Meet Schedule | USF's All-Time Records
TAMPA – The University of South Florida women's track and field team will look to get things off on the right foot at the Oiler Invitational Friday and Saturday in Findlay, Ohio, as the Bulls open their 2009-10 season.
After getting in a full semester's training during the fall, a host of USF athletes, including a handful of freshmen, will get their first taste of competition at the Oiler Invitational, hosted by Findlay University, before heading home for Christmas break.
Welcome Newcomers
The USF coaches brought in a host of freshmen and a few junior college transfers to add depth to the Bulls' lineup for 2009-10, and those athletes will make their USF debuts this weekend.
Several speedsters will look to build off their strong preseason, including freshmen Dariel Jackson and Ena Johnson and junior college transfer Cinnamon Jenkins in the 60 and 200 meters as well as the 4x400. Jackson placed sixth at the Florida State meet last season in the 100, while Johnson, a state champion in the 300 hurdles, has also shown considerable talent in the sprints early on. Jenkins, a junior who sat out the 2009 season for USF, has displayed considerable improvement over the last year and will be counted on to give USF a strong presence in the sprints.
Two more rookies in Robyn Oakley and Rachel James will also look to make an impact in the 4x400, while Oakley will run in the 400 and James will run the 800. James helped Boyd Anderson High School to back-to-back 4x400 state relay titles, and Oakley, who like Johnson specializes in the hurdles, has also run the 400 and 800 meters throughout high school.
Freshman Tralanda Todd is scheduled for the 60 meters as well, but will also compete in the long and triple jump. Todd was a two-time member of her high school's 4x100 relay squad, and also took fourth at the state meet in the triple jump and competed in both at the USATF Junior Olympic Championships. She will be joined by junior college transfer MaShonda Rayner in both horizontal jumps as well.
Two more field athletes make their USF debut in rookies Courtney Anderson and Nicole Smith. Anderson comes in after capturing the state championship in the high jump in 2009 clearing 5-10, while Smith will add depth to the pole vault behind two-time NCAA Regional qualifiers Stephanie Duffy and Dana Webb.
Bringing Back the Talent
In addition to the host of newcomers making their debuts for the Bulls, a host of returnees will kick things off as well at the Oiler Invite.
Three seniors begin their last go-around with USF at the Invite in Yvana Hepburn, Samantha Shade and Kayla Richmond. Hepburn owns the USF record in the 60 hurdles, as she passed former Olympian Damu Cherry last season, while Shade has the second-best indoor triple jump mark in school history. Richmond will run both the 400 and 4x400 relay, as she looks to move up the all-time charts in the mid-distance events.
Juniors Webb and Duffy are looking to build off their solid first two seasons with USF, as Duffy ranks second and Webb stands fourth on the indoor pole vault record list.
Sophomores Lauren Noe and Atasha Warren are back and ready to compete in the weight throw during the indoor season after posting strong rookie campaigns themselves, as both earned spots on the top 10 list in the weight throw during 2009.
Sophomore Shaniel Chambers owns USF's 500-meter record and is inching up the 800-meter chart, as she currently stands fifth, four and a half seconds behind the all-time record holder, Bente General. Junior Rachel Etienne will compete in several events as she gets ready for the pentathlon during the indoor season, as she stands second all-time in USF's record book, and junior Meagan Smithyman will also join the squad up north in both the 800 and 4x400 relay.
Full Season Previews
In case you missed it, GoUSFBulls.com previewed every set of events, on both the men's and women's side, over the last few weeks. Below are the links to each preview:
Sprints/Relays
Hurdles
Mid-Distance/Distance
Jumps/Vaults
Throws
Combined Events
Indoor Best List
Because most incoming freshmen do not compete in indoor track and field during their high school careers, the Oiler Invite will also serve as their first taste of competition under a roof. But for USF's returnees, it's just business as usual, as those athletes boast at least one season of indoor experience.
To the right stands some of the best marks all-time by USF's current female athletes during the indoor season. For the outdoor personal bests for all of USF's women athletes, including the freshman, click here.
Coaching Staff, Year 2
The 2009-10 season will mark the second year in a row all five coaches have worked together, after associate head coach Lissa Olson and asisstant coach Dena Reif joined the program prior to the beginning of the Fall of 2009. Olson brings 18 years of experience at the collegiate level, while Reif, a former women's head track and field coach at Virginia Commonwealth, has been in coaching since the mid-1990's.
Head Coach Warren Bye begins his sixth year with the program and the fourth as the head coach after previous stops at Louisville and his alma mater, Indiana. The Bulls' other two assistant coaches, Toby Colyer and Don Marsh, begin their fourth and 12th years with the USF program. Colyer got his feet wet in coaching at Tennessee following his All-America career there, while Marsh owns 25 years of high school experience and spent three years at Division II Saginaw Valley State before coming south to Tampa.
Richmond Nominated for Homecoming Queen
Senior Kayla Richmond was one of four nominees for the 2009 Homecoming Queen during the homecoming week festivities in mid-November. Although she came up short in her quest, the support by Richmond's teammates during the process was truly noteworthy.
Up Next
Following the Christmas break, the Bulls head back to Ohio for the Akron Quad Jan. 15, hosted by the University of Akron.
