SUU WT&F - Southern Utah Women's Track & Field/Cross Country Complete 2010-11 Class Add Comment    Aug 06, 2010

CEDAR CITY, Utah - July 26 - Southern Utah cross country/track & field head coach Eric Houle has announced the additions of 12 female student-athletes that will be joining the Thunderbirds for the 2010-11 season. 

"These athletes are on a level that will help us a great deal," Houle said.  "These ladies will be able to come in and help us compete for conference titles and also represent Southern Utah well at the regional and national level.  They will do a great job of continuing a strong tradition of SUU track and field." 

Several of the additions will bring medals from state competition, including Danielle West (American Fork), Lindsay Terry (Tooele), Sasha Russell (Syracuse), Janelle Beukers (Box Elder), Mary Christensen (Mountain View (AZ)) and Lexy Bunch of Battle Mountain High School in the state of Nevada. 

West collected a pair of silver medals at the Utah 5A championships, finishing second in the 1,600-meters (5:11.03) and 800-meters (2:15.15) after finishing 13th in the state at the Utah 5A cross country championships. 

Terry just missed out on the medal stand in the 200-meters, finishing fourth (25.59), but did break through at the state meet in the 100-meters with a third-place time of 12.49.  Russell was in a similar boat, finishing ninth in the 200-meters, but capturing the bronze medal at the Utah 5A meet in the 100-meter hurdles. 

Another hurdler, Christensen finished third in the 300-meter hurdles at the Arizona 5A state championships and seventh in the 100-meter hurdles, running to personal best times of 45.63 and 15.25, respectively, during the season. 

Beukers will be bringing a silver medal in the discus throw, finishing second at the state meet and marking a personal-best toss of 119 feet during the year.  Bunch, a fellow thrower, is a two-time Nevada 2A state champion in the discus and shot put, throwing a Nevada 2A state championship-record distance of 127 feet eight inches in the discus. 

Another thrower, Whitney Fairbanks of Logan High School just missed out on a state title at the Utah 4A championships, finishing fourth in the javelin with a mark of 119 feet two inches.  The mark would have ranked third on the Thunderbird squad during the 2009-10 season. 

Brittany Holland and Lesli Kinkade will bring much needed talent in the pole vault with Kinkade bringing an Arizona 4A Division II title in the event, logging a personal best of 11 feet one inch. 

Other additions include Linsay Bradley (North Sanpete), a Utah 3A state qualifier in the 100-meters, 200-meters, 400-meters and the 300-meter hurdles; Emily Hills (West Jordan) a 12th-place finish at the Utah 5A cross country championships; and Jaclyn Alm, a seventh-place finisher in the 100-meters (12.55) and fourth-place finisher in the 200-meters (26.01) at the Minnesota state championships.

-Utah College Sports News staff and wire reports

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Utah College Sports Wire