June 12, 2008
DES MOINES, Iowa - Matt Turner placed second in the men's long jump with a personal-best mark while several other of his teammates advanced to the later rounds of their events to pace the Arizona State University track and field program on the second day of competition at the 2008 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Des Moines, Iowa. The Sun Devils advanced all three of its shot put competitors as well as the women's 4x400m relay at the meet being held at Drake Stadium on the Drake University campus.
The Sun Devil men have scored eight points and are tied with Arkansas and Tennessee for fourth in the team race while Florida State leads the way with 16 points and both Texas A&M-Corpus Christie and Oregon share second place with 10 points. The ASU women have not scored yet through three events. Stanford leads the women's team race with 11 points while Iowa State and Mississippi are tied for second with 10.
Turner turned in a stellar performance as his top leap of 8.01m (26-03.50) pushed him into second place and earned eight points for the team. His mark, which is a personal best, stands as the fourth-best jump in school history and makes him just the fourth Sun Devil to record a jump of 8-meters or better.
Turner was not the only Sun Devil to compete in a final on the day as Ali Kielty ran 35:27.68, the 10th-fastest time in school history, to finish 17th in the 10,000m run. Also on the track, the relay of Dominique' Maloy, Jordan Durham, Shauntel Elcock and Jeavon Benjamin combined to run 3:31.73, the seventh-fastest time in school history, to place sixth in the 4x400m relay and advance to the final on Saturday.
ASU sent three competitors to the shot put ring to compete in the qualifying rounds and all three earned berths into the finals that will be held Saturday. For the men, Ryan Whiting hit a toss of 19.34m (63-05.50) on this second attempt to surpass the automatic qualifying standard and will head to the final ranked second. In the women's event, Jessica Pressley also eclipsed the automatic mark with her meet-leading toss of 17.47m (57-03.75) coming on her first attempt. Teammate Sarah Stevens advanced to the final with the 10th-best throw of 16.07m (52-08.75).
Back on the track, Nectaly Barbosa clocked the sixth-fastest 800m time in program history at 1:48.27, but his 10th-place finish did not advance him to the final. His time tied Chuck LaBenz' mark set in 1970. Both Darryl Elston and Calvin Abram competed in the 200m dash for the men, placing 27th (21.48) and 28th (21.55), respectively, but did not advance to the semifinal.
The women sent a pair of 200m dash runners to the line with Charonda Williams running 23.22 to place sixth and Maloy clocking in at 23.80 to place 18th in the preliminary rounds. Williams advanced to the semifinal later in the day, but her time of 23.55 ranked her 13th overall and did not allow her to advance to the final.
The Championships continue Friday in Des Moines with several Sun Devils competing. For the women, Jacquelyn Johnson will look for her fourth heptathlon national title in a row with the first four events of the competition while Pressley and Stevens will compete in the hammer and discus finals after joining Tai Battle in the discus finals. April Kubishta will look to defend her pole vault crown won last year to round out the women. The men will see Whiting compete in the finals of the discus, Kyle Alcorn compete in the final of the 3,000m steeplechase and Joel Phillip compete in the semifinal of the 400m dash.
NCAA Outdoor Championships - Day 2 (Thursday)
Men's Long Jump - Final
2. Matt Turner - 8.01m (26-03.50) - All-American
Men's Shot Put - Qualifying
2. Ryan Whiting - 19.34m (63-05.50) - advances to final (Saturday)
Men's 200m Dash - Preliminary
27. Darryl Elston - 21.48 - did not advance
28. Calvin Abram - 21.55 - did not advance
Men's 800m Run - Semifinal
10. Nectaly Barbosa - 1:48.27 - did not advance
Women's Shot Put - Qualifying
1. Jessica Pressley - 17.47m (57-03.75) - advances to final (Saturday)
10. Sarah Stevens - 16.07m (52-08.75) - advances to final (Saturday)
Women's 200m Dash - Preliminary
6. Charonda Williams - 23.22 - advances to semifinal (Thursday)
18. Dominique' Maloy - 23.80 - did not advance
Women's 200m Dash - Semifinal
13. Charonda Williams - 23.55 - did not advance
Women's 4x400m Relay - Preliminary
6. Arizona State - 3:31.74 - advances to final (Saturday)
(Dominique' Maloy, Jordan Durham, Shauntel Elcock, Jeavon Benjamin)
Women's 10,000m Run - Final
17. Ali Kielty - 35:27.68