Gator Men First in Track & Field News Relay Rankings
Wednesday, September 2, 2009 | Track and Field
The Florida men's track and field team's dynamic relay corps helped the Gators place first in the Track & Field News 53rd Annual Relay Rankings, the publication's October 2009 issue announced.
The Gators' strong 2009 campaign included an NCAA Outdoor Championship in the men's 4x100-meter relay. It marks Florida's first crown in the Relay Rankings since the 2005 season.
Track & Field News writer Walt Murphy says in the article, “Event wins in the 4x1 and the shuttle hurdles plus the 4x2 runner-up spot and a 4x4 fifth gave Mike Holloway's Gators a 1-point win over middle-distance-strong Arkansas.”
The Florida men's 4x100-meter relay team posted the nation's fastest time (38.57) in the preliminaries of the NCAA Outdoor Championships and went on to win the program's first national title in that event since 2004 in a time of 38.58. The relay team consisted of Dennis Martin (Anderson, S.C.), Calvin Smith (Lutz, Fla.), Terrell Wilks (New Haven, Conn.) and Jeremy Hall (Jacksonville , Fla.). It marked the third 4x100-meter relay NCAA Championship in men's school history. Florida's 4x100m squad also captured the 2009 SEC Outdoor Championship.
The men's shuttle hurdle relay team in April captured the Championship of America title at the Penn Relays for the second consecutive year. The Florida quartet of Kallinka Pitt (Largo, Fla.), Martin, William Wynne (Marietta, Ga.) and Jarius Cooper (Palm Coast, Fla.) broke the school record in that event in a time of 54.30. That shattered the previous school record of 54.76, set during the 2004 campaign.
Florida's 4x400-meter relay team, which won the SEC Indoor Championship, placed fourth nationally outdoors, while the 4x200-meter relay team was second at the Penn Relays.
Events are scored 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 (5-4-3-2-1 for the shuttle hurdles). Neither club teams including eligible collegians nor all-star teams with members who later ran on their collegiate teams are eligible.
The rankings reflect season-long performances.
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TRACK & FIELD NEWS 53rd ANNUAL RELAY RANKINGS (Men)
1. Florida – 30
2. Arkansas – 29
3. Baylor – 28
4. Texas A&M – 27
5. Oregon – 20
6. South Carolina – 18
7. Florida State – 17
8. Texas – 16
T9. LSU – 13
T9. St. Augustine – 13
END OF REPORT
