Track Set to Compete at Conference USA Championships on Thursday

5/12/2010 12:00:00 AM | Track and Field

May 12, 2010

HOUSTON - The University of Houston track and field teams head to Orlando, Fla., on Thursday for the Conference USA Outdoor Championships.

The Cougars currently hold 44 top-five C-USA times and distances for the season, nine of which are first-place marks. The men's team has 13 top-three times and distances in conference, seven of which are first place. The women head in as strong contenders with 14 members owning top-five times in the conference.

The men look to sweep both indoor and outdoor championships for the second year in a row. Last year, they took the gold, winning by almost 50 points.

Returning to the contest are C-USA champions Bryan Brown, Chris Carter, Jason Perez and D'Korian Ford.

Brown competes to defend his crown in the pole vault, having already bettered his conference-winning height of last year. He is currently fourth in the conference with a height of 5.07m (16-07.50), which he recently set at the Rice Field and Track Meet.

Carter returns to defend his title as the top triple jumper in C-USA. He currently ranks first with a distance of 15.72m (51-07.00). The Hearne, Texas native earned his top spot at the Texas Invitational.

Last season's C-USA Freshman of the Year, D'Korian Ford, returns with another year of experience under his belt. The Bay City, Texas native currently holds two top-five performances in both 110m hurdles and 400m hurdles events. In last year's competition, Ford took home a silver and two bronze medals in the 110m hurdles, 400m hurdles and high jump event, respectively.

Perez comes in to the contest owning the 2009 C-USA crown in the 400m hurdles. The Houston native holds the top spot in the league for the 400m hurdles with a time of 50.83.

Freshman Errol Nolan holds the first place time for the 200m sprint and the second overall spot in the 400m dash. Also, Cameron LaCour owns a conference-topping time in the 110m hurdles. The Dayton, Texas native raced a time of 14.18 at the Rice Bayou Classic on March 27.

Sophomore Doug Kelley sits second in the top times for the 800m run with a mark of 1:50.41 and is fourth in the 400m dash, clocking 47.01 at the Texas Invitational on May 1.

The men's 4x400m relay team looks to win at the championships, currently owning the top time of 3:09.55.

Senior Wesley Bray looks to finish with two gold medals. The Cypress, Texas native is on top of C-USA in the long jump event with a distance of 7.46m (24-05.75) as well as the decathlon with an overall personal-best score of 7429 points.

The women's squad looks to better a fourth-place performance in last year's competition. The team will send C-USA champion sophomore Grecia Bolton back to the meet looking to retain her crown in the 200m sprint. The Katy, Texas native comes into the contest fifth in the league with a time of 23.73.

The 4x100m and 4x400m relay teams own the C-USA top times with 44.18 and 3:39.08, respectively.

Junior Christie Jones holds two top-10 marks in the 100m dash and the 200m dash, with times of 11.73 and 23.30, respectively.

Five Cougars hold top-10 marks in the 200m dash, including Jones, Whitney Harris, Kalyn Floyd, Bolton and Tara Prier.

Freshman Karley King comes in to the championships holding the third spot in the pole vault event, ascending the bar at 3.77m (12-04.50).

Junior Kiera Pulliam holds a third-place distance of 14.52m (47-07.75) in the shot put.

Brittani Williams holds the fourth spot in the javelin throw, tossing to a distance of 46.20m (151-07).

Freshman Megan Frausto looks to earn a medal in her first championships in the heptathlon event. The Royse City, Texas native sits in the fourth sport with an overall score of 4685 points.