The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB Track and Field Travels to Tennessee Relays
4/8/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Track & Field
Tennessee Relays | Thursday-Saturday, April 9-11, 2015
Tom Black Track at LaPorte Stadium | Knoxville, Tenn.
Meet Information: Schedule | Heat Sheets | UAB Outdoor Performances Coverage: Live Results | Twitter
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The UAB track and field team will travel to Knoxville, Tenn. for its fifth outdoor meet of the season, as the Blazers prepare for competition at the Tennessee Relays at Tom Black Track at LaPorte Stadium.
Live results throughout the meet will be provided by Tennessee through Direct Athletics.
The Tennessee Relays begins at 9 a.m. CT on Thursday with UAB's first foray in the heptathlon this outdoor season. The Blazers will enter Ali Meister, Jimmeshia Wilder and Shelby Barker, who closed out the 2015 indoor season with a third-place finish in the heptathlon at the Conference USA Indoor Track and Field Championships.
"This is a critical time of year for us," UAB head coach Kurt Thomas said. "Our heptathletes are getting their first outdoor multi event. We've been able to score big points in the multis at the C-USA meets over the years, so this event at Tennessee Relays is important to our team."
Jessica Shelley will be entering the 100-meter hurdles for the Blazers for the fourth time this outdoor season. Shelley has finished in the top 10 in each of her entries, and clocked a personal-best time of 13.76 at the Battle of I-65 at Samford.
Autumnn Burnett joins Shelley in the 100-meter hurdles and will make her third entry into the 400-meter hurdles for the 2015 outdoor campaign. Burnett posted top-five finishes in the 400-meter hurdles at each of the Alabama Relays and the Tiger Track Classic, and owns a personal-best time of 1:00.82.
Renay Ransaw will enter the long jump, the 100-meter hurdles and the javelin for the Blazers. The C-USA Spirit of Service Award recipient has won the long jump twice this outdoor season, and owns a personal best of 5.72 meters (18-09 1/4 feet) in the event.
Joining Ransaw in jump events are Kelli Smith, who enters the high jump and long jump, and Kendra Gipson, who will compete in the triple jump. Smith's long jump of 5.78 meters (18-11 3/4 feet) is the best by any Blazer this outdoor season, while Gipson's outdoor personal best of 12.18 meters (39-11 1/2 feet) in the triple jump ranks fifth among all Conference USA performers.
"The individual events give us a chance to see who's improving, running and jumping well, as well as to see who is in place to score at the conference championship meet in the next month," Thomas said. "Kelli, Renay, Kendra, Jessica, Autumnn and Ali have all been competing very well for us. We look for that to continue, and hopefully add some more good performances."
For the latest news on Blazer sports, follow the UAB Athletics Twitter account, @UABathletics. For an in-depth look into the UAB Track & Field program, follow @UAB_TrackXC on Twitter.
Players Mentioned
