University of Tennessee Athletics
Smith Named SEC Field Athlete of the Week
April 14, 2004 | Men's Track
April 14, 2004
Tennessee javelin thrower Leigh Smith won SEC Field Athlete of the Week honors thanks to his performance at the Sea Ray Relays, the conference office announced Wednesday.
Smith, a senior from Raleigh, N.C., launched a lifetime-best throw of 249-5 to take second in the invitational javelin Saturday. Smith finished second only to Tom Pukstys, a professsional and the American record holder in the event. Thanks to an impressive series of throws, Smith broke his lifetime-best effort three times in an hour to push his final mark to 249-5. The 249-5 mark stands as the SEC leader, the second-best mark in the NCAA and the third-best by an American this year. Smith's 249-5 ranks third on Tennessee's all-time list in the javelin.
Tennessee's track and field squad climbed in the rankings after displaying improvement on the home track at the Sea Ray Relays last week.
Occupying the No. 2 spot, the Volunteers place highest in the U.S. Track Coaches Association Team Power Ranking. Tennessee holds a score of 373.96 after updates from the weekend. Arizona State stands first in a close race with 377.67 points. The USTCA Team Power Ranking attempts to reward teams fielding complete squads across all events. Tennessee has won the USTCA Team Power Ranking title nine times since 1991, most recently the 2003 outdoor season.
Tennessee stands 14th of 206 teams in the April 8 update of the Trackshark ranking with 51.40 points. SEC foe Florida leads with the perfect score of 100. Trackshark has revamped its ranking system for the 2004 outdoor season. Trackshark scrapped its old formula of combining the USTCA Team Power Ranking, Trackwire 25 Ranking and head-to-head competition to determine its list. Trackshark now employs a computer ranking to rank 206 collegiate track and field teams determined by projected SEC and NCAA finishes based on conference and national lists and strength of conference. A complete explanation of the rankings is available on www.trackshark.com.
After being left out of the season-opening Trackwire 25 team ranking, the Vols climbed to 20th with 14 projected NCAA outdoor points in Tuesday's update. The Trackwire 25, available on www.trackwire.com, attempts to project the finish at the NCAA meet by analyzing national event leader lists and other factors. LSU took the top spot in the Trackwire 25 with 51 points. Arkansas stands second with 44 projected points, and Florida, last week's leader, holds down third with 43. Auburn clocks in at fifth and 33 projected points to give the SEC four of the top five teams.
Tennessee plans to train through the weekend with no competition scheduled. The Volunteers return to action with an annual engagement at the Penn Relays next weekend, April 22-24. Additionally, a group of Vols is expected to compete April 23 at Louisville's Cardinal Open. Tennessee caps a busy week with a return to Tom Black Track in the Knoxville Invitational April 25.
