Weekend Recap 5

3:35.01!

(Josh Kerr-New Mexico)

The theme of record breaking has continued. Another week another NCAA record has fallen. The past two years of NCAA Division 1 track and field has been exciting. So many historic records falling and the all-time lists are changing. The record breaking and challenging team battles are making the sport more exciting to young viewers. In this recap we will review what was an eventful weekend that included a new NCAA record by a rising superstar.

SPRINTS

Early in the indoor season senior Ncincilili Titi of South Carolina held the number one ranking in the 200. Although he would go on to be dethroned his time proved that he would be a serious threat this outdoor season. He just recently proved that. On his home track he clocked in a NCAA leading time of 20.00. His time is wind-legal and proves that he should still be considered a threat come June.

In the 400 Michael Norman of USC defeated a stacked field at the Mt. Sac Relays. The talented sophomore clocked in at 44.53 to defeat a talented field that included two other competitors under 45 seconds. Norman is now the number one ranked runner outdoors in the NCAA and the number two ranked runner in the world. This is his first 400 of the season and after a early season speedy 200 expect for him to lower his time.

On the women’s side Norman’s talented freshman teammate Twanisha Terry has now climbed into the record books. Terry won the 100-meter dash at the Mt. Sac Relays against a talented field to clock in at 10.99. Terry is now the number two junior on the all-time list and the number one ranked junior in the world. Terry is claimed the title as fastest freshman in NCAA history.

DISTANCE

Josh Kerr of New Mexico is the latest collegiate distance superstar. After defeating King Edward Cheserek of Oregon at the NCAA Championship he has consistently been on a tear. At the Bryan Clay Invitational Kerr added to his legend by breaking the NCAA record in the 1,500-meter run with a time of 3:35.01. In that same race was fellow distance star and Canadian Justyn Knight of Syracuse. Although it is still the regular season so we may not be done with the record breaking from this young man.

Matthew Baxter of Northern Arizona is the latest runner to garner national attention for this well coached program. Baxter also competing at the Bryan Clay Invitational won the 5,000 with a time of 13:31. His time immediately vaulted him to the number one spot in the NCAA. It remains to be scene of Knight of Syracuse will compete in the event but Baxter will prove to be a formidable challenge.

The Oregon women’s middle-distance group also had an impressive weekend and further improved their team title hopes. Sabrina Southerland and Jessica Hull both garnered impressive performances this past weekend and both now rank number two in the NCAA in the perspective events. Southerland’s time in the 800 was 2:01.44 and Hull’s time in the 1,500 was 4:10.46. Both were the top collegiate athletes in their races but lost to professionals, Southerland at the Mt. Sac Relays and Hull at the Bryan Clay Invitational. After a poor performing indoor season, by Oregon standards, the Ducks are forming into a formidable team.

Marie Bouchard of San Francisco ran a NCAA number one time of 15:32.95 in the 5,000 to win the Cardinal Classic and defeat Erin Finn of Michigan. Both athletes ran the number 1 and number 2 time in the NCAA which might be a preview of the NCAA Championships in June. Bouchard has no outdoor national championship experience so it remains to be seen how she will do against high level competition at a national championship but beating Finn this early in the season is a great start.

JUMPS

True freshman Vernon Turner of Oklahoma is continuing his solid season in the high jump. Turner this past weekend garnered the number one ranking with a mark of 7 feet 5 ¼ inches. The freshman also held the number one ranking for a short time indoor season, it remains to be seen how long he can keep his ranking outdoors.

Terrell McClain of Akron did the Mid-American Conference proud this season. He is the latest talented junior from the conference to garner national attention and a number one ranking. McClain leaped out to 26 feet 10 inches in the long jump to finish second at the Beach Invitational. Professional jumper for Adidas and Olympian Jeff Henderson was the winner. McClain’s jump is quite impressive this early in the season but a mark that shows he will be in the hunt come June.

Georgia has been jumps university for the past few years and this weekend they garnered two new number one rankings. American record holder and senior star Keturah Orji in the triple jump and Tatiana Gusin in the high jump. Orji’s winning mark of 47 feet ¼ inches and Gusin’s winning mark of 6 feet 2 inches. With both garnering number one rankings Georgia continues to validate that they are the best women’s jump program in the NCAA. 

Gusin who did not have the indoor season she would have liked is clearly returning to her championship form that defined her in the past. Having Gusin round into championship form early will improve the team’s overall outlook.

THROWS

Two throwers this weekend joined the all-time top 10 collegiate list. Gleb Dudarev of Kansas won the Kansas relays in the hammer throw with a mark of 256 feet. His mark is good for fifth all time in places him in the number one spot in the nation. On the women’s side Brooke Anderson of Northern Arizona won the hammer throw with her mark of 236 feet 8 inches good for number five all-time and currently number two in the NCAA.

