ETSU athletes excel in SoCon Indoor

from staff reports

   JOHNSON CITY -- The Bucs wrapped up the first day of competition at the Southern Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships at the Mini-Dome with strong performances from several ETSU athletes.
   The day's events began with the first ever women's pentathlon and men's heptathlon events. Senior Buccaneer, Kristin Truman (Johnson City, Tenn.) placed second overall in the pentathlon and recorded new personal bests in four of the five events.
   "I'm really proud of Kristin," said assistant coach Michelle Byrne. "She made a commitment early on to train for the pentathlon and her hard work and dedication is paying off. Overall, she is quicker, stronger, and more powerful. Her strong indoor performance will help her as she gets ready for the upcoming outdoor season."
   The ETSU sprinters continued to see success at the championships with stellar performances from senior Chantelle Vernon (Markham, Ontario), sophomore James Rainer (Alcoa, Tenn.), and freshman Johnny Tucker (Spartanburg, S.C.).
   "It was an awesome day for us in the short sprints with several of our athletes recording new personal bests."
   Vernon advanced to 60 meter finals with her first place finish in the preliminaries on a record setting time of 7.54. Her time breaks the former ETSU school record of 7.56 she set last season. Her time also stands as the current Southern Conference Record in the 60 meters.
   On the men's side, Rainer placed third in the 60 meters to advance to the finals with a time of 6.83. Tucker, in addition to advancing to the 60 meter finals with a time of 6.98, advanced to the 400 meter finals with a mark of 49.65.
   In the women's 800 meters, ETSU advanced three runners to Sunday's finals. Jennifer Habbestad (Tampa, Fla.), Kim Simmons (Knoxville, Tenn.), and Tiffany Collier (Atlanta, Ga.) claimed the first, third, and fifth slots, respectively, to advance.
   In the distance races, junior Brad Yewer (Newbury, England), the SoCon's Most Outstanding Track Performer in 2003, placed second in the 3000 meter race with a time of 8:24.24.
   "Brad ran a tough race, but came up a little short. He will be back tomorrow to defend his SoCon Championship title in the mile run."
   "Overall, our kids are focused and taking care of business and I look for it to continue into the second day of competition."
   The SoCon Indoor Track and Field Championships will continue tomorrow with events scheduled to run from 8:30 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. with the presentation of championship trophies to follow at 4:15 p.m.