In what could’ve ended in a day full of titles, only three were held high.
On Day 3 of the NCAA Outdoor Championships, Florida competed in seven events overall with three individuals finishing on the podium.
In a thrilling wire to wire finish, Ryan Schnulle had a powerful kick left to push himself from fourth to second place in the final 100 meters of the 800-meter run just finishing behind Brandon McBride of Mississippi State.
Schnulle’s time of 1:46.29 is the sophomore’s personal best as the mid-distance runner eclipsed for the third-all time mark in UF history to place himself on the podium.
“Moving into the back stretch I wanted to find my way out to put myself in good position for the last 200 meters and make a move to the finish line,” Schnulle said. “At the last turn, I started to get excited; I thought I could take it. The last few strides it was so close between (Mississippi State’s) Brandon (McBride) and I. He took the win today by .03 ... It was close, but I'll take it.”
Joining Schnulle with a top-three finish was Brittany Harrell, who finished third overall in the Heptathlon with a second place finish in the 800-meter run.
Harrell gathered up a total of 5,835 points, coming just shy of her school-record 5,838 points. With her finish, she handed the women’s team six points for the overall standings.
Meanwhile, the Southeastern Conference’s triple jump champion found her way to a solid ending on Day 3.
Ciarra Brewer’s first jump of 13.49 meters guided her to a third-place finish, as she was the final competitor of the day. Brewer also assisted Florida with a crucial six team points.
Adding to the women’s effort, sophomore sprinter Robin Reynolds paid her dues to the team.
Reynolds clocked a 52.02 second 400-meter time for only a seventh place finish, but tagged on two points for the women.
Other than Schnulle’s top-finish, the men didn’t acquire much but team points.
Najee Glass and Hugh Graham Jr. gathered a combined five points in the 400-meter run.
Glass finished in fifth place with a time of 45.63, which was ahead of his teammate Graham Jr., who ended in eighth with a 46.65 mark.
Although only few were top finishers, the men’s team collectively gathered themselves to a second place standing across the board with 28 team points. Only Oregon (53) is ahead of Florida leading into the final day with a commanding 25-point lead.
The women find themselves in a different situation. With 29 team points they sit in a third place tie with Texas heading into the final events.
“I give you my word — we're going to see more like what we saw out of Ryan Schnulle today because that's the type of team we are, that's how we conduct business,” coach Mike Holloway said. “We're going to compete our hearts out because that's what the Gators do.”
Follow Lawrence Laguna on Twitter @LagunaLawrence
Florida's Brittany Harrell competes in the heptathlon long jump at the NCAA track and field championships on Friday.
