Mullins-Hall Qualifies for NCAA Regionals with Solid Hurdle Effort at Jesse Owens Classic 5/4/03

COLUMBUS, Ohio - A solid performance in the 100-meter hurdles Saturday at the Jesse Owens Classic removed any doubt if Vanderbilt hurdler Amanda Mullins-Hall will compete at the upcoming NCAA Regional Championships.

The improving freshman secured her participation in the NCAA Regionals with a 13.77 effort. Mullins-Hall easily bettered the NCAA qualifying mark of 14:10 with the performance.

Mullins-Hall was the only Commodore to qualify for the NCAA Regional Championships this weekend at the Owens Classic on the Ohio State University campus, though several athletes performed well, including 800-meter specialist Cicely Campbell, vaulter Paige Roberts and thrower Vensherrie Campbell.

The Commodores, under the direction of Head Coach Lori Shepard, will not compete this week as they prepare for the Southeastern Conference Championships on May 14-17 in Knoxville.
Mullins-Hall, from Cincinnati, Ohio, needed the performance to solidify her status for both the upcoming NCAA and SEC meets where she will meet many off the nation’s top hurdlers.

Running against three hurdlers who are likely to contend in the NCAA Regional, Mullins-Hall put together arguably her best effort of the year. Her seasonal best of 13:51, a school record set two weeks ago at the Vanderbilt Invitational, was fast but wind-aided and did not feature the competition witnessed at the Jesse Owens Classic. The 13.77 effort is .27 better than Mullins-Hall’s second best performance and indicates she is nearing top form for the upcoming SEC and NCAA meets.

In other action at the meet, Cicely Campbell finished seventh in the invitational 800 meters with a 2:13.72 clocking. The senior, who has a career best of 2:08.16, needs to better 2:10.30 at the SEC meet to qualify for the NCAAs.

Running in the same 800-meter race, a pair of Commodore runners who usually run 1,500 meters or longer, senior Colleen Byrne and freshman Caitlin Shannon, finished eighth and 11th with times of 2:14.46 and 2:14.67, respectively.

Junior Vensherrie Campbell finished seventh in the discus (148’8”) and ninth in the shot put (44’11.75”), while sophomore Josie Hahn finished eighth in the 100-meter hurdles (14.88) and ninth in the javelin (127’9”).

Roberts, the sophomore pole vaulter who set a team outdoor mark at the Vanderbilt Invitational, was unsuccessful in her attempt to clear the 12’0” NCAA standard. She finished ninth with a 11’0” clearance.

On Friday, VU’s Nadiyah Humber, Erika Schneble and Alisa Cotter finished fourth, sixth and seventh in the open-division 1,500 meters with times of 4:47.58, 4:48.28 and 4:51.90, respectively. Freshman Latisha Bryant finished sixth in the open-division 800 meters with a 2:18.63.