TAMPA - Despite the loss of a three-time NCAA qualifier, the University of South Florida track and field team will be well-positioned in the vaults and jumps during the 2010 season. Add in several state finalists, including a pair of state champions, and the Bulls will have no problem scoring points at the BIG EAST Championships.
Perhaps USF's strongest event overall is the pole vault, where the Bulls return a former BIG EAST champion as well as two other NCAA Regional qualifiers. To top it off, the program brought in the three best Florida state pole vaulters on the men's side.
Senior Sean Young is back after missing the 2009 outdoor season due to a thumb injury. Young will attempt to repeat as BIG EAST champion after winning the title in 2008 and finishing 14th at the NCAA Championships. Young already owns the second-best mark in school history.
The women return a pair of vaulters looking to reach new heights, as juniors Dana Webb and Stephanie Duffy rank either second, third or fourth on the all-time list in both the indoor and outdoor record books. Both are two-time NCAA Regional qualifiers, while Duffy earned All-BIG EAST honors by finishing third at the outdoor championships, where Webb also took sixth.
The Bulls will be without the services of Grant Scelzi during the outdoor season, as the senior only has one year of eligibility remaining for the indoor season. Scelzi finished 11th at the NCAA East Regional in the pole vault and finished his outdoor career with the third-best mark in school history behind Young.
USF will have the services of three freshmen who went 1-2-3 at the Florida state championships in 2009, including state champion Mike Vani, who broke the state record by clearing 16-8. He was named to the All-Decade Team by flrunners.com.
Sean Zuppke and Wyatt Metzger finished second and third, respectively, behind Vani at the state meet. The two have also competed outside the state in national competition, with Zuppke taking fourth at the Golden South Classic as a senior and Metzger taking seventh at the Nike Indoor Championships while also competing at the USATF Junior Track and Field Championships in 2008.
The men's team will need to make up for the loss of three-time NCAA qualifier Errol Blackmon in the high jump, with senior Michael Kursteiner ready to compete for a BIG EAST title. Kursteiner finished seventh at the BIG EAST meet but sixth at the NCAA East Regional. Blackmon left the program ranking third all-time at 7-1, while Kursteiner currently owns the fifth-best mark at 6-10.75.
USF will be in good hands in the triple and long jumps, as junior Antillio Bastian returns after setting the school record in the triple jump in 2009 with a leap of 51-3.5. Bastian also competed in the long jump, holding the second-best mark for USF last season behind Kursteiner. Both have already earned spots on USF's all-time top 10 list in both events.
Joining them in 2010 will be freshman Eric McMillan, who arrives at USF after placing second in the triple jump at the state championships his senior season. He was also a two-time district champion in the high jump and competed at the regional meet in all three jumps.
Junior Rachael Etienne and senior Samantha Shade provide firepower in the long and triple jumps for the women's team. Shade took fourth in the triple jump at the BIG EAST meet last season, while Etienne qualified for the long jump but competed in the heptathlon. Shade ranks sixth in the triple jump all-time, while Etienne ranks tied for fourth in the long jump.
Giving USF a boost in the triple jump will be freshman Tralanda Todd, who place fourth at the state meet in 2009 and competed at the National Junior Olympic Track and Field Championships in both 2008 and '09.
USF also brought in two more competitors to battle it out in the long and triple jumps in junior college transfer MaShonda Rayner and freshman Miriam Skipper. Rayner will perform in both events, while Skipper will compete in the long jump.
Sophomore Alex Rosenberger was USF's top performer on the women's side in the high jump, but will compete in the multi-events in 2010. To fill that void, USF brought in the state champion in the high jump in Courtney Anderson. She placed third, fourth and second her first three years before capturing the title last season.
Stay tuned to GoUSFBulls.com for the next season preview, the hurdles, on Monday.
