As the 2014 NCAA Outdoor Championships came to a close in Eugene, Ore. , 10 Gamecock track and field competitors left the West Coast as All-Americans.
South Carolina brought home second-team All-America honors via the men’s 4×100m relay team as well as the women’s 4×100m squad and women’s 4×400m relay. Senior Petra Olsen also nabbed a spot on the second-team All–America list in the pole vault.
While first-team honors are reserved for those who finish in the top eight of an event, second-team All-America honors are given to those who finish between ninth and 16th place in an event.
The Gamecocks also saw five members draw recognition as honorable mentions. Of the five honorable mentions, four of the participants were underclassmen. Freshman Jussi Kanervo in the men’s 400mH, redshirt freshman Kaleb Zuidema in the men’s javelin, sophomore Tyler Brockington in the women’s 400mH and redshirt sophomore Ahtyana Johnson round off the list of Gamecock underclassmen who claimed honorable mention spots. Senior Chris Royster was slowed by a cramp during the first day of competition and was unable to finish the 100m dash semifinals. He was scratched the ensuing day before he was able to run in the 200m dash semifinals.
The men’s 4×100m relay team, which was made up of sophomore Kendall Kee, senior Chris Royster, sophomore Brandon Sanders and junior Eric Winfrey, was able to pull in a 14th-place finish at the championships.
For the women’s 4×100m relay team, sophomore Tyler Brockington, junior Tamera Harris and sophomores Ahtyana Johnson and Alexis Murphy reeled in a team-best 12th-place finish.
Freshman Briana Haith took the place of Murphy as the trio of Brockington, Harris and Johnson remained intact for the 4×400m relay. South Carolina was able to finish 16th in the 4×400m relay.
Senior Petra Olsen claimed 12th place in the women’s pole vault at the championships. She was the only Gamecock to receive All-America recognition in an individual event.
Zuidema launched a 62.47-meter heave in the men’s javelin, which was his best. The throw landed him a 21st-place finish in his first NCAA Outdoor Championships appearance. Zuidema won a bronze medal in the event earlier this season at the SEC Championships.
At the end of the 2014 NCAA Outdoor Championship, the tournament saw five SEC schools finish in the top 10 of the men’s competition and six SEC schools finish in the top 10 of the women’s competition.
Teams from Florida, Georgia, Texas A&M, Arkansas and LSU each claimed top 10 finishes from their men’s and women’s programs.
Head coach Curtis Frye attributes the SEC’s continued success in track and field to the conference’s ties to athletes in the South.
“Track and field in the SEC has a lot of pride; it’s from the South,” Frye said. “Track and running fast is kind of synonymous with the South.”
Frye also praised the facilities of the SEC, saying that top recruits are drawn to the state-of-the-art facilities.