University of Georgia Athletics
Williams, Chapman At It Again
April 07, 2016 | Track & Field
By John Frierson
UGAAA Staff Writer
Four women's heptathlon events were held Wednesday afternoon at Spec Towns Track, and based on the results it was just like old times.
There were Kendell Williams and Quintunya Chapman going at it again, though with a new twist. A year ago they were Georgia teammates and roommates, and two of the top collegiate multi-event track and field athletes in the country. Now, with Chapman's eligibility completed last spring and Williams, a junior, still among the very best in the country, they're competing as ... friendly rivals?
"It is a little weird for her to still be in that Georgia uniform, just as it's weird for me to be unattached," Chapman said. "Me and my mom discussed how weird it is that I'm not wearing red and black. I really do miss being part of the team. Collegiate sports, it's something that you really appreciate when you're done, and so it's been a mental battle doing this meet."
At the end of day one of the Bulldog Decathlon/Hepathlon, Williams was in the lead with 3,715 points. Chapman, competing unattached (neither for school nor country), was second at 3,550. In third, coincidentally, was Georgia Ellenwood, of Wisconsin, with 3,510 points.
The NCAA heptathlon champion as a freshman in 2014 and runner-up last spring, Williams won the first two events Wednesday. She took the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 13.39 seconds and won the high jump, clearing 5 feet, 11.25 inches.
Williams, who in March won her third straight NCAA Indoor Championships pentathlon title (with her third straight NCAA record score), also placed third in the shot put and the 200-meter dash. She was in the lead after day one —nothing new for her — but not exactly thrilled with her performances.
"I was hoping for a lot better, in EVERY event. Hopefully I can do better in the three events tomorrow," Williams said.
Chapman, who didn't take up the multi-events until her junior year at Georgia, is still in school, finishing her undergraduate degree, and still training with Georgia track coach Petros Kyprianou. The Bulldog Decathlon/Hepathlon is her first event since the NCAA Championships last spring, in which she placed third.
Williams and Chapman both held the school record in the pentathlon at times last season.
Race rusty Chapman may now be, she still had a strong day one. Chapman won the shot put with a throw of 44 feet, 11.75 inches, was second in the 100-meter hurdles, second in the 200 meters and tied for fourth in the high jump.
"It's not up to par," Chapman said. "I'm not completely shocked with it, just because this is my first competition back. I'm trying to get my body back in that competitive mode and not practice mode. Just because we practice here every day, it's still really hard for me to get my mojo back and compete up to par where I'm supposed to be right now."
Williams was actually competing against a pair of former teammates Wednesday, along with current teammate and multi-event newcomer Mary Terry. Along with Chapman there was Xenia Rahn, who competed for the Bulldogs in the indoor season as a graduate transfer.
Rahn competed in the first three events before pulling out of the last event of the day, the 200 meters, with an injury. Terry ended Wednesday's four events in eighth place, with 2,724 points.
"I told [Chapman] before the hurdles, it's funny because I'm competing against former teammates. Xenia was my teammate like three weeks ago and now she's not. We're all here together, but all in different gear," Williams said. "It's funny, but it's good to compete against them still."
It was a good day all-around for the Williams family. Kendell's older brother, Devon, a Georgia senior, was in fourth place in the men's decathlon after day one. Devon posted person bests in both the long lump (24-9.25) and the shot put (43-6).
"I wish I was able to see it," Kendell said of her brother in action. The men's and women's events go on simultaneously, so there's little time to be a spectator.
Another Bulldog, sophomore Karl Saluri, leads the decathlon after five events.
John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
Players Mentioned
