May 5, 2004
TEMPE, Ariz. - Two members of the Arizona State track and field teams will return to Tucson this weekend as the Pac-10 Track and Field Championships open with the heptathlon and decathlon events inside Roy P. Drachman Stadium May 7-8. Points earned this weekend will count toward the team's totals for the championship meet held one week later in Tucson.
THE SCHEDULE OF COMPETITION
The multi-events begin this weekend with five decathlon and four heptathlon events slated for Friday starting at 4 p.m. while the remaining five decathlon and three heptathlon events being contested Saturday starting at 3 p.m.
On Friday, the decathlon will start at 4 p.m. with the 100m dash and will be followed by the long jump (4:45 p.m.), shot put (6:15 p.m.), high jump (7:45 p.m.) and 400m dash (9:30 p.m.). The heptathlon will feature the 100m hurdles at 5 p.m. with the high jump (5:45 p.m.), shot put (7:45 p.m.) and 200m dash (9:15 p.m.).
The competition will wrap-up Saturday with the men competing in the 110m high hurdles (3 p.m.), discus (3:45 p.m.), pole vault (5:15 p.m.), javelin (8 p.m.) and 1,500m run (9:30 p.m.). The women will battle in the long jump (5 p.m.), javelin (6:30 p.m.) and 800m run (8:30 p.m.).
WE'RE BACK!
For the second weekend in a row, members of the Arizona State track and field team will be in Tucson competing. Last week, it was the Double Dual with Arizona and Northern Arizona. Next week, ASU returns for the Pac-10 Championships before making the trek south in two weeks for the Wildcat Classic.
MULTI EVENT SUCCESS
On March 23-24, Joshua Kinnaman competed in his first collegiate decathlon and returned from Tucson with a fifth-place finish overall and was the third collegiate athlete in the standings. On the first day of competition, Kinnaman clocked a 10.78 in the 100m dash to break the mark of 10.88 Dannie Jackson recorded in 1981. From there, Kinnaman put on other strong performances, including a throw of over 200 feet in the javelin to win the event. In the end, Kinnaman accumulated 7,147 points to rank eighth all-time in Sun Devil history and provisionally qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in June.
Also at the meet, Jacquelyn Johnson competed in the heptathlon before withdrawing early from the meet. She had accumulated over 4,000 points with two events to go and earned regional and Pac-10 standards in three events; the 100m hurdles, the long jump and the high jump.
JOHNSON LOOKING TO ADD TROPHY
Twice during the indoor season, Jacquelyn Johnson competed in the multi-events. In her first attempt, Johnson won each of the five events at the Holiday Inn Invitational in Boise, Idaho, to win the event. She then headed to the NCAA Indoor Championships where she finished second overall in her first national collegiate championship meet.
KINNAMAN IN GOOD POSITION
Heading into the weekend, Joshua Kinnaman is ranked third on the Pac-10 decathlon list with the 7,147 points he accumulated in his only attempt at the event, March 23-24 in Tucson. Ahead of him are two Oregon athletes, Andy Young (7,179) and Gabriel LeMay (7,175). Kinnaman, LeMay and UCLA's Chris Staton (7,052) are the lone freshmen that have qualified to compete in the event Friday and Saturday.
MULTI-EVENT TRENDS
Joshua Kinnaman will look to become just the second Sun Devil to win the conference decathlon title this weekend and the first since Dannie Jackson brought home the gold in 1979 with his 7,755 points. A win for the Arizona State rookie also would snap a three-year streak in which an Oregon athlete has won the title.
On the women's side, a victory by Jacquelyn Johnson in the heptathlon would be the first multi-event title at ASU.
HOW THEY FARED THIS YEAR
Joshua Kinnaman finished the Arizona Multi-Event meet with 7,147 points March 23-24 with several stellar performances. He won the javelin portion of the meet with a toss of 61.40m (200-03) and had two other Top 3 finishes as he captured second in the 100m dash at 10.78 and third in the 400m dash at 49.65. His 100m time is the fastest in school history among decathletes.
Prio to her withdrawing from the meet, Jacquelyn Johnson had put forth a strong showing, placing in the Top 3 in all five of the events she finished. She won the 100m hurdles at 13.53 and the 200m dash in 24.75 while placing second in the high jump at 1.76m (5-9.25). Johnson also took third in the shot put (12.10m/39-8.50) and long jump (5.98m/19-7.50) before pulling out of the meet.
BREAKING OUT THE BROOMS
For the second time this season, the Arizona State men and women's teams swept its intrastate rivals in the annual Double Dual, this time held in Tucson. On the men's side, the Sun Devils defeated Arizona, 104-96, and Northern Arizona, 130-60. The women posted similar scores as ASU downed the Wildcats, 103-95, and the Lumberjacks, 125-60.
