April 16, 2006

Schneble Finishes Third in 5,000 at Knoxville

4/16/2006

Knoxville, Tenn. — Senior distance runner Erika Schneble continued to show improved form Saturday, finishing an impressive third in the Sea Ray Relays 5,000-meter run.

Schneble, working to return to the 2004 form when she earned All-America honors and the Southeastern Conference 5,000-meter outdoor title, ran 17:19.81 in Knoxville. For the school record holder at the distance, it marked her fastest time in nearly two years.

While Schneble’s effort was one of the Commodores’ top individual performances at the Sea Ray Relays, the 4×200-meter relay foursome of Garnetta Holloway, Lauryn Smith, Lauren Fortson and Amani Floyd set a new team mark. The squad took more than three seconds off the former mark with a 1:40.26 clocking.

Head coach Lori Shepard also received a solid performance from two relay foursomes. The 4×400-meter unit of Floyd, Fortson, Latisha Bryant and Holloway finished in 3:45.98, the fastest time by a Commodore relay in four years. Brittany Sizer, Bryant, Alisa Cotter and Floyd finished eighth in the distance medley relay with an 11:58.80 clocking.

Sophomore Sydney Faulkner topped a second Commodore squad competing at the Boston-Moon Invitational on Tennessee State’s campus in Nashville. Faulkner won the pole vault, then uncorked a personal best in the long jump of 18’10.75″, earning the fourth longest effort in team history. Freshman teammate Brittany Alberto also set a personal best in the 1,500 meters, finishing second in 4:48.90.

In other action from the Sea Ray Relays:

? Junior Amy Huss finished fourth in the 3,000 meters, running 9:52.90.
? Freshman Deanna Morelli became the fifth best Commodore ever in the discus with a toss of 141’11”.
? Bryant lowered her personal best in the 400-meter hurdles by more than a second with a 1:01.50 effort.
? Senior Caitlin Shannon approached a seasonal best in the 800 meters, running 2:12.88.