UGA's Kyle Garland Scores No. 2 All-Time Collegiate Best For Title At SEC Championships

May 13—**Friday's day two results attached**

Georgia Sports Communications

May 12, 2023

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Garland Scores No. 2 All-Time Collegiate Best For Title At SEC Championships

BATON ROUGE — Kyle Garland won his second decathlon crown with the second-best collegiate score in history at the Southeastern Conference Outdoor Championships at the Bernie Moore Track Stadium Friday.

Garland, a native of Philadelphia, Pa., went wire to wire through his 10 events of the decathlon to win his second career SEC title in the outdoor combined events. His 8,589 points ranks No. 2 in collegiate history behind his collegiate record 8,720 from the 2022 USATF Championships. Garland's final score on Friday also topples the former meet record (8,539) set by Texas A&M's Lindon Victor in 2017. The 2021 champion posted two personal bests on the dec's day two, including a meet record in the 110-meter hurdles.

Garland is the eighth Bulldog to win the SEC decathlon crown and the second in a row after Johannes Erm finished on the podium's top spot in 2022.

The Georgia men have scored 35 points and stand in second behind Arkansas (57). The Lady Bulldogs are tied for 10th with 11 and Arkansas (61) is in the lead.

Georgia Graduates: Friday also marked spring commencement for UGA students in Athens. Matthew Boling, Garland, Elija Godwin, Wesley John and Brandee Presley who competed on Friday and Mia Anderson, Sam Bowers, Caleb Cavanaugh, Ellie Hall and Julia Harisay who either competed on Thursday or will compete on Saturday at the meet all officially earned their degrees.

Ana da Silva also added points for Georgia on day two in the women's shot put. Da Silva steadily built her series to launch her best effort on her fifth of six tries. A second sixth-place finisher for the Lady Bulldogs was Titiana Marsh in the long jump. Marsh had matching season-best efforts on her second and sixth attempts to add more points.

In the men's 3000m steeplechase, Wesley John sprinted down the final straightaway for a bronze medal while his teammate Cole Heron edged the ninth-place finisher by a second and a half to also score. Sophia Baker rounded out the scoring with a seventh place showing in the women's steeplechase with the fastest time of her career.

On Thursday, graduate transfer Marc Minichello surged from sixth place into the lead on his fifth javelin toss to capture the Bulldogs' 12th all-time SEC title in the event.

The Bulldogs also had an additional three scorers who finished in the top eight during day one: Alencar Pereira in the hammer throw (2nd — 70.07 meters/229 feet, 10 inches), Erin McMeniman in the javelin (7th — 49.06m/160-11) and Julia Harisay in the javelin (8th — 48.45m/158-11).

The Bulldogs had four qualifiers on Saturday finals on day two: Charlotte Augenstein (1500m), Elija Godwin (400m), Aaliyah Butler (400m), Kaila Jackson (100m).

On Thursday, Georgia had four competitors punch their tickets to event finals: Will Sumner (800 meters), Matthew Boling (200m), Kaila Jackson (200m) and Caleb Cavanaugh (400m hurdles).

When Do The Bulldogs Start Saturday?: Nikolai van Huyssteen and Alon Rogow start the final day of the meet in the pole vault at 4 p.m. ET. The Bulldogs' 4x100m relay team, which is slated to feature Keshaun Black, Boling, Christopher Morales Williams and Godwin, will begin the action on the track at 6:05 p.m.

Where To Catch The SEC Championships: The ESPN broadcast talent includes Dwight Stones, Dan O'Brien, John Anderson and Larra Overton during the meet coverage.

SEC Network+ / SEC Network info:

Day Three — Saturday, May 13

SEC Network+ — 3:00-4:30 PM: http://gado.gs/ajd

SEC Network — 6:00-10:00 PM