Track Starts SECs With Array Of Scorers, Qualifiers

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. --- Georgia track and field had five scorers and nine qualifiers on the opening day of the Southeastern Conference Indoor Championships at the Randal Tyson Track Center Friday.

Freshman Kaila Jackson celebrated her first conference meet with the 13^th-ranked Lady Bulldogs by topping her own school record with a 7.15 in the 60-meter dash to finish as the top qualifier in the event.  This tied for the nation's sixth-fastest time coming into the weekend.  Fellow first-year sprinter Autumn Wilson complemented her teammate's performance by also qualifying for the final with a 7.24.

This pair then advanced in the 200m with a duo of personal records.  In addition to that pair of qualifiers, two other Lady Bulldogs scored on the first day.  The 10^th-ranked Bulldog men had three competitors finish in the top eight to score.  Five other Georgia men's team members punched tickets to track finals.

Scorers for Georgia on Saturday included: sophomore Nikolai van Huyssteen (men's pole vault), freshman Ella Rush (pentathlon), senior Alencar Pereira (men's weight throw), Kyle Garland (men's long jump), Titiana Marsh (women's long jump).

The Bulldog qualifiers included: sophomore Keshaun Black (men's 60m), Jackson (women's 60m/200m), Wilson (women's 60m/200m), senior Elija Godwin (men's 400m), freshman Will Sumner (men's 800m), senior Matthew Boling (men's 200m), senior Kyle Garland (men's 60m hurdles).

Through four of 17 events scored on the men's side, Alabama (25 points), Arkansas (21) and Ole Miss (20) make up the top three while Georgia is tied for eighth with 10 points.  The Lady Bulldogs (7) are tied for ninth with five of 17 events scored as Arkansas (39), Kentucky (24.33) and Florida (24) are currently the top three.

When Do The Bulldogs Start On Saturday?: Erm and Zoller will get back into action during the hep's final three events (60mH, pole vault, 1000m) starting at 1 p.m. ET on day two.

The first open field event for UGA on Saturday is the women's high jump at 3:15 p.m. and will feature 2022 SEC indoor scorer and All-American Elena Kulichenko.  Georgia's first event on the track is the men's 60m final, which will feature Keshaun Black.

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

Broadcast info for SEC Indoor Championships:
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

The Lowdown: Garland, who is two weeks away from competing at Nationals as the country's heptathlon leader, started with a personal best in the long jump (7.72 meters/25 feet, 4 inches) before inching up to 7.85m/25-9.25 on his second try.  The Philadelphia, Pa., native took off for a third attempt that measured 7.95m/26-1 to earn him sixth place and vault him from eighth to second on the school's all-time top-10 list.  Garland sat out the three rounds of the final.

After his third attempt in the long jump, Garland lined up in the 60m hurdle prelims and promptly bolted down the track in a personal best 7.82.  Clinching the eighth and final qualifying spot in the hurdles, Garland improved his No. 4 spot on UGA's all-time top-10 list.

Van Huyssteen became Georgia's first scorer of the day after improving his 2022 finish by three spots in the pole vault.  The South African battled through two third attempt clearances, finishing up at 5.30m/17-4.50 for fifth place.  This matched his No. 5 entry in the school record books.

Marsh competed in the first of two events on the weekend by taking sixth in the long jump.  Her longest effort measured 6.11m/20-0.50 to help her become a rare four-time scorer in the event indoors.

With fifth and seventh place finishes already on his resume at the meet, Pereira sent his second try in the weight throw 21.24m/69-8.25 to finish in the top eight for the third time in his career at the SEC Indoor Championships.  This mark earned Pereira a sixth-place finish at his final league indoor meet.

Georgia's qualifiers added up on the first day of action as well.  Less than a month after she toppled the five-year-old record in the 60m, Jackson dropped the school's all-time best yet again with a 7.15 to be the top qualifier.  Her previous school record was 7.16.  Wilson, a native of Austin, Texas, ran out of Jackson's heat as well and was third in the heat and sixth overall to advance.  The Lady Bulldog pair will race in the final at 5:32 p.m. on day two.

In the 200m, Jackson moved to No. 2 in the school record books with a 23.03 and Wilson took over the No. 3 spot on the all-time list with a 23.07 to both advance to the final.  The Lady Bulldog duo will line up in the 200m final at 6:45 p.m.

Another career best and final qualifier came from Godwin in the 400m prelims.  The Covington, Ga., native left no doubt in the fifth heat as he clocked a 45.36 to finish with the second-fastest qualifying in the prelims.  This tops his 45.37 from the meet two years ago, which ranked second in the school record books.  Godwin is no stranger to top-three finishes in the 400m at SEC Indoors, having taken third in 2020 and second in 2021.  He will race in the final on Saturday at 5:45 p.m.

Boling made his 2023 SEC debut in the 200m and did not disappoint.  The Houston, Texas, native grabbed top honors in his heat and had the fourth-fastest qualifying time with a 20.63.  Taking second his freshman year in 2020, Boling will now race in another 200m final at 6:35 p.m. on day two.

