Tag: Arkansas track and field

Former Hogs show out at World Championships

The best pole vaulters in the world have Arkansas ties.

Sandi Morris and Tina Sutej are not only two of the best pole vaulters in Arkansas history. They’re two of the best in the world.

The former Razorbacks made the final in the qualifying round at the World Outdoor Track and Field Championships on Friday.

Morris won the silver medal at the 2016 Olympics in the pole vault and the gold in this year’s World Championships. Sutej, competing for Slovenia, won the bronze at the event.

Both vaulters cleared the 14-feet, 9-inch mark to qualify. Nine others did the same. Morris has the highest vault of the year in the event, clearing 15-feet, 9 3/4-inches at the USA Championships.

Ryan Crouser, an Arkansas assistant coach and two-time Olympic gold medalist, was the qualifier with the longest shot-put toss at the event, throwing it 73-1 1/4.

Wayne Pinnock, who is currently on the Arkansas team, made the long jump final after leaping 26-2 1/4.

Arkansas track and cross country teams earn national Program of the Year

The Arkansas women’s track and cross country teams were honored as the best in the country this season.

Track and field has been the most dominant sport at the University of Arkansas for a couple of decades now.

And 2022 was no different.

The Arkansas women’s cross country and track-and-field teams earned the Terry Crawford Women’s Division I Program of the Year Award on Tuesday. The three seasons – cross country, indoor track and outdoor track combined to give Arkansas 18 points, the lowest score in the country.

The points were based off finishes. Cross country was eighth, indoors was fourth and outdoors was sixth. Last year’s winners, Brigham Young, finished second when the Hogs were second.

“Now, finally, we get a chance to be on top of the run,” Arkansas coach Lance Harter said.

Arkansas had finished second three times and third four times. This is their first win. Oregon has won the award 10 times, while the Razorbacks join the Cougars as the only other winners since the award was established in 2009.

Harter announced his earlier in the year, though it won’t take effect until after next year’s outdoor season.

“I’ve been at this business a long time, and this is a very special moment in my own personal career. But especially for the University of Arkansas,” Harter said.

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Arkansas gets a track-and-field national champion

Ayden Owens-Delerme captured the decathlon national championship on Thursday.

Arkansas junior Ayden Owens-Delerme is an NCAA champion.

Owens-Delerme tied the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships record with 8,457 points to capture the decathlon crown. The title is the first in Arkansas history for the event.

Owens-Delerme also won the heptathlon at the indoor championships in the winter.

A native of Pittsburgh and a transfer from Michigan, Owens-Delerme ran a 4-minute, 29.54-second 1,500 meters to capture the win over Texas’ Leo Neugebauer, who finished second with 8,362 points.

Owens-Delerme captured the title on the strength of his a personal-best in the discus throw and in running the 110-meter hurdles in 13.93 seconds.

The Championships continue Friday beginning at 3 p.m. CT with the Women’s Hep 100-meter hurdles. The trophy ceremony begins at 10:30 CT.

Five Razorbacks sign NIL deals with restaurant franchise

Five Razorback athletes over four sports have signed with Fayetteville-based Slim Chickens to serve as ambassadors to the franchise

A fast-casual restaurant based in Fayetteville is launching a “Student-Athlete Council”. What better way to launch it than to bring in five Arkansas Razorbacks to serve as spokespeople?

Slim Chickens, a restaurant chain that specializes in chicken fingers, wings, and salads among other items, is partnering with five Arkansas student-athletes in an effort to launch a council dedicated to promoting the chain through community projects, campus events, and charitable events. 

Football’s [autotag]Bumper Pool[/autotag], Women’s Basketball’s [autotag]MaKayla Daniels[/autotag], Gymnast [autotag]Jensen Scalzo[/autotag], as well as [autotag]Ayden Owens[/autotag], and [autotag]Britton Wilson[/autotag] of Track and Field have been named to the Student-Athlete Council, Slim Chickens has announced.

Slim Chickens CMO Chris Allison is excited about the opportunity to work with these Razorbacks.

“There’s nothing quite like Arkansas sports, except maybe Slim Chickens, and we know this partnership is going to be a lot of fun,” said CMO Chris Allison. “This is a talented and hardworking group of young adults, and we can’t wait for them to be ambassadors for Slim Chickens. We’re looking forward to some great events over the coming months.”

Pool, who has been named Council chairman, says that it was an easy decision to partner with the local franchise.

