May 4, 2006

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. ---- The Samford University men's and women's track teams head to Cape Girardeau, Mo., for the 2006 O'Reilly Ohio Valley Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships on Friday and Saturday. The two-day event, set for May 5 and 6, at Southeast Missouri State's Stuber Track in Cape Girardeau, Mo., will feature seven men's teams and 10 women's teams.

The Bulldogs are looking to improve from the 2006 OVC Indoor Championships. The Samford women finished fourth, while the men finished fifth overall.

Samford has turned in a strong outdoor campaign. The Bulldogs have had seven conference athletes of the week; and, April Howell was named OVC Women's Field Athlete of the Year, while Cameron Bean was named OVC Men's Freshman of the Year. Additionally, the Bulldogs are among the 19 of top-eight marks on the OVC men's best list and 17 top-eight marks on the women's best list. The top-eight finishers in each event score for their team.

Howell looks to take the triple jump crown. The senior was named All-OVC following her third-place finish in the event during the indoor season, and currently leads the OVC with a leap of 40'01.50''. She also leads to OVC in the 100-meter hurdles, with a time of 14.06.

Two other Samford women are in the top-eight in the 100-meter hurdles. Daphne Anderson holds the third-best time in the conference, with a 14.49, and Lakeita Rox has the fifth-best time of 14.70. Anderson also has the eighth-fastest time in the women's 100-meters, with a time of 12.40. The women's 4x100-meter relay team posted the fifth fastest time in the OVC, with a 48.84.

Michelle Brewer looks to capture all-conference honors in both the 5000 meters and the 10,000 meters. Brewer currently leads the conference in the 5000 meters, with a time of 17:20.52. The senior ran the third-fastest time in the conference in the 10,000-meter run, posting a time of 38.11.09.

Samford has comprised a formidable crew in the 400-meter events. Kady Decker has the second-fastest 400-meter hurdles time, with a 1:03.82, and the fourth-fastest 400-meter time, with a 57.70. Anderson is eighth in the women's 400-meter hurdles with a 1:08.09, while Ashley Flowers is eighth in the women's 400 meters with a time of 58.39. Additionally, the women's 4x400-meter relay team has the fourth-fastest mark in the conference with a 3:55.21.

On the men's side, Michael Smith boasts the second-fastest 400-meter hurdles time. Smith, a regional qualifier in the event, ran a 52.01 to earn one of the top spots in the conference. The men's 4x400-meter relay team also owns the fifth-fastest mark in the event, with a 3:26.05.

In addition to Brewer, the Bulldogs also have a strong distance group. Robyn DeBenedet is third in the conference with a 4:36.16 in the women's 1500-meter run, and Katie Almand has the fourth-fastest women's 3000-meter steeplechase time, with a 12:04.90.

Three Samford men lead the conference in the men's 3000-meter steeplechase, while four lead the men's 5000 meters. Michael Hanson ran a 9:40.85 in the 3000-meter steeplechase, which is the fourth-fastest time in the conference. Chris West's 9:51.59 and Ricky McLain's 10:05.87 are seventh and eighth respectively in the event.

Cameron Bean, the 2006 OVC Men's Freshman of the Year, boasts the second-fastest time in the men's 5000 meters, with a time of 15:05.78. Drew Anderwald ran a 15:14.39, to turn in the OVC's third-best mark. Additional McClain ran a 15:21.74 for the seventh-fastest time and Bo Brawner ran a 15:27.22 for the eighth-best mark.

Anderwald has the sixth-best time in the OVC in the men's 10,000 meters, with a 33:19.93. Additionally, Bean turned in the conference's seventh-best mark with a 33:37.90 in the event.

Five Bulldogs are among the top-eight in the pole vault. Cameron Cardwell owns the second-best mark with an 11'05.75" in the women's pole vault. The Samford men have four vaulters in the top-eight. Trent Schmidt and Mark Holmes are tied for the fourth-best mark in the conference, with a 15'07.00''. James Steinberger is seventh in the conference with a 13'07.75'' and Jon Londeen is eighth with a 13'01.05''.

Laura Malnati looks to gain all-conference honors in the women's high jump. Malnati holds the second-best mark in the OVC with a 5'07.00''. Asa Ackerson turned in the sixth-best leap in the men's high jump, with a mark of 6'00.75''. Addionally Bill Kirtland looks to score in the men's triple jump. Kirtland currently holds the seventh-best mark in the conference, with a leap of 43'07.75''.

The Samford men's sprinters are among the top-eight in two other events. Justin Goetze owns the fifth-fastest 200-meter dash time, with a 52.01. The men's 4x100-meter relay team holds the fifth-fastest time of 43.27.

Competition gets underway at 1:00 p.m. Central on Friday and resumes on Saturday at 11:00 a.m. CT. Results will be available at www.ovcsports.com upon the completion of each day's events.