Hon & Shunk

February 9, 2004
(INDIANAPOLIS) Indiana Invaders' Brandon Hon and Adam Shunk put up marks this weekend with wins in the 60 hurdles and high jump that make current Top 10 USA Track & Field lists, respectively, at the Indiana Invitational in Bloomington, Indiana on February 7th, 2004.

Shunk, the 2003 NCAA Indoor Champion in the high jump, also hit the USA Indoor Qualifying standard with his winning jump of 2.23 meters with his season opening high jump competition. His inaugural appearance in an Invaders uniform is also an improvement on his Olympic Trials qualifying mark of 2.22 set last year.

Hon, in winning the 60 hurdles with a time of 7.68 seconds, improved his qualifying performance for the USA Indoor Championships. Hon's break through performance of 7.68 was a big bonus after running career bests of 7.81 in the preliminary round and 7.79 in the semi-finals.

Additional highlights over the weekend include teammate Carri Long, a graduate of Purdue University, and currently ranked fifth in the United States winning the high jump at the Husker Invitational hosted by the University of Nebraska with a performance of 1.84 meters. At Indiana University's Indiana Invitational, Amber Plowden won the 60 meters with a time of 7.49 seconds. Plowden was .03 seconds from hitting the national qualifying standard after running 7.45 in the semi-finals of the 60. Donnie Fellows, a 2003 USATF Outdoor Championship 10,000 competitor, won the 5,000 with a time of 14:27.09. Adrian Swanson took second in the 400 with a performance of 48.60. Plowden also took third in the 200 with a time of 25.15. Sharline Maxwell-Divis in her Indiana Invaders debut finished third in the 400 (55.93).

Team Director Greg Harger said, "This was a very busy weekend for the team on the track and with hosting the USA Cross Country World Trials and we got the job done on all fronts. Hon has been a flag bearer for the team on the track with his breakthrough performances. His progression since joining the team last year has been steady and he has responded extremely well to training in the post-collegiate environment after the initial transition. His patience and new found stability in his training environment is starting to pay dividends. Hon has a tremendous amount of talent that is just beginning to be explored." Harger added, "We are likely to add a few more national qualifiers in the next couple of weeks as we look toward Indoor Nationals at the end of February in Boston."

Currently, six Invaders are qualified for Indoor Nationals - Zack Riley (WT), Hope Sanders (800), Carri Long (HJ), Adam Shunk (HJ), Francesca Green (LJ) and Brandon Hon (60H).

Ten Invaders are currently qualified for the 2004 U.S. Olympic Team Trials, in July, with Hope Sanders (800), Jacob Koczman (800), Donnie Fellows (10,000), Brandon Hon (110H), Carri Long (HJ), Adam Shunk (HJ), Greg Yeldell (TJ), Zachary Riley (HT), Kirt Thompson (JT), and defending Olympic Trials Champion DeDee Nathan in the heptathlon.