Sumner completed his first SEC race by winning his heat and taking sixth overall in the 800m prelims.  After getting squeezed out of the first group on the initial turn, Sumner stayed fifth or sixth through the first two laps.  He then shot into the lead on the final 200m and finished smoothly in 1:50.00.  Sumner will race in the 800m final at 6:05 p.m. on the second day.

Black, a native of Mooresville, N.C., punched his ticket to the 60m final after winning the opening heat.  He sped to a 6.68, which ended up being the fourth-fastest time of the race.  Black will race in the 60m final at 5:25 p.m.

A trio of Bulldogs also competed in the combined events as Rush finished fifth in the pentathlon with 4,081 points.  Additionally, senior Johannes Erm tallied 3,276 points through four events of the heptathlon and trails the leader by 181 points.  Ziggy Zoller heads into Saturday in 10^th place after adding up 2,987 points on day one.

Rush completed her second collegiate pentathlon to score four points for the Lady Bulldogs.  Rush started her first event with an 8.90 in the 60m hurdles, putting her in 11^th place with 931 points.  The Repton, U.K., native inched into 10^th place overall after a 1.69m/5-6.50 clearance in the high jump.  Rush started with five first attempt clearances and ended up sixth in the event.

In the third event, Rush stuck a shot put effort of 11.58m/38-0 between her first and third attempts to take fifth.  This mark put her in scoring position (eighth) for the first time.  Rush shot out of the gates with her top long jump of her brief Georgia career (6.08m/19-11.50) and that mark ended up putting her fourth in the event and seventh overall headed into the finale.

Rush completed the 800m in the same spot where she finished overall, wrapping up her four laps in fifth (2:21.68).

In the heptathlon, it was Zoller who had the fastest Georgia time with a 6.96 in the 60m for 897 points to start the first of four events in the hep on Friday.  Erm ran out of the same heat and finished in 7.03 for 872 points.  Zoller was in the fourth spot while Erm was in sixth after the opening event.

Erm sandwiched his top mark in the long jump (7.34m/24-1) to finish second, moving to third overall.  Zoller's top effort 7.11m/23-4 came on his first try, which put him fourth in the event and in the competition.

Erm registered his first personal record of the day in the shot put after his opening attempt measured 14.79m/48-6.25 to take second.  This also surged him into second overall.  Zoller finished the third event in seventh overall after launching an effort of 12.27m/40-3.25, which was the ninth best in the competition.

The hep's first day concluded with the high jump.  Erm reached a top height of 1.92m/6-3.50 to finish fourth in the event and trail the leader overall by 181 points in second.  Zoller's clearance of 1.80m/5-10.75 put him in 12^th in the event and 10^th overall after four of seven events.

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.

Day 1 Scorers
Name Event                           Finish (Mark/Time)
Nikolai van Huyssteen   M. Pole vault               5^th (*17-4.50)
Ella Rush Pentathlon   5^th (4,081 pts.)
Kyle Garland M. Long Jump 6^th (*26-1)
Titiana Marsh W. Long Jump 6^th (6.11m/20-0.50)
Alencar Pereirra M. Hammer throw   6^th (69-8.25)
*personal best

Day 1 Qualifiers
Name                          Event                           Finish (Mark/Time)
Kaila Jackson              W. 60m                       1^st ($ 7.15)
Elija Godwin                M. 400m                     2^nd (*45.36)
Keshaun Black            M. 60m                       4^th (6.68)
Matthew Boling   M. 200m                     4^th (20.63)
Kaila Jackson W. 200m                     5^th (*23.03)
Will Sumner                M. 800m                     6^th (1:50.00)
Autumn Wilson           W. 60m                       6^th (7.24)
Kyle Garland               M. 60mH                    8^th (*7.82)
Autumn Wilson           W. 200m                     8^th (*23.07)
$school record ; *personal best

Pentathlon Summary
Name              60mH              HJ                    SP                    LJ                     800m               TOTAL
Ella Rush         8.90/11^th         5-6.60/10^th      38-0/8^th           19-11.50/7^th    2:21.68/5^th      4,081 pts.
^standing reflects position after each event

Heptathlon Day 1 Scores
Name                 60m              LJ                        SP                        HJ                    Day 1
Johannes Erm   7.03/4^th         24-1/3^rd             *48-6.25/2^nd 6-3.50/2^nd   3,276 pts.
Ziggy Zoller        6.96/6^th 23-4/4^th   40-3.25/7^th   5-10.75/10^th 2,987 pts.
^standing reflects position after each event

Track Starts SECs With Array Of Scorers, Qualifiers

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Keshaun Black

Matthew Boling

Johannes Erm

Kyle Garland

Elija Godwin

Kaila Jackson

Elena Kulichenko

Titiana Marsh

Alencar Pereira

Ella Rush

Will Sumner

Nikolai van Huyssteen

Autumn Wilson

Ziggy Zoller