Mississippi State
SEC Championships (O)
Harris Opens SEC Championships By Setting Record
May 14, 2009 | Track & Field
Despite heavy rains that forced a three-hour delay at the University of Florida's Percy Beard Track at James G. Pressley Stadium, the Memphis native opened the first leg of the heptathlon with an SEC meet record of 13.18 seconds in the 100-meter hurdles, breaking her own mark of 13:20 set last year.
“That was a great run,” MSU coach Al Schmidt said. “She got off to a good start.”
Despite Harris' effort, which was the ninth fastest mark in the nation this season and qualifies her for next month's regionals, she enters Friday's final two legs (long jump and javelin) in second place with 3,408 points.
Harris finish tied for second in the high jump, seventh in the shot put and fourth in the 200-meter dash.
“After the hurdles, Marrissa was a little off,” Schmidt said. “But she's still where she needs to be for a chance to win.”
The All-American Harris wasn't the only Lady Bulldog to have a good day.
Junior LaQuinta Aaron, who finished second last year, is currently sixth with 3,285 points.
After finishing second in the hurdles (a regional qualifying time of 13.32) and 11th in the high jump, she was sixth in the shot put and first in the 200-meter dash with a regional qualifying mark of 23.94.
“She started the day good and ended the day good,” Schmidt said. “She had two impressive races, and she has a chance to finish in the top three.”
The rain delay put the men's decathlon way behind schedule. However, MSU's Tevarus Christian got off to an outstanding start by winning the 100-meter dash with a time of 10.96 seconds, while Antoine Lipscomb followed suit with a first-place finish in the long jump (6.90m) and Daryl Brady was first in the high jump (2.04m).
After four of the 10 events, Brady is fourth with 2,892 points, while Christian is sixth with 2,814 points, followed by Lipscomb at seventh place with 2,711 points.
Players Mentioned
