Track championships delayed in Austin
Seven Blue Devils were set to compete in the 2004 NCAA Track and Field Outdoor Championships in Austin, Texas Wednesday. Inclement weather, however, precluded the completion of any of the day's scheduled events except for the women's 4x100-meter relay, which did not feature any Duke competitors.
The delay pushes back the start of the 5,000-meter and high jump preliminaries, thereby postponing the start of competition for sophomore Clara Horowitz and freshman Debra Vento, respectively. Horowitz, a Berkeley, Calif. product, is the Blue Devil delegation's only qualifier rated in the top eight of her event, qualifying seventh in the field with a time of 16:09.00 at the April 30 Cardinal Invitational. Vento, a native of Marlboro, N.J., earned a slot for the high jump competition at the April 22 Penn Relays with a jump of 6-0, a new Duke record.
The Duke contingent also consists of senior Heidi Hullinger and sophomores Sally Meyerhoff, Natasha Roetter, Shannon Rowbury and Laura Stanley.
Duke football garners eighth Class of 2005 recruit
Head coach Ted Roof received a verbal commitment from linebacker/defensive end Kinney Rucker of Durham (N.C.) Jordan H.S. over offers from North Carolina, East Carolina and Virginia.
As a junior last season, Rucker tallied 82 tackles and 10 sacks. Standing 6-foot-3 and weighing 235 pounds, Rucker has the requisite size to play defensive end, and a reported 4.6 40-yard dash time gives him the speed to play linebacker. Those statistics landed Rucker a place as the No. 13 senior prospect in North Carolina on recruiting analyst Miller Safrit's list of the top twenty in-state players. Rucker cited coach Roof's enthusiasm and Duke's academic reputation as factors in his commitment in a TheDevilsDen.com interview.
Rucker is Duke's fourth in-state commitment, joining Charlotte Latin defensive end Ryan Radloff, Charlotte Independence quarterback Joe Cox and Whiteville defensive back Marquis Melvin. His pledge is the eighth overall for the Blue Devils.
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