University of South Carolina Upstate Athletics
NCAA First Round
Spartans Compete in NCAA East Regional Preliminaries
5/24/2012 12:00:00 AM | Track and Field
Day One Results | Day Two Live Stats
Spartanburg, S.C. – Three USC Upstate Track & Field performers opened competition on the first day of the NCAA East Regional Preliminaries at the University of North Florida Thursday, with Gilbert Kemboi claiming the top effort with a 15th-place finish in the 10,000-meter race.
In the first event of the day for an Upstate track performer, thrower Kenny Sugishita (Arroyo Grande, Calif.) finished 18th in the field of 48 in the discus. He made three successful attempts and topped out with a distance of 52.43 meters, just off his school record throw of 52.53 achieved when he won the championship at the 2012 A-Sun Outdoor Track & Field Championships in April. Despite not finishing in the top 12 and moving on to Regionals, Sugishita was strong. He entered the meet with the 38th-best qualifying distance and finished 20 spots higher.
In the second event of the day for Upstate, Kemboi (Eldoret, Kenya) ran a solid race in the 10,000 meters, turning in a time of 30:43.24 to finish 15th in the field of 48 runners. He missed qualifying for the Regionals by three positions. He was less than six seconds from earning a qualifying spot in the top 12.
In the final event of the day, Jemeli Sang (Eldoret, Kenya) competed in the 10,000-meter race and ran the distance in a time of 35:32.16. She finished 21st in the field of 48 runners, nine spots out of qualifying for the Regionals.
The Spartans will continue in the NCAA East Region Preliminaries this weekend with Sugishita competing in the hammer throw Friday morning at 10:00 am and Sang running the 5,000 meters Saturday night at 8:45 pm.
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