KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - After Tonny Okello's spectacular run to second place in the 5000m on Friday, the Jaguars look to make a splash in the Regional pool on Saturday and qualify more athletes for June's NCAA National Championships in Sacramento, Calif. Vincent Rono came up with South Alabama's first Mideast Regional Championship title, winning the 1500m in a near-meet record time of 3:44.59. The junior missed the Regional Championship top-mark of last year's champion Adam Perkins (Arkansas) by .06secs.
"I felt good and I knew I had a shot to win at the end, " Rono said, "I just went for it."
Rono was in third with one lap to go, trailing John Richardson of Kentucky and Tyler DeVault of host-school Tennessee. Making his move with 150m left, Rono used his patented kick to distance himself from the field and qualify for the NCAA National Championships in Sacramento, Calif., June 7-10.
Okello, who led part of the race, held one to score in eighth position with a time of 3:50.82. The eleven points was the most the Jaguars had ever scored in one event at the Regionals. It also gave the South Alabama 19 points after nine events, good for fifth place at the time. The previous record for points at the Regional Championships for the men's team was four points scored by current Jaguar graduate assistant Justin Cummins in 2004 when he finished fifth in the javelin.
Forty-five minutes later, Rono tried to double-up in the 800m, but the feat proved to be too much. The junior finished eighth in 1:56.85. He did score pushing South Alabama's final point total to 20. The men's team finished in place overall, the highest ever finish for any Jaguar track and field team.
Junior Ajoke Odumosu finished third in the 400m hurdles with a time of 56.32. She trailed meet record-setter Markita James of Auburn (54.54- sixth fastest time in the world) and Josanna Lucas (55.73), also of Auburn. Odumosu was second as a freshman in the 2004 Regional and qualifies for the NCAA Nationals for the second time in her career.
Odumosu had a slight hip injury during the race, and it was decided that the women's 4x400m relay would not compete.
Cummins, Odumosu, and graduating senior Florence Edi (2005) are the most recent Jaguars to have qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships. The men's distance medley relay team of Vincent Rono, Anthony Murphy, Harry Larubi, and Okello became the first relay team from South Alabama to qualify for the Indoor Nationals where they finished ninth.
Outdoor Track and Field Schedule
June 7-10 - NCAA Championships
