White wins 10K at Mt. SAC Relays

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Arkansas Razorback sophomore Catherine White won the 10,000 meters at the 51st annual Mt. SAC Relays late Thursday night.

White won the top section of the 10,000 meters with a time of 33:37.83. Her clocking is an NCAA provisional qualifier and a personal best by 25 seconds. She currently ranks fourth nationally and leads the SEC by more than a minute.

"We had some really special races at Mt. SAC Thursday night," head coach Lance Harter said. "Catherine did a great job kicking it into gear around 6,000 meters after a pretty slow first 5,000 meters. Denise (Bargiachi) struggled some during her finish but still got a solid qualifying mark. Megan (Jackson) performed really well under unusual conditions and came out of it with a PR and a better regional time."

Senior Denise Bargiachi, running in the same section as White, picked up a provisional qualifier in the 10,000 meters. She recorded a time of 34:49.56 and finished 16th.

Junior Megan Jackson improved her regional qualifier in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. She finished 20th overall and 10th among collegians with a time of 10:27.49 in the fastest section of the event.

Originally scheduled to run in the collegiate section, Jackson’s shoe was pulled off in the first water jump and she was unable to finish the race. She was moved to the professional section where she clocked the best time in the SEC in 2009 and a personal best by seven seconds.

Friday at Mt. SAC Relays, Samantha Learch and Jillian Rosen will compete in the 1,500 meters and Christine Kalmer will run the 5,000 meters. For more information, visit ArkansasRazorbacks.com