Kebenei Defends #SECTF Steeplechase Title, No. 8 MTR in Third
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Stanley Kebenei successfully defended his 3,000-meter steeplechase title Friday and the No. 8 University of Arkansas men’s track and field team is in third place after day two of the 2015 SEC Outdoor Championships at the Mike Sanders Track and Field Complex in Starkville, Miss. In addition to additional top-four performances by Jarrion Lawson in the long jump, Nathanael Franks in the decathlon and Frankline Tonui in the steeplechase, the team picked up three more qualifiers for event finals
The final day of the 2015 SEC Outdoor Championships will be streamed on SEC Network PLUS beginning Saturday at 2:50 p.m. (CT). The meet will also air as a two-hour highlight show May 21 on ESPNU beginning at 7 p.m. Dwight Stones and Larry Rawson will handle the play-by-play and color commentary duties, respectively, with Jill Montgomery reporting from trackside.
In the event on the track, Kebenei out-kicked the rest of the field over the final 400 meters to win his second-consecutive SEC title in the steeplechase, crossing the finish line in 8:58.40. With his victory, Kebenei is the fourth runner in program history with multiple SEC steeplechase titles and the first to accomplish the feat since Daniel Lincoln won three in a row in 2001-03. The Razorbacks got another five points from Tonui who finished fourth in the race, less than 24 hours removed from his runner-up finish at 10,000 meters Thursday night.
Competing in his first long jump since April 10, Lawson scored eight points for the Razorbacks with a second-place finish with a best mark of 8.00m/26-3 in the second round. He went on to pass his final three jumps of the competition in order to run in the preliminary heats at 100 meters where he qualified for the event final. Arkansas’ first points of the day came from Nathanael Franks who moved from seventh to fourth place during day two of the decathlon.
Lawson will be joined in action Saturday by Kemoy Campbell and Omar McLeod who qualified at 1,500 meters and in the 110-meter hurdles, respectively. Both Razorbacks had the top qualifying mark in their event with Campbell clocking in with a time of 3:44.76 while McLeod crossed the finish line in a wind-aided 13.39. Campbell was the 2013 SEC champion at 5,000 meters and McLeod finished third in the hurdles in his SEC debut last season.
2015 SEC Outdoor Championships | Day 2
Mike Sanders Track and Field Complex
Starkville, Miss.
100 Meters (prelim)
9. Jarrion Lawson – 10.28wq (+2.3)
11. Kenzo Cotton – 10.32w (+2.3)
18. Eric Hawkins – 10.61w (+2.8)
23. Ryan Green – 10.73w (+2.3)
25. Zach Riley – 10.78 (+2.5)
400 Meters (prelim)
13. Marqueze Washington – 47.08
17. Eric Janise – 47.76
20. Jamarco Stephen – 48.68
1,500 Meters (prelim)
1. Kemoy Campbell – 3:44.76Q
14. Cale Wallace – 3:49.32 [PR – previous: 3:49.77]
21. Aidan Swain – 3:57.37
25. Noah Findlay – 4:04.08
110m Hurdles (prelim)
1. Omar McLeod – 13.39wQ (+3.6)
3,000m Steeplechase
1. Stanley Kebenei – 8:58.40 [10 points]
4. Frankline Tonui – 9:04.95 [5 points]
Long Jump
2. Jarrion Lawson – 8.00m/26-3 (+1.8) [8 points]
18. Trae Carey – 7.09m/23-3.25w (+2.4)
19. Brandon Workman – 7.03m/23-0.75 (+1.9)
22. Rubin Owens – 6.92m/22-8.5 (+1.9)
Shot Put
9. Devin Randall – 17.04m/55-11
Decathlon (Day 2/Final)
4. Nathanael Franks – 7,343 points [5 points]
13. 110m Hurdles – 15.67 (+1.4) [770 points]
3. Discus – 42.64m/139-11 [718]
8. Pole Vault – 4.40m/14-5.25 [731]
7. Javelin – 51.16m/167-10 [606]
2. 1,500 Meters – 4:23.38 [789]
11. Lane Austell – 6,841 points
10. 110m Hurdles – 15.30 (+2.0) [814 points]
6. Discus – 38.21m/125-4 [628]
4. Pole Vault – 4.50m/14-9 [760]
11. Javelin – 46.01m/150-11 [530]
6. 1,500 Meters – 4:43.73 [657]
13. Brad Culp – 6,464 points
14. 110m Hurdles – 15.90 (+0.6) [744 points]
12. Discus – 35.75m/117-3 [579]
5. Pole Vault – 4.50m/14-9 [760]
13. Javelin – 42.42m/139-2 [477]
13. 1,500 Meters – 5:11.35 [496]
The 2015 SEC Outdoor Championships marks the beginning of the Razorbacks’ postseason campaign. The remainder of the championship season features the NCAA West Preliminary on May 28-30 in Austin, Texas, and the NCAA Outdoor Championships on June 10-13 in Eugene, Ore.
For more information on Arkansas track and field including in-meet updates, follow @RazorbackTF on Twitter.
