TRACK AND FIELD HOSTS BIG SOUTH CHAMPIONSHIPS FRIDAY AND SATURDAY

Friday, February 28

Blacksburg, Va.

All Day

Radford University

Big South Indoor Championships

TRACK AND FIELD HOSTS BIG SOUTH CHAMPIONSHIPS FRIDAY AND SATURDAY

2/27/2014 10:47:00 AM | Men's Track and Field, Women's Track and Field, Track & Field

Follow @RadfordTrack Tweet #RUTF

RADFORD, Va. – The Rector Field House has become Radford track and field's home away from home this season. When the program hosts the Big South indoor championships, Friday and Saturday, it will mark the fourth time the Highlanders have competed in Blacksburg this year.

Competition commences at 10 a.m. Friday with the heptathlon's 60-meter dash. The women's distance medley relay is slated to be the final event of the opening day at 6:35 p.m. Action resumes at 10 a.m. Saturday with the heptathlon's 60-meter hurdles. The women's 4x400-meter relay closes out the championships at 4:40 p.m.

VT CHALLENGE RECAP
Teresa Williamson and Katie Hickey turned some heads on the final day of the VT Challenge. With three school records already to her credit this season, Williamson added the 800 meters to her collection by running a 2:12.01. Not only was that good enough to beat Virginia Tech's Shalonda Mitchell by .56 of a second, but her time eclipsed Amy Gediman's school-record 2:15.29, which was set at the 2003 Big South indoor championships. Based on her performance, Williamson climbs to second in the Big South rankings entering the conference championships.

However, Williamson was not the only one making headlines in the event. Hickey, who was running unattached, knocked nearly 20 seconds off her personal best to finish fourth in the race at 2:13.66. That being said, the school record would have been broken even if Williamson did not run.

RUNNING WITH THE RED, WHITE AND BLUE
Junior hurdler Vincent Wyatt got an opportunity of a lifetime when he qualified to compete at the USA Indoor Track and Field Championships over the weekend in Albuquerque, N.M. He advanced to the semifinals following his 7.89 effort in the qualifying round. In the semifinals, Wyatt sprinted a 7.84 to finish as the top collegian. The event featured former Olympic medalists Terrence Trammell and Omoghan Osaghae.

REWRITING RADFORD RECORDS
Nine current Highlanders have their names in the program's record books entering this weekend:

EVENT	RECORD HOLDER	TIME	MEET	DATE
200 meters	Joseph Betts	21.54	Big South Championships	02/22/13
5,000 meters	Ryan Farnan	14:47.29	Big South Championships	02/22/13
60-meter hurdles	Vincent Wyatt	7.76	VT Invitational	01/18/13
Heptathlon	Phillip Hovatter	4,641 points	Big South Championships	02/25/12
800 meters	Teresa Williamson	2:12.01	VT Challenge	02/22/14
Mile	Teresa Williamson	4:57.95	Hokie Invitational	01/24/14
3,000 meters	Teresa Williamson	9:51.60	Akron Invitational	02/08/14
5,000 meters	Teresa Williamson	17:26.10	Akron Invitational	02/07/14
60-meter hurdles	Amber Church	8.66	VT Challenge	02/18/11

BEST OF THE BIG SOUTH
Vincent Wyatt continues to hold the top time for the 60-meter hurdles among Big South student-athletes. His 7.78 performance at the Virginia Tech Invitational is the second-fastest time in program history. In addition, that time currently ranks 15^th in the nation. If he remains inside the top 16, Wyatt will qualify for the NCAA indoor championships in a couple weeks.

KEEP UP WITH THE HIGHLANDERS
Fans are encouraged to follow @RadfordTrack on Twitter to keep up with the Highlanders over the next two days. Also, follow @ru_athletics on Instagram for videos throughout each day. Live results will be provided at this link.