TAVLARIDES VAULTING TO NEW HEIGHTS
Heading into the start of the 2004 season, no Sun Devil woman had ever cleared 12 feet in competition with Olivia Mazzaglia's mark of 11-6 in 2000 being the record (and only mark recorded over nine feet). Enter Angela Tavlarides, who has shattered the mark four times this season and cleared 12-feet twice. Last week, she reset the record mark at 3.80m (12-5.50) during the Double Dual.
MEN HIGH IN THE RANKINGS
In the latest Trackwire.com Top 25 rankings (May 4), the men are ranked eighth overall. In the same release, the women did not receive votes. In the power rankings, the men are ranked eighth while the women sit in 29th.
MOVING ON UP
The men's 4x400m relay team was back at it again April 3 at the Texas Relays, breaking the school record in the event that was set before any of the four was born: 1977. The quartet of Steve Fitch, Domenik Peterson, Jason Barton and Lewis Banda returned to Tempe after finishing third in the event at 3:01.51. The Sun Devils broke the previous school mark of 3:01.74 that was set by Cliff McKenzie, Gerald Burl, Tony Darden and Herman Frazier, a mark that stood for 27 years.
OLD RECORDS
Although the previous 4x400m relay mark was set numerous years ago, there are still four more marks on the men's lists that have been around longer. Jerry Bright holds the 200m mark at 20.29 while Ron Freeman II clocked a 44.41 in the 400m. Both marks were set in 1968. Two years later, Chuck LaBenz set the standard in the 1,500m and mile runs, both during the 1970 season.
FRESHMAN LEADING THE WAY
Along with the success of the rookie multi-event athletes (Jacquelyn Johnson and Joshua Kinnaman), there have been several other Sun Devils that have fared well in their freshman campaigns this year. For the men, Steven Koehneman is among the top athletes in the nation at 100m and 200m while Domenik Peterson is near the top of the 400m event. Brandon Glenn and Stephen Dolk bother are faring well in the pole vault with Aaron Aguayo, though he is a redshirt freshman this year, has qualified in both the 1,500m and 5,000m events at the regional and conference level.
Johnson has qualified in three individual events so far this year with marks recorded in the 100m hurdles, the high jump and the long jump.
ALL-AMERICANS
Members of the track and field program traveled to Fayetteville, Ark., for the 2004 NCAA Indoor Championships, March 14-15, and returned with stellar performances. Of the 10 athletes that competed in the national event, six returned home as All-Americans. Those Sun Devils included Lewis Banda (4x400m), Jason Barton (4x400m and 400m), Domenik Peterson (4x400m and 200m), Seth Amoo (4x400m), Amy Hastings (5,000m) and Jacquelyn Johnson (pentathlon).
As a team, the men finished tied for 12th with 17 points earned while the women took a tie for 27th with eight.
MORE FRESHMAN SUCCESS
Johnson was not the only Sun Devil freshman that had an impressive debut at the NCAA Championships. Domenik Peterson competed in three races to earn All-America honors twice while setting one school record. Individually, Peterson finished fourth in the 200m dash with an ASU record time of 20.54. He then anchored the men's 4x400m relay team to a third place finish in the final event of the meet.
LAST TIME OUT: DOUBLE DUAL
On the women's side, 11 of the 19 events were won by Sun Devil student-athletes while 25 total marks went for Top 3 finishes. Five marks also earned places on the Top 10 all-time lists, including Angela Tavlarides breaking her own pole vault record for the fourth time this season with a clearance of 3.80m (12-5.50). Her mark also earned her a spot in the Pac-10 Championships. Also on the lists are Kristi Raban in the pole vault (third at 3.40m/11-1.75), Cassandra Reed in the 400m dash (third at 52.23), Julia Pedersen in the discus (fifth at 54.18m/177-9) and Kandace Tucker in the 200m dash (seventh at 23.57).
Tucker proved to be the fastest woman on the track Saturday as she captured wins in both the 100m and 200m dashes. Her marks of 11.69 and 23.57, respectively, made her the only Sun Devil woman to win multiple events on the day. Also winning events for the Sun Devils included Reed in the 400m dash, Jana Pintz in the javelin (38.55m/126-6).
On the men's side, one Top 10 mark was recorded as Jason Barton clocked a 45.57 to finish second in the 400m dash. Individually, Trevell Quinley led the way with multiple wins in the field as he claimed gold in the high jump (2.10m/6-10.75) and long jump (7.36m/24-1.75). Other winners included Seth Amoo in the 100m dash (10.42), Domenik Peterson in the 200m dash (20.65), Lewis Banda in the 400m dash (45.29), Aaron Aguayo in the 3,000m steeplechase (9:03.93), the 4x100m relay of Steven Koehnemann, Peterson, Amoo and Banda (39.21), the 4x400m relay of Barton, Amoo, Steve Fitch and Banda (3:09.37) and Travis Jones in the hammer (57.29m/187-11).
UP NEXT
The entire team, both men and women, return to Tucson next weekend for the 2004 Pac-10 Track and Field Championships hosted by Arizona, May 14-15.