Track Begins Postseason At SEC Indoors

Saturday, February 25

Fayetteville, AR

University of Georgia

SEC Indoor Championships

SEC Indoor Track and Field Championships on Friday, Feb. 26, 2022. (Sam Craft/www.samcraft.com)

Photo by: Sam Craft/www.samcraft.com

February 23, 2023 | Track & Field

2023_SECIndoorChampionships_Notes.pdf startlist_022223.pdf

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. --- The 10^th-ranked Georgia men and the 13^th-ranked Lady Bulldogs traveled to Fayetteville, Ark., on Wednesday in preparation for the Southeastern Conference Indoor Championships at the Randal Tyson Track Center scheduled for Friday and Saturday.

When Do The Bulldogs Start On Friday?: Freshman Ella Rush will start the action in the pentathlon at 1 p.m. ET on Friday.  The Repton, U.K., native will compete in the 60-meter hurdles, high jump, shot put, long jump and 800m over the course of the first day.

Senior Johannes Erm, who won SEC heptathlon titles in 2018 and 2019, is scheduled to begin his first conference indoor combined events competition in four years with the hep (60m) at 1:15 p.m. on the first day.  Erm will also complete the other three day one events (long jump, shot put, high jump) before finishing the final three events (60m hurdles, pole vault, 1000m) on Saturday.

While this marks Erm's first collegiate hep since 2021, his teammate, senior Kyle Garland, is the current collegiate leader and No. 2 all-time in the event and will join Erm in the multi-events at the NCAA Championships should Erm qualify.  The Bulldogs have won the last 10 SEC heptathlon titles.  Garland is expected to compete in the open hurdle and long jump at SECs.

Sophomore Nikolai van Huyssteen, who scored at his first SECs last year, and freshman Alon Rogow will start the open events in the pole vault at 2:30 p.m.  Senior Wesley John and sophomore KC Heron will be the first Bulldog competitors on the track in the men's mile prelims at 5 p.m. on Friday.

Who Is Ranked In The SEC?: A total of 20 SEC men and women's track and field programs are included in the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) top 25 national rankings released Monday, including four in the top five.

A nation leading 11 SEC men's teams are ranked: No. 1 Arkansas, No. 4 Tennessee, No. 7 Florida, No. 10 GEORGIA, No. 12 Alabama, No. 14 Kentucky, No. 17 South Carolina, No. 18 Texas A&M, No. 20 Mississippi State, No. 21 Ole Miss and No. 24 Auburn.

Also a nation best nine SEC women's teams are also ranked in the top 25:  No. 2 Arkansas, No. 3 Florida, No. 6 Alabama, No. 8 LSU, No. 10 Tennessee, No. 11 Texas A&M, No. 13 GEORGIA, No. 15 Ole Miss and No. 18 Kentucky.

Where To Catch The SEC Championships: The ESPN broadcast talent will include Dwight Stones, Dan O'Brien, Larra Overton and John Anderson during the meet coverage.

Broadcast info for SEC Indoor Championships:
Friday (2:30-4pm) - SECN+
LINK: http://gado.gs/a4f
Friday (5-9:30pm) - SECN+
LINK: http://gado.gs/a4g
Saturday (3-4pm) - SECN+
LINK: http://gado.gs/a4h
Saturday (5-8:30pm or until the awards are done) - SECN+
LINK: http://gado.gs/a4i

Sunday (8-11:30pm) - SECN (re-air)
SECN+ LINK: http://gado.gs/a4j

Live Results: For results throughout the weekend, please visit: http://gado.gs/a3v

Coach Caryl's Comments: "With the indoor season being so much shorter than outdoors, this meet always comes up quickly," said Caryl Gilbert Smith, who is in her second year as Georgia's head coach.  "We have done the work during the preseason and have now made progress during four weekends of regular season indoor meets. We have some individuals who are on the NCAA Championship bubble and there is no better place to elevate performances than against the best in the SEC. Looking forward to a great weekend. GO DAWGS!"

What Bulldogs Are Competing?: For the Lady Bulldogs, Leah Anderson, Mia Anderson, Charlotte Augenstein, Sophia Baker, Aaliyah Butler, Ana da Silva, Kenondra Davis, Ellie Hall, Elsie Igberaese, Kaila Jackson, Elena Kulichenko, Courtney Long, Titiana Marsh, Madison McConico, Dominique Mustin, Zoe Pollock, Brandee Presley, Simon Rojas, Ella Rush, Mikeisha Welcome, Autumn Wilson and Bella Witt traveled for SECs.

On the men's side, Gavin Beverage, Keshaun Black, Matthew Boling, Sam Bowers, Caleb Cavanaugh, Johannes Erm, Kyle Garland, Elija Godwin, Heron, John, Christopher Morales Williams, Clay Pender, Alencar Pereira, Alon Rogow, Will Sumner, Nikolai van Huyssteen and Ziggy Zoller will represent Georgia.

Make It A Three-Peat: Boling, who was a 2021 CoSIDA Third-Team Academic All-American, won his third SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year honor this week.  He has now been voted the league's elite student-athlete for the 2021 and 2023 indoor seasons and the 2022 outdoor campaign.  Boling ties Arkansas' Nathanael Franks (2013-15 outdoors) as the only male competitor to earn this accolade three different times.

Bulldog Vying For Bowerman: The Bowerman, which is presented annually by the USTFCCCA to the most outstanding male and female NCAA track and field student-athletes in the nation, announced its 2022 Mid-Indoor Watch Lists and Boling and Garland were included on the list.  Bulldog legend Keturah Orji brought home the 2018 Bowerman for the Lady Bulldogs.

Boling, a native of Houston, Texas, has the nation's fifth best 200m time this year, an altitude adjusted 20.49, and was part of the third fastest 4x400m relay this season after clocking a 3:02.90.  In addition, Boling's 300m from the Clemson Invitational (32.40) made him the No. 3 all-time collegiate performer with the No. 4 all-time collegiate performance.

Garland, a native of Philadelphia, Pa., exploded for 6,415 points to win the heptathlon at the Texas Tech Open & Multis.  This showing made him the No. 2 all-time collegiate performer with the No. 2 all-time collegiate performance.  Garland's school record score made him the No. 8 all-time world performer and put him No. 3 on the all-time American list.

A Glimpse At The 2022 SEC Championships: The Bulldog men finished seventh last year with 47 points while the Georgia women tallied 23 points for ninth place.  Garland tied the SEC record with his third heptathlon title and Boling split the crown in the 60m to give the Bulldogs their first title in the event to highlight the scoring for UGA.  In addition, Boling and his 4x400m relay partners set a school record to capture the championship.  The Lady Bulldogs had a pair of scorers in the high jump and Marsh was fourth in the long and triple jumps while da Silva set a school record with a third-place finish in the shot put.

What's Next For The Bulldogs?: After the SEC meet, the Bulldogs will train through the first weekend of March before traveling to Albuquerque, N.M., for the NCAA Indoor Championships (March 11-12).  The Albuquerque facility was scheduled to play host to the 2020 Nationals before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the meet a day before competition.

The Bulldogs then immediately start their outdoor season at the Yellow Jacket Invitational in Atlanta on March 17-18.  They will then play host to one home meet outdoors: Spec Towns & Torrin Lawrence Memorial – April 6-8.

Where To Find Bulldogs News: Results and recaps from the SEC Indoor Championships will be found at georgiadogs.com.  News and updates from Georgia's track and field and cross country teams are always located on Twitter/Instagram at @UGATrack.