What to Watch For: Collegians in Day Two of Rio T&F

NEW ORLEANS – Collegians are already making their marks on these 2016 Rio Olympic Games through just one day of competition, and day two could be even bigger.

Bowerman Finalist Raven Saunders of Ole Miss (USA) threw an all-time all-dates collegiate best 19.35m (63-6) to jump from seventh to fifth on her final throw in the only final session of Friday’s evening session of Rio Track & Field.

Earlier in the day, Dominique Scott-Efurd of Arkansas (South Africa) ran a career-best 31:51.47 in the women’s 10,000-meter final for 21st-place.

But beyond finals, Friday’s action paved the way for an exciting Saturday.

After the first of two days of heptathlon competition, Kansas State’s Akela Jones (Barbados) is third overall in the standings. A medal is far from guaranteed, though, as the 2015 NCAA Champion finds herself among a group of eight women separated by just over 200 points with just three events remaining.

Bowerman Finalist Jarrion Lawson of Arkansas (USA) secured his spot in the long jump final, which will be contested tonight. The triple-NCAA Champion will look to capitalize on his status as the wind-legal world leader in 2016.

Two-time hammer throw champion DeAnna Price of Southern Illinois (USA) will also get a shot at the finals today after navigating through qualifications yesterday.

Also advancing through to Saturday’s proceedings were three men’s 800 meter collegians. Former NCAA Champ Brandon McBride of Mississippi State (Canada) and Andres Arroyo of Florida (Puerto Rico) both qualified automatically, while indoor 800/outdoor 1500 champ Clayton Murphy of Akron (USA) had to sweat out one of the three time qualifying spots. The three will be in separate semifinal heats on Saturday.

Several other collegiate champions will make their Olympic debuts in Saturday’s qualifying rounds. They include:

• American/collegiate triple jump record-holder Keturah Orji of Georgia (USA)
• Collegiate steeplechase record-holder Courtney Frerichs of New Mexico (USA)

Here’s some highlights of what’s on the docket for collegians on Day Two of Rio action.

Here’s the full list of collegians in competition today, with details on how to follow their events.