Gators Set To Host Tom Jones Memorial Classic
Friday, April 15, 2011 | Track and Field
The University of Florida will play host to its final home track and field event of the 2011 season on Saturday when it entertains a number of impressive teams and athletes at the Tom Jones Memorial Classic. The event begins at 12 p.m. ET and it is free and open to the public.
The impressive field includes two-time defending NCAA men's and women's outdoor champion Texas A&M, nationally-ranked Nebraska and TCU. Other schools in the field include UCF, Eastern Michigan, Florida A&M, Florida Atlantic, Navy, Princeton and Tampa. Some standout post-collegians participating in the field include John Capel, Xavier Carter, Justin Gatlin, David Oliver, Tiandra Ponteen, Calvin Smith and Kellie Wells.
The meet is being held in honor of former longtime University of Florida women's track and field coach Tom Jones, who passed away on March 21, 2007 at the age of 62 after a courageous battle with cancer. He oversaw the Gator women's program for nearly half of its existence, serving as head coach for 15 of the program's 35 seasons to that point. He guided 71 athletes to 245 All-America honors on the track, while his teams posted a combined 15 top-10 finishes at the NCAA Indoor and Outdoor Championships.
“Anytime we can do something to honor Coach Jones, who meant a lot to me and to this program, it's an important and special thing,” Florida head coach Mike Holloway said. “It's going to be a great competition. What we are looking for from the Gators is that we are going to try to get a little better. We came out of the indoor season and got back to our fall base-training, so we've been a little dead-legged. We're starting to freshen up a little bit, so we're expecting some better performances this weekend. We're looking forward to some great competition from the other teams.
The Gator men enter this weekend's meet ranked No. 1 in the nation, while Florida's women are unranked. UF will feature a full host of competitors at the Tom Jones Memorial Classic, including defending NCAA 100-meter dash champion Jeff Demps (Winter Garden, Fla.), three-time NCAA Champion Christian Taylor (Fayetteville, Ga.) competing in the triple jump, and the two-time defending NCAA Champion 4x100-meter relay team.
For all of the latest information on University of Florida track and field, log on to www.GatorZone.com/trackfield or, for up-to-the-minute updates, follow the team's Twitter account @GZTrackField or www.twitter.com/GZTrackField.
TOM JONES MEMORIAL CLASSIC (APRIL 16, 2011 :: GAINESVILLE, FLA.)
Men's Hammer Throw – 12 p.m. ET
· Jeremy Postin
· David Triassi
Women's Discus – 2 p.m. ET
· Kaitlin Davis
· Keely Medeiros
· Ashley Miller
Women's High Jump – 2 p.m. ET
· Brittany Harrell
· Alexis Muniz
· Rebecca Goldring
Men's High Jump – 2:30 p.m. ET
· Frankie Hammond
· Bryan Turner
Men's Long Jump – 2:30 p.m. ET
· Josh Pederson
· Christian Taylor
Women's 4x100m Relay – 3 p.m. ET
· Florida
Men's 4x100m Relay – 3:10 p.m. ET
· Florida “A”
· Florida “B”
Women's Steeplechase – 3:15 p.m. ET
· Callie Cooper
Men's Steeplechase – 3:30 p.m. ET
· Anthony Morales
Women's 100m Hurdles (prelim) – 3:50 p.m. ET
· Katrina Dekrey
· Lorraine Graham
· Brittany Harrell
· Paige Morton
· Ugonna Ndu
Women's Shot Put – 4 p.m. ET
· Brittany Harrell
· Fidela James
· Keely Medeiros
Men's Pole Vault – 4 p.m. ET
· Eric Foran
· Max Lang
Men's 110m Hurdles (prelim) – 4:10 p.m. ET
· Jarius Cooper
· Eddie Lovett
· Kyle Mailloux
Women's Long Jump – 4:30 p.m. ET
· Lorraine Graham
· Daniela Griffin
Women's 3,000m – 4:30 p.m. ET
· Stephanie Strasser
Men's 3,000m – 4:45 p.m. ET
· Anthony Morales
Men's 110m Hurdles (final) – 5:05 p.m. ET
· Jarius Cooper
· Eddie Lovett
· Kyle Mailloux
Women's 100m Hurdles (final) – 5:15 p.m. ET
· Katrina Dekrey
· Lorraine Graham
· Brittany Harrell
· Paige Morton
· Ugonna Ndu
Women's 400m – 5:25 p.m. ET
· Michelle Stegall
Women's 100m – 5:55 p.m. ET
· Darshay Davis
Men's Javelin – 6 p.m. ET
· Zane Breakiron
· Stipe Zunic
Women's Javelin – 6 p.m. ET
· Fawn Miller
Men's 100m – 6:10 p.m. ET
· Jeff Demps
· Chris Rainey
· Terrell Wilks
Women's 800m – 6:20 p.m. ET
· Genevieve LaCaze
Men's 800m – 6:30 p.m. ET
· Sean Obinwa
· Derek Wehunt
Women's Pole Vault – 6:30 p.m. ET
· Daisy Glasser
· Morgan Scherschel
· Caitlin Schuessler
· Claire Spurling
Women's 400m Hurdles – 6:45 p.m. ET
· Amani Bryant
· Paige Morton
· Ugonna Ndu
· Ashley Usery
· Lanie Whittaker
Men's 400m Hurdles – 6:55 p.m. ET
· Eddie Lovett
· William Wynne
Women's 200m – 7:10 p.m. ET
· Darshay Davis
· Michelle Stegall
· Alishea Usery
· Danielle Williams
Men's 200m – 7:25 p.m. ET
· Jeff Demps, Blake Heriot
· Leonardo Seymore
· Christian Taylor
· Jovon Toppin
· Terrell Wilks
Women's 1,500m – 7:40 p.m. ET
· Sarah Davis
· Shelby Hayes
· Genevieve LaCaze
· Cory McGee
· Mandy Perkins
Men's 1,500m – 8 p.m. ET
· Dumisani Hlaselo
· James Uthmeier
Women's 4x400m Relay – 8:15 p.m. ET
· Florida
Men's 4x400m Relay – 8:25 p.m. ET
· Florida
