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Schneble Finishes Ninth in Regional 5,000; NCAA Berth Still Possible 5/28/2004 Baton Rouge, La. – A troubling foot injury that affected training for the last two weeks kept Vanderbilt sophomore Erika Schneble from qualifying for the NCAA Track and Field Championships Friday. Schneble finished ninth among 23 runners in the 5,000-meter run at the NCAA Regionals. Schneble was one of two Commodores who failed to qualify for the NCAA Championships at the meet. Earlier Friday, freshman Ashleigh Wetzel missed advancing to the 1,500-meter finals after a 4:33.92 effort. Vanderbilt junior Josie Hahn, a two-time All-American, will compete Saturday as a strong contender in the high jump. Hahn, who has pre-qualified for the NCAA heptathlon, also will throw the javelin Saturday. Despite missing an automatic berth into the NCAAs, Schneble has reason to be encouraged from her performance. Just a week ago, Schneble seemed a likely scratch, limited to training in the swimming pool because of a left foot strain suffered during the closing lap of her 5,000-meter victory at the SEC Championships. When the gun sounded Friday, the two-time Commodore record holder was unsure if she would finish the race. “I must say, Erika ran the race just as we wanted her too,” Vanderbilt distance coach Jim Spivey said. “We went with the second pack, which was difficult for her mentally. But she felt good, and ran the final two miles just three seconds slower than the winner.” Must importantly, when Schneble crossed the finish line, there was no pain in the foot. Schneble, who entered the race as the top seed, finished in 16:52.15, nearly 45 seconds off her personal best. The winner, No. 2 seed Molly Huddle of Notre Dame, finished in 16:12.42. Others to qualify were Jamie Krzyminski of Michigan State, Casey Owens of Southwest Missouri State, Shannon Wommack of UT-Chattanooga and Amanda Bales of Missouri. Schneble still has an excellent chance to run in the NCAA Championships. The NCAA 5,000-meter field will be composed of the top five finishers at the four regional meets and the five fastest runners in the nation failing to qualify. Schneble’s personal best of 16:08.18 is the 12th fastest effort this year. Schneble should learn by Monday if she is included in the NCAA field. |
