BIRMINGHAM – Texas A&M’s Fred Kerley and Krystal Sparling earned SEC Athlete of the Week honors following the opening weekend of the outdoor track and field season.
The conference office named Kerley the men’s Runner of the Week and Sparling the women’s Freshman of the Week. Both set U.S. and collegiate leading outdoor marks during the weekend in winning the men’s 200m and women’s 100m events at the Baldy Castillo Invitational hosted by Arizona State.
Kerley was part of three winning efforts for the Aggies as he ran on the 4×100 and 4×400 relays in addition to the 200m. Kerley posted a career best of 20.61 seconds in the 200m, bettering his previous best of 20.74w, to break the meet record of 20.72 set in 2004 by Lewis Banda of Arizona State.
On the 4×100 relay, Kerley ran second leg as the Aggies clocked 39.17 for the victory. Kerley later anchored the 4×400 relay with a 45.59 split as A&M ran 3:05.75.
Sparling won the women’s 100m in 11.38 to produce the U.S. and collegiate leading time and she is currently equal fourth on the 2016 world list.
The Aggie freshman nearly bettered her high school PR of 11.34 in defeating freshman teammatesBrenessa Thompson (11.47, 2nd) and Diamond Spaulding (11.52, 6th) and along with Kentucky’s Kianna Gray (11.48, 3rd), Oklahoma’s Daye Shon Roberson (11,49, 4th) and Olympian Muna Lee (11.51, 5th).
SEC Track & Field Weekly Honors – March 22, 2016
Men’s Runner of the Week – Fred Kerley, Texas A&M
Men’s Field Athlete of the Week – Ashinia Miller, Georgia
Men’s Freshman of the Week – Anders Eriksson, Florida
Women’s Runner of the Week – Jasmine Quinn, Kentucky
Women’s Field Athlete of the Week – Raven Saunders, Mississippi
Women’s Freshman of the Week – Krystal Sparling, Texas A&M
Story courtesy of Texas A&M Athletics