 2015 – UT Challenge 
1500
6 – Sara Barron - 4:20.41 – Virginia Challenge 
14 – Katherine Delaney - 4:25.29 – Duke Twilight 
22 – Reagan Anderson - 4:27.40 – Stanford Invitational 
5000
6 – Claire Benjamin - 16:29.07 – Stanford Invitational 
11 – Carmen Carlos - 16:39.28 – Duke Twilight 
16 – Vanessa Valentine - 16:54.22 – Duke Twilight 
10000
10 – Liz Anderson - 35:07.19 – Virginia Challenge
400 Hurdles
6 – Faith Washington - 57.64 – Virginia Challenge 
11 – Skyler Carpenter - 58.84 2015 – UT Challenge 
21 – Emma Radan – 1:02.17 – Miami Hurricane Alumni Invitational 
3000 Steeplechase
7 – Becca Chandler - 10:21.20 – Virginia Challenge 
4×100
12 – Vanderbilt – 46.79 2015 – UT Challenge 
4×400
5 – Vanderbilt – 3:34.98 – Miami Hurricane Alumni Invitational
High jump
9 – Ellie Tidman – 5-9.25 (1.76m) – Tiger Track Classic
Pole Vault
7 – Sarah Bell - 13-8.25 (4.17m) – UT Challenge
19 – Megan McCabe - 12-6.25 (3.82m) – Virginia Challenge
Triple Jump
3 – Simone Charley - 42-11.75 (13.10m) – Tiger Track Classic
13 – Tierney Price - 40-7.5 (12.38m) – Tiger Track Classic 

l SETTING NEW STANDARDS
The Commodores’ impressive regular season was highlighted by four school records that were set during the year:

* Sophomore Sarah Bell set the new Vanderbilt standard in the pole vault during the Tennessee Challenge by clearing 13-8.25, which shattered her previous school record of 13-03.50 that she set last season.
* Senior Rebecca Chandler likewise broke her own school record when she posted a time of a time of 10:21.20 in the 3000 Steeplechase at the Virginia Challenge. She broke her previous record by more than two seconds.
* Vanderbilt’s 4×400 team — comprised of Faith Washington, Skyler Carpenter, Courtney Clayton and Erin Edmond — posted a school-record mark of 3:34.98 at the Hurricane Alumni Challenge. The mark ranked No. 8 on the national list at the time, and easily surpassed the previous VU record of 3:36.13, which had been the benchmark since 1998.
* Vanderbilt’s 4×200 team — comprised of Erin Edmond, Skyler Carpenter, Jennifer Edobi and Faith Washington — set the school record with a time of 1:37.45 at the Alabama Relays, breaking the previous mark by almost three seconds.

l AMONG THE BEST
The school records listed above are just four of the 28 times/distances that were set this season that rank among the Top-10 on Vanderbilt’s all-time performers’ list. Here’s a look at the complete list:

200m Dash
4 – Erin Edmond, 24.26
5 – Faith Washington, 24.39
400m Dash
2- Erin Edmond, 54.40
5 – Faith Washington, 55.40
6 – Courtney Clayton, 55.49
8 – Skyler Carpenter, 55.98
800m Run
3 – Courtney Clayton, 2:07.05
7 – Kat Delaney, 2:09.25
9 – Sara Barron, 2:09.38
10 – Reagan Anderson, 2:09.65
1500m Run
10 – Katherine Delaney, 4:25.29
3000m Run
2 – Sara Barron, 9:34.68
6 – Carmen Carlos, 9:42.23
10 – Claire Benjamin, 9:46.46
4x100m Relay
4 – S. Carpenter, F. Washington, E. Radan, E. Edmond, 46.79
6 – J. Gleaves, F. Washington, E. Radan, E. Edmond, 46.95
4x200m Relay
1 – E. Edmond, S. Carpenter, F. Washington, J. Edobi, 1:37.45
4x400m Relay
1 – F. Washington, S. Carpenter, C. Clayton, E. Edmond, 3:34.98
Pole Vault
1 – Sarah Bell, 13-8.25 (4.17)
5 – Megan McCabe 12-6.25 (3.82)
10 – Katie Watts 11-1.75 (3.40)
Triple Jump
2 – Tierney Price, 40-7.50 (12.38)
400m Hurdles
3 – Faith Washington, 57.64
5 – Skyler Carpenter, 58.84
100m Hurdles
5 – Janetra Gleaves, 14.02
5000m Run
5 – Claire Benjamin, 16:29.07
9 – Carmen Carlos, 16:39.28
Steeplechase
1 – Becca Chandler, 10:21.20