A / **SPORTS** / FRIDAY, APRIL 22, 2011 / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / KANSAN.COM
KANSAS RELAYS
Kansas athlete places 11th in race
Dan Yoder of the Hays Track Club won the men's unseeded 800-meter run Thursday night at the Kansas Relays, winning the title against a field of 69 other competitors split into six heats. His time of one minute and 52.47 seconds was only a second better than the second-place finisher.
Yoder, a 25-year-old runner,
was competing in his first 800-meter run of the spring after beginning his training in January.
"I thought I could be up in the top two or three in my heat," Yoder said."I was going for top five"
Kansas freshman Brendan Soucie finished in 11th place, the best finish of the six Jayhawks in the field. His time was 1:55.44, but he was hoping to run a 1:52.
"It definitely wasn't what I was
hoping for," Soucie said. "I think I went out maybe a little bit faster than what I wanted to for the first lap. My legs kind of felt a little heavy."
Soucie was joined in his heat by his teammate Sam Jones, and the two Jayhawks pushed each other throughout the race.
"I saw him go so I tried to catch up with him stride for stride," Soucie said. "I was able to come back even with him on the homestretch."
Although a light, intermittent rain occurred during the race, neither Yoder nor Soucie thought it was a negative.
"As long as there's no wind and it's not too cold, I don't mind running in a bit of rain," Yoder said. "This is almost ideal I think for distance running."
— Geoffrey Calvert
Soucie agreed, saying he preferred running in cooler weather than warmer weather.
Nebraska takes first place in 800-meter
The women's 800-meter run unseeded college division Kansas Relays record time of 2:01.30 that was set in 1981 by Leann Warren of the University of Oregon is safe.
Nebraska freshman Ellen Dougherty captured first place with a time of two minutes and 13.9 seconds.
"I wanted to run a 2:10.00, but I came through my 600 three sec-
Kansas freshman Maddy Rich had the Jayhawks' best time in the event finishing in 2:18.39.
"I've come here all four years in high school, but it felt really good running it for the first time in college. It's a totally different atmosphere," Rich said after the race. "That might be the fastest I've run all year."
— Corey Thibodeaux
Chris Bronson/KANSAN
Sophomore sprinter Sean Proehl gains ground on the lead in his heat of the men's 800-meter run at the 84th annual Kansas Relays. Proehl finished 14th overall with a time of 1:55:73. Competition will continue today at Memorial Stadium.
Chris Bronson/KANSAN
Sophomore long distance runner Devin Wiegers competes in the women's 3,000 meter race at the 84th annual Kansas Relays at Memorial Stadium Thursday night. Wiegers' time of 11:15:83 was good enough to place her ninth in the event.
Junior Nick Canton speeds down the lane during the men's 110 meter hurdles Friday morning. Canton placed third in the event and is seeded third overall in the decathlon.
Howard Ting/KANSAN
Junior Nick Canton drives down the pole-vault runway on Friday morning in the decathlon in Memorial Stadium. Canton finished the decathlon with a total of 5,771 points, placing third overall.
Howard Tina/KANSAN
Decathlon leader Jamal Currica of Iowa State swings hard, putting a discus 29.64 meters down the range outside of Memorial Stadium during the men's discus throw on Friday morning. Curria is the leader of the decathlon that took place Thursday morning in Memorial Stadium.
Check Kansan.com today and this weekend for more coverage of the Kansas Relays
TRACK (CONTINUED FROM 8A)
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yesterday but then it wasn't super great."
Even though she tends to prefer the first day events, Butler performed much better on the second day in the long jump, javelin and 800-meter run. She won the
Butler placed fifth in her least favorite event of the day, the 800-meter run, but it was more than enough to secure the victory. She
long jump and recorded a personal record in the javelin, throwing 98 feet, three inches.
finished with 4,948 points, her teammate Anne Martin placed second with 4,883 points and Neville took third with 4,880 points.
Edited by Helen Mubarak