Distance Dominates Friday Night At Commodore Indoor

COLLEGE STATION, TX - 2020.02.28 - SEC Indoor Championship Day 1

Photo by: Maury Neipris/Tennessee Athletics

January 15, 2021 | Track & Field

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee track & field opened its 2021 indoor campaign Friday night with victories in both 5,000-meter races at the Commodore Indoor inside Vanderbilt's multipurpose facility. Lady Vol junior Sydney Seymour ran a personal-best time of 16:40.11 to claim first place, while junior Karl Thiessen turned in a PR of 14:14.40 on the men's side to complete the 5K double for the Big Orange.

Seymour's effort chopped more than 14 seconds off her previous best mark in the indoor 5,000-meter and was the fastest clocking by a Lady Vol since All-American Chelsea Blaase ran 15:53.73 in 2017. Tennessee went 1-2-3 in the event Friday night, as Olivia Janke crossed the line in a personal-best 16:58.41 and was closely followed by Katie Thronson (17:01.17) who was making her indoor 5K debut.

Thiessen led the pack with a 10-second improvement from his time at the 2020 SEC Indoor Championships, when the Abingdon, Virginia, native clocked in at 14:24.18 in his first-ever indoor 5K. Redshirt junior Conner Hawkins completed the 1-2 punch for Tennessee, as his time of 14:29.33 set a new personal record by 39 seconds.

BIRTHDAY GIRL JUMPS FAR: On her 20th birthday, sophomore Shatara Johnson claimed a runner-up finish for Tennessee in the long jump Friday night. The Riverdale, Georgia, native rang in her twenties with a leap of 5.88 meters (19-3.5) to place second overall at the meet.

PR TRACKER: Tennessee athletes combined for a total of six indoor personal records Friday night at the Commodore Indoor.

Sydney Seymour - Women's 5,000m - 16:40.11
Olivia Janke - Women's 5,000m - 16:58.41
Kayla Racine - Women's Weight Throw - 17.39m (57-0.75)
Karl Thiessen - Men's 5,000m - 14:14.40
Conner Hawkins - Men's 5,000m - 14:29.33
Georde Goodwyn - Men's 5,000m - 15:06.81

BIG ORANGE DEBUTS: Eight student-athletes made their official Tennessee track & field debuts Friday night: Carolyn Barksdale (women's DMR, 12:18.57), Spencer Brown (men's long jump, 6.89m), Skylar Coffey (men's weight throw, 14.74m), Thomas Gardiner (men's DMR, 10:13.41), Mike Griffin (men's DMR, 10:13.41), Eli Nahom (men's DMR, 10:18.02), Callie Tucker (women's DMR, 12:18.57) and Zoe Vlk (women's weight throw, 14.95m).

UP NEXT: The Commodore Indoor will wrap up Saturday with Tennessee throwers, hurdlers, sprinters, jumpers, multis, vaulters, middle distance and distance runners competing throughout the afternoon. The action begins at 1 p.m. ET with the women's shot put and ends at approximately 4:45 p.m. with the men's 4x400-meter relay.

Full results from Friday's competition and start lists for Saturday can be found at this link. For the most up-to-date information on Tennessee track & field, follow @Vol_Track on Twitter and Instagram.