University of Connecticut Athletics
Huskies Head To BIG EAST Outdoor Championship
5/4/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Track and Field
May 4, 2011
STORRS, Conn. - The University of Connecticut men's track and field team will head to Philadelphia, Pa. this weekend with their sights set on capturing the 2011 BIG EAST Outdoor Championship. UConn, the reigning BIG EAST Indoor champion, enters the meet with three athletes at the top of the performance lists in their respective events.
"We are in great shape going into the BIG EAST Championship this year," head coach Greg Roy said. "We have had some bumps along the way, but the athletes that we have competing this weekend could put us in a spot where we could come out victorious. On paper, there are three or four teams that lead the pack and we are one of them, so that gives us a really good shot at coming out on top. We just need to stay focused and do what we need to do throughout the weekend."
Entering the meet, the Huskies hold the top mark in four events including the javelin, hammer throw, 800m run and the 4x800m relay. Cody Unger's mark of 71.23m, which ranks 20th nationally, puts him at the front of the pack in the javelin, while Joshua Faboyede's top distance of 59.59m in the hammer throw is tops in the conference. Mike Rutt is set to defend his indoor title in the 800m run, as he enters the weekend with the top time of a 24-athlete field. The final group to hold a top time going into the championship is the 4x800m relay, as the Huskies will be trying to post back-to-back outdoor titles in the race for the first time in school history.
UConn also has 10 top-five marks among BIG EAST competitors, led by Jesse Chapman who has the second best point total in the decathlon. Chapman's top point total of the season came during the Husky Spring Invite when he won the event with 6,541 points.
Other Huskies who enter the weekend with top-five marks include Jesse Drinks (3rd-10.64) and Kevin Smith (5th-10.72) in the 100m dash, Tim Bennatan (3rd-1:49.60) in the 800m run, Noel James (3rd-2.15m) in the high jump, Aaron King (3rd-7.51m) in the long jump, Mike Alleman (3rd-17.96m) in the shot put and Ed Strosnick (3rd-61.68m) and Justin Siekierski (4th-61.57m) in the javelin. The 4x100m relay team also enters the weekend with the third best time, after posting a 41.31 at the Penn Relays last weekend.
The Villanova Wildcats will be the host of the 2011 Outdoor Championship, with action taking place at Jumbo Elliot Track on the VU campus beginning on Friday, May 6 and continuing through Sunday, May 8. The BIG EAST will provide free live streaming of the 2011 Outdoor Championship, while they will also post live results. Links for live results, live streaming and a meet schedule can be found at the top of the page.
Players Mentioned
