Dec. 2, 2011

ASU Kickoff Klassic Results

Results in PDF Format

JONESBORO, Ark. - The University of Memphis track and field team's indoor season started off with a bang on Friday at the ASU Kickoff Klassic with Cyarra Wells bringing home the title in the women's weight throw following a toss of 17.50m (57-05.00).

Britta Jaarats took third in the same event with a distance of 16.38m (53-09.00), and on the men's side, Andrew Miller placed third as well, with his 17.80m (58-04.75) throw.

Three Tigers were in the top-ten in the women's shot put finals: Allison Hotz, finished third with a new lifetime best toss of 13.54m (44-05.25), Jaarats took fifth with a throw of 13.34m (43-09.25) and sixth place went to freshman Vivian Brandhoff, setting a personal-best in her first meet in a Tiger uniform with a distance of 13.21m (43-04.25).

In the women's high jump, Laura Toldy and Vivian Haynes, who recorded a personal-best, both cleared 1.68m (5-06.00) to capture second and third place respectively. Kirsten Berding's 1.63m (5-04.25) jump earned her fifth place. The men were led by Darius Lynwood's height of 2.08m (6-09.75) garnered him second place.

Marc Klaschka's 6.92m (22-08.50) long jump placed him sixth in the men's contest, while Quaniqua Jones' jump of 5.33m (17-06.00) landed her in sixth place among the women.

Other noteworthy men's performances were D'Ernest Rucker's second-place 13.77m (45-02.25) jump in the triple jump, along with Karlis Pujats' 4.87m (16-00.00) pole vault, which tied him for third place.

The Tigers produced several top-five finishes in the track events as well. In the finals of the 55m dash, LaMarvin Ashley ran a 6.433 to secure fourth place as he barely edged out fellow Tiger Taurean Nixon's fifth-place time of 6.434. DaQuanya Byrd-West was the top finisher for Memphis women, taking eighth place with a 7.23 mark.

Byrd-West also came in sixth in the 200m dash with a 25.64, in addition to a fifth-place finish by Jaz Davis in the men's 200m dash with his 22.52 time.

The 400m dash efforts were led by Ojike Maat and Kala Funderburk, who both snagged second place with a 50.38 and 56.09 time respectively. Funderburk also set a new program record in the women's event. More second-place finishes were earned by Stephan Ender in the 800m (1:55.57), 

Robert Jackson began his senior campaign with a second-place finish in the 55m hurdles, clocking a time of 7.63, and the U of M grabbed second place in the women's race as well, with Quaniqua Jones' 8.30 mark. Bronte' Smith also raced in the women's 55m hurdles final, taking sixth with her time of 8.51.

In the 4x400m women's relay, Funderburk, Maya Williams, Keyona Neal, and Monica Mason teamed up to capture a new program record with their 3:50.74 mark, which was enough for second place behind Missouri State.

"It was a very solid start for the program," head coach Kevin Robinson said. "We have a lot of work to do now over the Christmas break to be prepared and to strengthen some weaknesses prior to next meet in January. I'm proud of the team for the energy and support they showed throughout the entirity of the meet. The challenge now lies in keeping the training intensity high, as the athletes leave campus for the break."

The Tigers pick back up with their indoor season at the Blazer Invitational in Birmingham, Ala., Jan. 12-13.