Smith, Riley highlight field for weekend

~ Two world-class athletes will run in Southeast's Miles Smith and Southern Illinois' Brittany Riley.

For a relatively small track and field meet like the Gatorade Classic, two pretty big names headline the individual field.

World champion Miles Smith of host Southeast Missouri State and world record holder Brittany Riley of Southern Illinois add plenty of sizzle to the 26th annual event that will be held today and Saturday at the Abe Stuber Complex.

"Those are two world-class athletes who will be competing right here in Cape Girardeau," Southeast coach and meet director Joey Haines said. "It really adds a lot to the meet.

"And while those two are big names in track and field, we'll have a lot of very good individuals and teams here. It should be a really competitive meet."

There will be only one event today, the hammer throw for men and women beginning at 3:30 p.m.

On Saturday, when most of the meet will be contested, events begin at 11 a.m. The final event, the 1,600-meter relay, is scheduled for 3:45 p.m.

There is no admission charge today. Saturday's admission is $3 for adults, $1 for 18 and under, and free for Southeast students with a valid ID.

"Our athletes always look forward to competing at home, and we always seem to perform well at home," Haines said.

Smith, Southeast's all-American senior, has bounced back well from a hamstring injury that forced him to miss virtually all of the indoor season.

Smith, among the nation's premier 200 and 400 runners, earned a gold medal on the U.S. 1,600 relay team at the 2005 world championships.

Smith will run the open 400 for the first time this season at 1 p.m. on Saturday. He will also be on Southeast's 1,600 relay team after competing in that event last weekend at Mississippi State.

Last year, Smith won the Gatorade Classic 400 in a time of 45.98 seconds. The fastest time in the nation this season is 45.41 by Lesiba Mesheto of Illinois.

"Miles is in pretty good shape right now," Haines said. "He probably could have run at the indoor nationals but we just weren't going to take any chances."

Riley, the world record-holder and NCAA champion in the women's indoor weight throw, will compete in today's hammer throw, along with Saturday's shot put and discus. Riley currently has the nation's top hammer throw.

Men's and women's teams from Southeast, Southern Illinois, Illinois State, Western Illinois and Lipscomb will compete, along with a men's team from Tennessee State and a women's squad from Murray State.

"It looks like a very balanced field," Haines said. "No team should really dominate, which is what you want, but every event should be very competitive."

Haines expects his men's and women's squads to be in the running for team titles.

"We should be right in there," Haines said. "We've got some people competing really, really well."

Two Southeast men have already met NCAA regional qualifying standards: John Berry in the long jump and freshman Brandon Colbert in the discus.

Berry, a junior, ranks 10th nationally in the long jump with a distance of 24 feet, 8 1/4 inches.

There will also be a Fastest Kid in Cape County competition at 2 p.m. as youngsters from grade schools in Cape Girardeau and Jackson will compete for ribbons.