King Makes US Junior National Team in 5,000 Meters
BLOOMINGTON, Ind.-Freshman Kyle King (Yorktown, Va.) placed second in the boys’ 5,000 meters on the first day of the USATF Junior Outdoor Championships Saturday (June 15) in Bloomington, Ind. With the second-place finish, King will compete for Team USA at the 2012 IAAF World Junior Championships in Barcelona, Spain, which take place July 10-15.
King finished second to Oklahoma State’s Kirubel Erassa in a time of 14:28.26. King was the leader of the chase pack or in the top six the entire race. Erassa and King used a 57-second last lap to claim the top two spots.
“This has definitely been a dream for me all throughout high school,” King said. “I never came to this meet in high school, but ever since I didn’t make it to NCAAs, I’ve been really hungry and to make the national team and represent the USA at World Juniors is an awesome blessing. Go Wahoos and Go USA!
“We went out a little slow and sat back while one of the high school athletes went out to a really big lead. I didn’t want to let it become only a race for second place, so we chipped away and caught him with about a mile to go. The pace really picked up at that point, Erassa made a good move and it was a great race at the end. All the hard work Coach (Pete) Watson and my teammates have been doing really paid off.”
Freshman Devin Brewer (Dumfries, Va.) qualified for the finals in the boys’ 400 hurdles after finishing second in his heat with a time of 53.52. The final will be contested on Saturday at 6:10 p.m.
In the girls 100 meters, incoming freshman Peyton Chaney (Belleville, Ill.) finished 12th overall in a time of 11.87.
The action continues Saturday at 1:30 p.m.
Friday’s Results
Girls’ 100m prelims – Peyton Chaney – 12th overall – 11.87
Boys’ 400mH prelims – Devin Brewer – 2nd in heat, qualifies for final – 53.52
Boys’ 5,000m final – Kyle King – 2nd overall – 14:28.26
Saturday’s Schedule
5:10 p.m. – Girls’ 400m prelims – Jordan Lavender
6:10 p.m. – Boys’ triple jump – Ryan Satchell
6:10 p.m. – Boys’ 400mH final – Devin Brewer
6:40 p.m. – Girls’ 200m prelims – Peyton Chaney