April 6, 2006

AUSTIN, Texas ---- The Samford University's Michael Smith turned in a solid performance at the 79th annual Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays, hosted by the University of Texas on Thursday at the Mike A. Myers Track.

Smith ran a 52.60 in the men's 400-meter hurdles, his fastest mark of the year. The Texas native finished second in his preliminary heat, but was unable to advance to the finals of the competition. The 2005 NCAA Regional Qualifier also fell short of qualifying for the 2006 NCAA Regional Championships. Smith is now 0.09 seconds from qualifying.

The 79th annual Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays continue on Friday and Saturday. Laura Malnati will compete in the high jump on Friday, along with the men's 4x1500-meter relay team. Robyn DeBenedet will run in the women's 1500-meter run on Saturday. Live results will be posted at www.texassports.com throughout the day.