SAN ANGELO – On a record-setting opening day at the 76th Lone Star Conference track and field championships, veteran
Jessica Withrow stands second in the heptathlon, and newcomer
Parker Petty ranks seventh in the decathlon at LeGrand Sports Complex for the ACU Wildcats.
Withrow, a three-time LSC heptathlon champion who is coming back from a redshirt season, scored a season-high 3,009 points in the first four events, but she trails defending champion Chrystal Ruiz of host Angelo State, who set an LSC first-day record with 3,244 points.
Ruiz won all four of Friday's events, two in record-setting fashion with 14.08 in the 100 hurdles (967 points) and 24.97 in the 200 (890 points).
Withrow, senior from Muleshoe, set 2010 bests in three of the four events – 14.89 for the 100 hurdles (856 points), 5-5.25 in the high jump (806 points) and 25.92 in the 200 (804 points). She also reached 33-6 in the shot put (543 points).
The final three events (long jump, javelin throw and 800 meters) will begin Saturday at 11 a.m.
In the decathlon, Eldon Grimslid of West Texas A&M, sixth in this event last year, leads with 3,599 points. The top five from 2009 are not competing this year.
Petty, freshman from White Deer, has 3,104 points. His marks in the first five events were 11.64 in the 100 (723 points), 21-8.75 in the long jump (635), 34-11 in the shot put (524), 5-7.75 in the high jump (560) and 53.46 in the 400 (662).
Grimslid, who played linebacker in football for the Buffaloes, set one of the two meet records in the decathlon (11.13 in the 100) and would have broken the record for first-day points by running at least 53.09 in the 400 (he ran 52.94 here in March when he scored 6,439 points). But the Wisconsin senior came across the finish line Friday in 54.08.
Hewitt Holmes of Angelo State set the other record with a wind-legal 22-4.5 in the long jump. He had a windy 22-6.5.
The remaining five events in the decathlon (110 hurdles, discus throw, pole vault, javelin throw and 1,500 meters) will begin Saturday at 10:30 a.m. Grimslid could become the first LSC decathlon from an LSC member other than Abilene Christian or Angelo State in the seventh year for LSC multi-events.
Other LSC student-athletes will join the competition Saturday with field events opening at 3 p.m. and qualifying rounds in the running events starting at 6 p.m. Finals will be contested in the men's and women's steeplechase and 10,000 meters.
The Angelo State women's team, LSC defending champion and top-ranked in NCAA Division II in 2010, is heavily favored to repeat here this weekend and take its fourth title in the last seven years. Abilene Christian has won all the other 23 LSC women's titles.
The 2010 meet is the 27th for the women.
The ACU men's team has won each LSC meet starting in 1993 (the meet was rained out in 1995), but the ASU Rams are expected to battle the Wildcats of first-year coach Roosevelt Lofton.
Defending champions
Nick Jones (shot put, discus throw) and
Andrew McDowell (110 hurdles) are redshirts in 2010, leaving
Desmond Jackson (100),
Cleophas Tanui (10,000) and
Ramon Sparks (long jump, triple jump) as the only 2009 LSC winners returning for the Wildcat men.
Returning for the women are 2009 LSC champs
Wanda Hutson (100),
Kim Prather (400) and
Linda Brivule (javelin throw).
The only other event for Withrow, because of her chronic ankle injury, will be the high jump Sunday at 4 p.m.
