AUBURN, Ala. - At least Arkansas went out with a bang.

The Lady Razorbacks hoped a solid meet could see them score 100-plus points and a top-three finish. Arkansas didn't get the 100 points but managed the thirdplace finish.

Arkansas overcame a terrible start and scratched its way to a third-place finish with 86. 5 points at the SEC Outdoor Track and Field Championships on Sunday at Auburn's Hutsell-Rosen Track. LSU cruised to the team title with 157. 5 points, and Florida was second with 128.

Arkansas didn't have any realistic hopes of winning because of LSU's tremendous combination of top-tier talent and depth. Any chance of an upset was torpedoed early in the meet.

Arkansas finished with a strong 5, 000-meter showing. Senior Christine Kalmer finished second, and three of her teammates finished in the top eight as the Lady Razorbacks scored 16 points in the event.

"That's the most points we've scored in the [5, 000 ] in a while," Arkansas Coach Lance Harter said. "There are no 'gimmes' any more. The conference has just gotten so tough."

The Lady Razorbacks had a double body blow in the first two days when heptathlon standout Etienne Chaplin no-heighted in the high jump, ruining her chances of scoring points, and 10, 000 favorite Catherine White came down with a stomach bug. The rest of the meet, Arkansas was in scramble mode to make a respectable showing.

"We had some bad breaks," Harter said. "We still have a chance to get some things done at regionals and at the national meet. We're just not good enough we can throw points away and get away with it."

Chaplin's failure to score and White's sudden illness prevented the Lady Razorbacks from getting on a roll early.

"Those were huge casualties," Harter said. "If you give one here, two there, you're 10-15 points shy. Now, all of a sudden, you're looking at 25 points. All that momentum, getting everybody else excited, didn't happen."

White had to have fluids administered intravenously after waking up early Friday morning with severe nausea. She ran in the 5, 000 on Sunday and finished seventh, although Harter said she was clearly not 100 percent healthy.

There were other bright spots. Sophomore Katie Stripling won the pole vault Saturday to become the first Lady Razorback to win indoor and outdoor conference titles. On Sunday, the Lady Razorbacks didn't have any individual champion, although senior Dacia Barr came within 60 meters of defending her 1, 500 title.

Tennessee junior Sarah Bowman, Barr's longtime nemesis, caught and passed Barr with 60 meters remaining to win in 4 minutes, 19. 02 seconds. Barr finished second in 4: 19. 44.

Barr broke from a tight, slow pack with about 600 meters left in an attempt to force Bowman to keep up. Bowman, an eight-time conference champion, is known for her late speed, and Barr was trying to win on her strength and endurance.

It nearly succeeded, but Bowman stayed with Barr and had enough left to pass her at the end.

"She definitely has a better kick than I do," Barr said. "I was trying to gap her so she couldn't come back and get me. I think I did the best I could. I tried my best, [but ] not much I can do."

Harter said Bowman showed her talent and experience in staying with Barr.

"Bowman has that confidence when it comes down to a few meters, she can run down anybody," Harter said. "Dacia gave her a great run."

Both Bowman and Barr said they knew ahead of time the race would be a slow, tactical one because no one would want to take the lead. Barr said an early fast pace would have helped her use her better endurance to her advantage.

Senior Paige Farrell finished seventh in the 800 in 2: 06. 54. Senior Makeatha Cooper was eighth in the 100 hurdles in 13. 88, and freshman Shelise Williams was eighth in the 400 in 55. 49.

The Lady Razorbacks didn't finish the 400 relay when Peter-Gaye Beckford pulled up with a cramp during her second leg.