Alex Kelly joins men's track

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Arkansas Razorback men’s track and field head coach Chris Bucknam announced the addition of Alex Kelly for the 2009-10 season. Kelly joins nine others who have inked NLIs with the Hogs.

Kelly, a native of Ottumwa, Iowa, is a 400-meter specialist with the ability to run the 200 meters and various distances as a member of the sprint relays. He also has experience high jumping.

"Alex Kelly is a great addition to this team," Bucknam said. "He has been dominant in the state of Iowa in the 400 meters and has also run on some great relays. He has a ton of potential. I think he’ll excel even more working with Coach (Doug) Case (Arkansas’ sprints/relays coach) and our talented group of young sprinters here at Arkansas. We are really looking forward to him joining us in the fall."

Kelly was the 2009 Iowa state runner-up in the 400 meters. He clocked a personal-best time of 47.89. His time broke a 24-year old school record and is the ninth-fastest recorded time in Iowa state track history. He also finished sixth in the finals of the 200 meters at the Iowa State Championships with a time of 22.22. In the prelims, he clocked a personal-best time of 22.12 to finish sixth. He also added a ninth-place finish in the high jump to his resume. He cleared 6-2.

He anchored the Ottumwa High School 4×400-meter relay to the 2009 state title with a time of 3:18.07. His anchor split clocked in at 46.68. Kelly also anchored the 4×400-meter relay to a school record time of 3:17.83 earlier in the season.

Kelly joins Omar Abdi (Charlestown, Ma.; distance), Reid Brasher (Ruston, La.; javelin), Drew Butler (The Woodlands, Texas; middle distance), Max Carroll (Shawnee, Kan.; javelin), Caleb Cross (Newport, Ark.; hurdles), Cameron Efurd (Rogers, Ark.; distance), Solomon Haile (Silver Spring, Md.; distance), Raymond Higgs (Freeport, Bahamas; jumps) and Chris Muncie (El Paso, Texas; sprints) as the new members of the Razorback squad for 2009-10.