Women’s T&F: Ohio State Heads to 2008 Big Ten Outdoor Championships – Ohio State Buckeyes
5/16/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Track & Field
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State women’s track and field team will head to the 2008 Big Ten Outdoor Championships in Champaign, Ill., May 16-18 on the campus of the University of Illinois.
2008 BIG TEN OUTDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS
Days: Friday, May 16, 12:00 p.m. to 9:15 p.m.; Saturday, May 17, 9:30 a.m. to 6:45 p.m.; Sunday, May 18, 11:00 a.m. to 3:45 p.m.
Venue: Illinois Soccer and Track Stadium
Meet Information: www.fightingillni.com
Live Stats: http://fightingillini.cstv.com/sports/w-track/spec-rel/08-big-ten-track.html
Television: Big Ten Network (Tape-Delayed – Thursday, May 22)
LAST WEEK AT THE CAMPBELL/WRIGHT INVITATIONAL
The Buckeyes took first place in the women’s 4×100-meter relay. The team of Bever-Leigh Holloway, Ayrizanna Favours, Letecia Wright and Jenna Griffin finished with a season and Big Ten best time of 45.10.
Wright finished first in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 13.53. Wright ran a personal-best 13.40 last weekend at the Jesse Owens Classic. Holloway was third with a time of 14.33.
In the 400m, Ashley Caldwell and Ashley Jones finished first and fourth with times of 56.24 and 58.13, respectively. Mardez Desmond was ninth with a time of 59.83.
Griffin took first in the 100m finals with a time of 11.83 while Ashley Bennett took fifth with her time of 12.47. Favours took first in the 200m-dash with a time of 23.76.
In the women’s 800m, Kesha Brooks finished fourth (2:18.68), Jordan Jennewine fifth (2:20.22), Emily Thompson eighth (2:22.15) and Alana Gray 11th (2:45.25).
Ashley Riehm took fourth in the hammer throw with a toss of 171 feet, five inches.
JATSEK CONTINUES BIG TEN DOMINANCE
Senior Veronica Jatsek has been one of the top throwers in the Big Ten over the past two seasons. In 2007 Jatsek finished second in the weight throw during the indoor season and went on to earn All-America honors at the NCAA Championships. Jatsek carried that momentum into the outdoor season winning the Big Ten title in the hammer throw and earning All-America honors at the NCAA Championships. This season Jatsek won a title in the weight throw during the indoor season and earned her second-consecutive All-America honor.
Last week Jatsek hit a season and Big Ten-best toss in the hammer throw en route to a fifth-place finish at the Jesse Owens Track Classic. Jatsek was the top competitor from the Big Ten with a toss of 205 feet, 8 inches. The mark is an NCAA Regional Qualifier and is the only toss over 200 feet in the Big Ten this season in the hammer throw. At the All-Ohio Championships Jatsek took second with a toss of 201 feet, 7 inches. Jatsek, along with coach Keturah Lofton and Shelaine Larson, are the only Buckeyes to ever go over 200 feet in the hammer toss.
GETTING IT DONE THE “WRIGHT” WAY
Freshman Letecia Wright is making a name of herself in her first season with the Buckeyes and continued to impress last weekend in the her only home showing of the 2008 season. Wright finished third in the 100-meter hurdles with a season-best and NCAA Regional Qualifying-time of 13.40 at the Jesse Owens Classic. The time is the fourth-best time in Big Ten this year and the top time by a freshman in the conference. Wright also was a member of the Buckeyes 4×100-meter relay team that posted regional qualifying time of 45.51 at the Mt. Sac Relays. The time is ranked second in the Big Ten and 11th in the Mideast Region.
THE RETURN OF GRIFFIN
Jenna Harris returns for her final season as a Buckeye in the 2008 outdoor season. She returns to the team as Jenna Griffin after her marriage over the summer to former Ohio State sprinter Gerald Griffin. Jenna Griffin holds the Ohio State school record in the indoor 400-meter dash. She also holds the fourth and fifth-best times in Ohio State history in the 100-meter dash and holds the fourth and sixth-best times in OSU history in the 200-meter dash. Griffin is a three-time Big Ten champion and earned All-America honors in the 2007 indoor season in the 400-meter dash.
THE JATSEK’S: ALL-AMERICAN SIBLINGS
Veronica Jatsek and her brother, Lenny, are the first pair of Ohio State siblings competing in track & field to earn All-American honors in the same event in the same season. Both Jatsek siblings have earned indoor All-American honors at least twice. Veronica has earned All-American honors a total of three times with her outdoor All-American honor in 2007 in the hammer throw.
Jatsek earned All-American honors in the weight throw with her fourth-place finish with a distance of 70 feet, 3 3/4 inches. Jatsek has earned All-American honors three-consecutive seasons (2007 indoor weight throw, 2007 outdoor hammer, 2008 indoor weight throw). Jatsek joins Keturah Lofton (2004, 2006) and Katy Craig (2001-02) as the only Ohio State throwers to earn All-American honors twice in the weight throw while Jatsek and Craig are the only OSU throwers to pull it off in back-to-back seasons. As Jatsek heads into the outdoor season she will look to become the first Ohio State thrower to earn All-American honors in four-consecutive seasons.
With the points from Jatsek the Ohio State women’s track and field team finished tied for 39th at the 2008 Indoor NCAA Championships. Ohio State has had a thrower earn All-American honors in the weight throw in three-consecutive seasons. Since 2000, the OSU women’s team has had 17 indoor All-Americans and 31 total.
“We are very proud of the season’s accomplishments of Veronica,” Ohio State women’s head Coach Karen Dennis. “Veronica earned this honor through nothing other than hard work and commitment. We had hoped she would finish in the Top 3, but she certainly improved on last seasons seventh place finish at nationals and we are happy with that. She had solid throwing performances throughout the year including a Big Ten championship performance. Completing the season with an All-American honor is wonderful for Veronica and our program.”
JATSEK RETURNS TO DEFEND 2007 HONOR
The Big Ten announced its all-conference teams following the 2007 Women’s Indoor Championships in Champagne, Ill. Ohio State had two of the team’s top competitors honored. Veronica Jatsek was named second team All-Big Ten with her second-place finish in the weight throw. Jatsek’s toss of 68-5 3/4 is the fourth-best in Ohio State history and a season-best. It is an NCAA provisional qualifying toss and sixth-best in the country this season. Jatsek had the best throw by a non-senior by 12-11 1/4. It is Jatsek’s first Big Ten postseason award. Jatsek’s brother, Lenny, also took Big Ten honors in the weight throw after winning the league title in the men’s event. It is the first time that a brother-sister combination has taken All-Big Ten honors in the same year since Tonya and Tyrone Williams of Illinois were both on the All-Big Ten team in 1995.
UP NEXT
The Buckeye will take a week off and then qualified athletes will head to Fayetteville Ark., for the NCAA Mideast Regional Championships.