“The answer was a no-brainer for me when the council was presented. I am excited to be a part of a renowned Arkansas brand,” said Pool. “This is a new and different way to be involved in the Fayetteville community, and I can’t wait to make Slimthusiasts out of more students at Arkansas.”

Slim Chickens opened in 2003 in Fayetteville, Arkansas, with a focus on fresh, delicious food with a southern flair in a fast-casual setting. The franchise has 165 locations in 29 states, as well as locations in the United Kingdom.

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Arkansas will send 22 track-and-field stars to National Championships

Arkansas track-and-field will head to Oregon looking for individual and team titles.

Arkansas track and field has been a national power for 30-plus years. This season, the Razorbacks will send 22 athletes to another national power, Oregon, for the outdoor national championships.

Twelve women and 10 men advanced to Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, for the meet June 8-11.

The star for Arkansas was Britton Wilson. She won the NCAA West Preliminaries in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 54.87 and she anchored the the fastest mile relay team in John McDonnell Field history (3:25.16). Morgan Burks-Magee, Rosey Effiong and Jada Baylark joined her on the team while Effiong also qualified in the 400 meters and Baylark did the same in the 100.

On the men’s side, Ayden Owens-Delerme and Daniel Spejcher qualified in the decathalon despite not having to compete in the Prelims. Amon Kemoboi qualified in the 10,000 and 5,000 meters.

ARKANSAS WOMEN

Events, Athletes

Jada Baylark – 100 meters

Morgan Burks Magee – 400 meters

Rosey Effiong – 400 meters

Krissy Gear – 1,500 meters

Isabel Van Camp – 5,000 meters

Lauren Gregory – 5,000 meters

Lauren Greogy – 10,000 meters

Yoveinny Mota – 100-meter hurdles

Britton Wilson – 400-meter hurdles

Logan Jolly – 3,000-meter steeplechase

Burks-Magee, Effiong, Baylark, Wilson – 1,600-meter relay

Amanda Fassold – pole vault

Bailee McCorkle – pole vault

Mackenzie Hayward – pole vault

ARKANSAS MEN

Amon Kemboi – 5,000 meters

Kemboi – 10,000 meters

Patrick Kiprop – 10,000 meters

Tre-Bien Gilbert – 110-meter hurdles

Matthew Lewis-Blanks – 110-meter hurdles

Ayden Owens-Delerme, Brandon Battle, Jeremy Farr, James Milholen – 1,600-meter relay

Owens-Delerme – decathalon

Daniel Spejcher – decathalon

Ryan Brown – long jump

Britton Wilson runs the fastest single lap in college history

Britton Wilson proved to be one the fastest runners on the planet the SEC Track and Field Outdoor Championships.

No one in the history of the SEC had done what Britton Wilson accomplished.

Wilson was named the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches women’s national athlete of the week after won both the 400-meter dash and the 400-meter hurdles at the SEC Outdoor Championships over the weekend.

Her time of 50.05 seconds in the dash was a school record, as was her time of 53.75 in the hurdles. Both times are rank her sixth in the history of the college sport in the events.

Besides that, she helped Arkansas finish third in the 1,600-meter relay where her 48.6 time on her lap was the fastest ever split in the even for a collegian.

Morgan Burks-Magee, Rosey Effiong and Jada Baylark joined Wilson on the relay team and finished with a mark of 3:22.55, setting an Arkansas record and ranking as the fourth-best run in college history.

Iconic Arkansas track coach calling it a career

Lance Harter is stepping away from the program in June 2023, with assistant coach Chris Johnson named head coach-in-waiting.

Lance Harter has been a staple of the Arkansas women’s track and field program for over three decades.

On Tuesday, the cross country and track head coach he announced he would retire in June 2023, giving Hunter Yurachek plenty of advance notice.

Longtime assistant Chris Johnson will take over the program effective July 1, 2023.

Harter had just recently won the SEC title, and is leaving the program in great hands with Johnson.

Johnson is in his 11th season with the Arkansas program, earning three National Assistant Coach of the Year honors that also accompany a dozen regional coaching honors.

Hall of fame credentials

Harter was inducted into the USTFCCCA Coaches Hall of Fame on December 15, 2014, at the organization’s convention in Phoenix. He is also a member of the Arkansas Sports Hall of Honor, Mt. SAC Relays Hall of Fame and Cal Poly Hall of Fame. In November of 2020, Harter was selected to the 2021 induction class of the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame.