Tyson Invitational this weekend

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – No. 11 Arkansas Razorback women’s track and field will host one of the premiere track and field events in the nation this weekend. The Tyson Invitational promises a stellar field Fri.-Sat., Feb. 13-14.

Scheduled to compete are Alabama, Albany, No. 24 Auburn, No. 17 Florida, No. 6 Florida State, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Kansas, Liberty, No. 5 LSU, No. 4 Michigan, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, No. 20 Nebraska, No. 16 North Carolina, North Texas, Northern Iowa, Ohio State, Oklahoma, No. 3 Oregon, No. 9 Penn State, Pitt, No. 13 South Carolina, No. 2 Tennessee, No. 7 Texas, No. 14 Texas Tech, and Tulsa.

In Friday night’s invitational events, fans will have the chance to see Denise Bargiachi, Christine Kalmer and Catherine White in the 3,000 meters, Katie Stripling and Tina Sutej in the pole vault and the Razorback 4×400-meter relay compete.

In the latest U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches’ Association poll, released Feb. 11, Arkansas sits at No. 11. Texas A&M, Tennessee and Oregon rank in the top three. Arkansas is one of five SEC schools listed in the poll.

Sophomore Catherine White and junior Katie Stripling (pole vault) hold the top spots in the SEC. Additionally, the Razorbacks hold five spots in the top three in four different events.

Collegiate events will be held Friday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. and Saturday, 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Invitational events will be held Friday, 8-10 p.m. On Fri., Feb. 13, field events will begin at 10 a.m. with running starting at 11 a.m. Invitational events will begin at 8 p.m. On Sat., Feb. 14, field events will begin at 10 a.m. and running events will begin at 10:55 a.m. The doors will open to spectators one hour before the first event.

There will be no charge for admission to Friday and Saturday’s collegiate events. After the 4 p.m. 60 meters is completed on Friday, the Randal Tyson Track Center will close to prepare for Friday night’s invitational events.

Tickets must be purchased for the invitational portion of the meet from 8-10 p.m. Ticket prices for the invitational events are: $20 reserved seating, $10 general admission and children under 12 get in free with a paid adult. Tickets can be purchased on site or by calling 800-766-4626.

Live results can be found at ArkansasRazorbacks.com. A complete meet recap will available at ArkansasRazorbacks.com shortly after the final event. The 2009 Tyson Invitational will be broadcast Sun., Feb. 15, 4-6 p.m. CST on ESPN.

Download: 2.13.09 Tyson Inv.pdf