Razorbacks, Gators claim SEC track titles
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (Feb. 23, 2019) -- The No. 3-ranked Florida men's track and field team and the No. 1-ranked Arkansas women's track and field team claimed the 2019 Southeastern Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships here Saturday at Randal Tyson Track Center.
The SEC Indoor Championship is the fourth all-time for the Florida men and the first since 2015. The Gators scored 103 total team points to take home the title, while Arkansas was second with 88 and LSU was third with 78. Alabama was fourth was 73 points, followed by Texas A&M (72), Tennessee (50), Georgia (45), Ole Miss (44), Kentucky (31), South Carolina (29), Mississippi State (24), Missouri (17) and Auburn (8).
The Arkansas women won their ninth all-time SEC Indoor Championship and fifth in a row by scoring 151 total team points. Texas A&M was second with 70 points, ahead of Alabama (67), Florida (61), LSU (58), Kentucky (51), Georgia (49), Tennessee (40), Auburn (37), Missouri (25), Ole Miss (20), South Carolina (14), Mississippi State (10) and Vanderbilt (9).
Florida's Grant Holloway won the men's Cliff Harper Trophy, awarded to the high-points scorer at the SEC Indoor Championship, with 28 points, most since SEC records kept dating back to 1974. There was a tie for the women's Cliff Harper Trophy as Arkansas' Taylor Werner and Florida's Yanis David each scored 20 points.
Champions crowned
Individual men's champions crowned Saturday include Ole Miss' Waleed Suliman in the mile (4:02.47), LSU's Kortnei Johnson in the 60m (7.23), Holloway in the 60m (6.54), South Carolina's Quincy Hall in the 400m (45.69), Holloway in the 60 hurdles (7.44), Texas A&M's Devin Dixon in the 800m (1:47.47), Tennessee's Mustaqeem Williams in the 200m (20.65), Arkansas' Cameron Griffith in the 3000m (8:02.81), Florida's AJ Mcfarland in the weight throw (23.35m/76-7.25) and Texas A&M's Tahar Triki in the triple jump (17.12m/56-2). Texas A&M won the 4x400 meter relay in 3:03.61.
Georgia claimed the men's heptathlon for the seventh year in a row as sophomore Johannes Erm claimed his second consecutive title with 5,996 points.
Individual women's champions crowned Saturday include Arkansas' Lauren Gregory in the mile (4:39.50), Georgia's Lynna Irby in the 400m (52.02), Arkansas' Payton Chadwick in the 60 hurdles (8.02), Texas A&M's Jazmine Fray in the 800m (2:05.42), Alabama's Tamara Clark in the 200m (22.90), Werner in the 3000m (9:15.57), LSU's Abigail O'Donoghue in the high jump (1.82m/5-11.5), Arkansas' Alexis Jacobus in the pole vault (4.68m/15-4.25), Tennessee's Stamatia Scarvelis in the weight throw (24.06m/78-11.25) and David in the triple jump (13.84m/45-5). Texas A&M won the 4x400 meter relay with a time of 3:29.15.
Records set
Holloway's time of 7.44 in the men's 60 hurdles set an SEC Championship record. The previous record of 7.49 was set in 2015.
Jacobus' mark of 4.68m/15-4.25 in the women's pole vault is a new SEC Championship record, breaking the mark set a year ago by Olivia Gruver.
Scarvelis set a meet record in the women's weight throw with a mark of 24.06m/78-11.25. The previous record was set in 2017.