Michigan
NCAA Outdoor Championships (Day 3)
Whitehead Advances to Triple Jump Final at NCAA Meet
6/10/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Track & Field
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Sophomore Michael Whithead (East Norristown, Pa./Norristown Area HS), a member of the University of Michigan men's track and field team, posted the second-best mark of his career to advance to the triple jump final on the third day of competition at the NCAA Outdoor Championships on Friday (June 10). The Wolverines have yet to score a point in the team competition, while Arkansas leads with 32 points.
For the third straight meet, Whitehead netted the necessary qualifying mark on his final jump, moving from the 13th spot -- one position out of the final qualifying spot -- to 10th with a leap of 52-3 1/4. After hitting 51-6 1/2 on his first attempt and fouling his second, Whitehead made the third one count, taking off before board to come within just four inches of his personal best in the event, which he recorded two weeks ago at the NCAA Mideast Regional.
U-M will have three finalist tomorrow (Saturday, June 11) for the final day of competition at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. Whitehead is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. PDT, junior Andrew Ellerton (Sudbury, Ontario/Confederation HS) will run the 800 meters at 7:30 p.m., and junior/sophomore Nick Willis (Lower Hutt, New Zealand/Hutt Valley HS) closes out the action in the 5,000-meter run at 7:50 p.m.
Top 10 Teams (After Day 3)
1. Arkansas 32 2. Florida 23 3. Boise State 18 Virginia Tech 18 5. Florida State 17 6. Oregon 16 7. USC 15 Texas 15 9. Brigham Young 14 Tennessee 14 UTEP 14 Dartmouth 14
Event Winners/U-M Finishes (Day 3)
Triple Jump (Qualifying) 1. Rodrigo Mendes, Brigham Young 57-6 1/2q (17.54m) 10. Michael Whitehead, U-M 52-3 1/4q (15.93m) Qq indicates qualification for next round
Previous Results: Day 1 | Day 2
Q U O T E S
Sophomore Michael Whitehead
On making the triple jump final ... "I'm really excited; I've never been this excited to make a final ever. I'm more excited than I've ever been to make a final, because the competition is so stiff. I'm not favored to win, so there's no pressure on my back, but I'm putting it on myself. I'm loving it."
On his jumps today ... "Usually on the first jump, I go for it. I try to get my mark right away, so I just gun for it. Today's first jump wasn't that good; I guess I was a little rusty. I went for it, and it wasn't a foul. I figured I got a legal one in, so I went for it again on the second jump, but I wound up fouling it. I don't think that one was that great of a jump either. I kind of felt myself foul, so I didn't pretty everything into it; I didn't want to waste too much energy, because it was kind of hot. On the third jump, I backed up and said, 'If it's time for me to go, then it's time for me to go, but if it's not, I'm going to be here. I'm not going to leave here without trying my hardest.' That's what I've done over the last three weeks -- just put everything I have into it."
On his progression over the season ... "I feel like I'm finally not fouling my big jumps, and that makes a big differnce. Indoors, I was jumping just as well, only they were just fouls. A lot of people don't know that. I'm definitely enjoying it more now, because the work that I'm putting in is actually counting. So with that said, I'm not surprised that I'm progressing the way that I am. Actually, this opens the door for me to progress even more. I'm attacking the board a little harder now, because I'm not scared of fouling. It's just going to open the door for me to reach my full potential."
Contact: Leah Howard (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
