Florida Gators
Penn Relays
Sundell Breaks School Mark in Steeplechase, Kruzel Joins List of Qualified at Penn Relays
Friday, April 28, 2006 | Women's Track and Field
As the sun set into the evening sky at the prestigious Penn Relays, University of Florida women's track and field junior Lindsay Sundell (Northport, N.Y.) shattered her school record time in the 3,000m steeplechase and freshman Jacy Kruzel (Cooper City, Fla.) became the 19th Gator to qualify for the NCAA East Regional meet at the end of May with a PR clocking in the 5,000m race as the final UF athlete to participate in the opening night in Philadelphia, Pa.
Sundell bested her previous PR time of 10:40.51 by over 19 seconds as she crossed the finish line in 10:21.10 en route to finishing third in the 3,000m steeplechase. Her time is the fastest of any athlete in the Southeastern Conference by more than 20 seconds and ranks ninth nationally. Kruzel reaped the benefits of an extremely fast 5,000m race and placed eighth in the field with a PR time of 16:51.06, which is seventh in school history and fifth in the SEC.
“We had a very good day today, and I'm extremely proud of Lindsay Sundell, Jacy Kruzel and Dara Altman,” UF women's head coach Tom Jones said. “They all had good days and really did a nice job of competing. Jacy and Lindsay got in some very fast races, and I'm happy that we could get Jacy qualified for the regional meet. Our 4x100m relay survived some rough handoffs, and we qualified the group for the finals tomorrow afternoon. Overall, it was a good day, and we look forward to building on this momentum tomorrow.”
Senior pole vaulter Dara Altman (Tampa, Fla.) became the second UF athlete in as many meets to clear the bar at 4.00m turning in a second place finish in the process. Her mark of 4.00m/13-1.50 is her PR in outdoor competition and places her fifth in the NCAA East Region and in the top 20 nationally. Sophomore Natalie Moser (Tampa, Fla.) reached her third NCAA East Regional qualifying mark in the event as well, vaulting 3.80m/12-5.75 and placing eighth.
The 4x100m relay team of All-American sophomores Lakecia Ealey (Albany, Ga.), Natalie Knight (Snellville, Ga.), senior All-American Nadine Palmer (Manchester, Jamaica) and junior Dominique McLeggan (Weston, Fla.) crossed the finish line under the regional qualifying standard time of 45.70, placing eighth with a collective clocking of 45.51. The quartet will compete in the 4x100m finals Friday at 12:50 p.m. EST.
Also on the relay front, the 4x400m tandem of sophomore Abigail David (Port-of-Spain, Trinidad & Tobago), freshman Nene Kamate (Jamaica, N.Y.), sophomore All-American Zan Joseph (Boynton Beach, Fla.) and McLeggan reached its second qualifying time of the season with a clocking of 3:40.69. They finished third in their heat and will compete in the consolation final Friday evening.
The remainder of the Gator squad will compete in a medley of events Friday as the meet continues into its second day. Action from the City of Brotherly Love wraps up with the final events on Saturday.
Fans can follow along with the women's squad via live results online at www.pennathletics.com.
