The University of Alabama’s Track and Field team is coming off a second place finish in the pentathlon at the Razorback Invitation on Jan. 27. Kaylon Eppinger placed tenth in the women’s 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.49 seconds.

Before coming to the University of Alabama, Eppinger competed in the Big East conference at the University of Cincinnati.

During her freshman year, Eppinger took part in multiple events in the Big East Championships. She placed ninth in the preliminaries for the 100 hurdles with a time of 14.12 seconds. She also competed in the high jump where she cleared the 5-3 mark. She later ran a personal best in the 100 hurdles at the Sea Ray Relays with a time of 14.01.

Eppinger’s sophomore year seemed just like her freshman year. Eppinger ran a personal best at the time – 8.50 in the 60-meter hurdles – during the preliminaries at the conference championships. She then placed third at the All-Ohio Championships with a time of 8.61 in the 60-meter hurdles.

After her sophomore year, Eppinger chose to transfer to Alabama. She said she liked the closeness of the team. Eppinger also acknowledged the difference between the competitiveness of the Southeastern Conference and the Big East.

“It’s a lot more competitive,” Eppinger said. “When you compete against teams from different environments it pushes people to compete harder.”

Since joining the Tide, Eppinger has had a very successful career. She did not compete for track and field during her junior year, but she did return her senior year.

During the indoor season, Eppinger finished sixth in the pentathlon at the SEC Championships, scoring 3,835 points – the second highest score in school history. She also placed third in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.29 seconds. Eppinger had another good performance at the Adidas Classic when she placed first in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.40 seconds.

During outdoor season, Eppinger continued to add great performances. She qualified for the NCAA Championships heptathlon and placed twentieth with a score of 5,140 points. She earned All-SEC honors after placing second in the heptathlon at SEC Championships, scoring 5,479 points. Eppinger would later go on to one-up that score at the Alabama Relays, scoring 5,499 points, which is the second-best heptathlon score in UA history.

Having participated in many events, it might be hard to choose a favorite, but that proved not to be the case for Eppinger. She did not hesitate when naming her favorite event.

“Hurdles,” Eppinger said. “It’s the event I’ve been doing the longest. I try and gun it and run as fast as I can.”

Eppinger said she hopes to be competing more after she graduates.

“If I’m lucky enough I hope to go pro,” Eppinger said. “If I don’t go pro I might go get my master’s and possibly become a lawyer.”