In the UA track and field team’s first two-day competition of the season, it was a tag-team, of sorts, that stole the show at the Frank Sevigne Husker Invitational in Lincoln, Neb.
Seniors Zack and Nicole Lloyd swept the shot put events, with throws of 62-feet 5-inches and 53-feet-6.5-inches, respectively.
“”They’re definitely doing very, very well and it’s kind of a unique situation,”” said UA head coach Fred Harvey. “”It’s very rare you have a husband and wife team competing together and at that level.””
Nicole finished just ahead of teammate Megan Howard (50-feet-8.75-inches) as the pair of throwers placed first and second for the fourth consecutive meet.
Another Wildcat with a solid performance was jumper Courtney Hayes. The Pima transfer took third in the high jump with a mark of 5-feet-7-inches in just her second meet in an Arizona uniform.
“”(Hayes) is going to be a real contributor, I really believe, to this program,”” Harvey said. “”She’s still a youngster, we’ll still have some really good years ahead with her.””
But not everything went as planned for the UA as multiple-event athlete Shevell Quinley was unable to finish the pentathlon due to illness. Harvey was hoping the senior could improve upon her NCAA provisional qualification mark, but after almost setting a personal-best in the high jump with a leap of 5-feet 8-inches, Harvey said she seemed to get worse.
“”I’m not 100 percent sure (what it was). She felt a little dizziness and that type of thing on the plane flying out,”” Harvey said. “”The plan is to go ahead and slow her down a little bit here and make sure she’s healthy and then get ready for the indoor conference.””
As the Wildcats continue to be successful early on in the season, Harvey said the team has primarily been using these meets to gear up for the Iowa State Invitational in Ames, Iowa next weekend. Even with Quinley’s illness, there are still plenty of Wildcat athletes who could post top marks next weekend – Quinley included.
“”I feel everyone’s ready to get it done. They’re excited, we know they’re fit and it’s a meet that we’ve really been gearing for,”” Harvey said. “”They look good. This week was a good indicator in terms of what I feel we’re able to do with our overall team.””