June 12, 2003
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Georgia Tech freshman All-American Chaunte Howard finished tied for the top spot in the qualifying round of the women’s high jump Thursday to lead the Jackets at the 2003 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships at Sacramento State’s Hornet Stadium.
Howard, who was one of eight competitors to clear 5’10.50″, advances to Saturday’s final and assures herself of a top-eight finish and All-America honors for the second time in her career. She placed 10th at the 2003 NCAA Indoor Championships.
Also in action for the Tech women was junior Amandi Rhett, who advanced to semifinals in the 200 meters with a time of 23.88 and an 18th-place overall finish in the opening round. She placed fifth in the third heat of the prelims. In the semifinals, Rhett was also 18th in the semifinals in 24.25. She also competed in the 100 meters (21st) and 4×100-meter relay (12th) Wednesday.
On the men’s side, junior Brendon Mahoney took 15th in the prelims of the 1500 meters with a time of 3:45.49. The top 12 finishers, led by Michigan’s Nick Willis (3:42.15), advanced to Saturday’s final. Additionally, senior Bryan Swarn placed 17th in the prelims of the 400 meters with a 46.45 performance. He narrowly missed a spot in Friday’s semifinals, as the top 16 finishers moved on. Minnesota’s Mitch Potter went 45.34 to lead the qualifiers.
Swarn also anchored Tech’s 4×400-meter relay, which took 16th in the prelims in 3:07.94. The team of Brian Ford, Sharif Azim, Nate Smiga and Swarn was sixth in heat two. The top eight qualifiers moved on to Saturday’s final. Texas Tech (3:03.26) had the top performance Thursday.
Rounding out Thursday’s competitors was sophomore Shanta Smith, who was 27th in the qualifying round of the women’s triple jump. She leaped 39’0.50″ and the top 12 advanced to Saturday’s final.
In late action Wednesday, sophomore Ian Brewer finished 13th in the qualifying round of the hammer throw with a toss of 200’10.00″. The top 12 moved on to Saturday’s final.
Competition resumes Friday, but no Jackets will be in action. On Saturday, Howard will compete in the women’s high jump final, scheduled for 10:35 p.m. Eastern.
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