  

RELAY

USC Women’s 4x100 Relay garner relay of the week honors. The quartet of Angie Kennelus, Kendall Ellis, Deanna Hill and Twanisha Terry ran a school record time of 42.57. Their mark is number two in the NCAA and sixth all-time. With their performances this past weekend the Lady Trojans now have the number one ranking in the NCAA.

FINAL WORD

We are inching closer and closer to the championships season but this weekend will be a weekend of relays. The National Relay competition will be held at Arkansas and the historic relay carnival the Penn Relays. I will be at the Penn Relays and will be looking to a great recap and hopefully I will be able to provide good video. This should be an exciting weekend in the world of track and field.

2018 Outdoor Weekend Recap 4

13.16!

(Grant Holloway-Florida)

This season continues to move along. It is the middle of the April and many of our collegiate stars are preparing for finals and taking a rest from heavy early action this outdoor season. With that being said, there were still performances that joined the all-time lists and even some new world number one performances this weekend. In this recap we will look at the top performances from the weekend.

MEN

5.) DEVIN DIXON (TEXAS A&M)- Dixon is a big part of Texas A&M team title hopes. The All-American in the 800 has great endurance and solid enough speed that he is on Texas A&M’s 4x400 relay. At the Rafer Johnson and the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Invitational on the campus of UCLA Dixon clocked in at 1:47.00 to win the invitational and garner the number three time in the nation. Although still early in his season his number three ranked performance shows he is still a viable threat in the event.

4.) KEITAVIOUS WALTER (ALABAMA)- With so many of our top performances currently listed with wind-aided marks it is refreshing that an athlete has joined the list without the wind. Junior Keitavious Walter of Alabama blazed the field at the Tom Jones Memorial Classic winning his heat rather convincingly. His heat winning time of 10.12 is the fastest non-wind aided mark in the NCAA. The former JUCO standout is now listed among the elites and with plenty of season left there is more to be seen from this talented young man.

3.) KENNY SELMON (NORTH CAROLINA)- Selmon has been a part of North Carolina’s stable of 400 hurdlers for a while. The super senior has been a threat since his freshman year. Now as a senior he looks to add the only championship trophy missing from his resume and that is a national title. At the Miami Hurricane Collegiate Invitational Selmon clocked in a national leading time of 49.00. He has nearly a second lead on the field and with his performance sends a warning shot to the nation that he is the one to beat.

2.) ASHMON LUCAS (PURDUE)- At the Triton Invitational sophomore Ashmon Lucas of Purdue launched a monster through of 206 feet and 5 inches to win the discus throw. His mark now places him at the top of the NCAA. Perhaps what is more impressive is the fact that he did that in the open section of the competition. Lucas was not a part of the Invitational group. With this performance on his resume he will likely be added to any invitational section in the future.

1.) GRANT HOLLOWAY (FLORIDA)- He never seems to miss an opportunity to be on any list. Since his freshman year he has routinely been included in the recap. On his home track at the Tom Jones Memorial Holloway again joined the all-time list, clocking in at 13.16 in the 110 hurdles to win in impressive fashion. The talented sophomore ran the fastest performance in four years and tied for number two all-time in NCAA history. His time is also ranked number one in the world and could potential stay that way for a little while. After having broken the NCAA Indoor record in the 60-meter hurdles it remains to be seen if he could break the NCAA record in the 110 hurdles.

WOMEN

5.) LAJARVIA BROWN (TEXAS A&M)- Lajarvia Brown is another talented athlete from Texas A&M who had a great weekend at the Rafer Johnson and Jackie Joyner-Kersee Invitational. Brown has seized the reins as the school’s top horizontal jumping threat. Against a top tier field Brown leaped to a mark of 44 feet 6 ¾ inches to win the triple jump. Brown is now currently ranked second in the country. Her mark is perhaps even more impressive since it was done against a decent headwind.

4.) CLARISSA CUTLIFF (FIU)- The high jump continues to impress early this season. We now have another athlete that has jumped over six feet in Clarissa Cutliff of Florida International University (FIU). Cutliff is now one of four athletes over six feet. She won the high jump at the Hurricane Collegiate Invitational with a mark of 6 feet ¾ of an inch. She is now ranked number two in the nation.

3.) TAMARA CLARK (ALABAMA)- Clark is the latest sprint star from Alabama. The true freshman blazed the track at the Tom Jones Memorial at the University of Florida. Her winning time in the 200 was 22.57. She is now currently ranked fourth in the country. This has been quite a year for talented freshman Clark’s time proves she is ready to be mentioned among them.

2.) MAGGIE EWEN (ARIZONA STATE)- Ewen did not set a new number one ranking this weekend. As shocking and disappointing at that is it has become what we expect of her. Ewen has just simply been a sensational thrower. She displayed why she is triple threat by winning all three of her throwing events, shot put, hammer and discus this past weekend at the Triton Invitational. Ewen is also ranked number one in the NCAA in all three events and is great position to give us that NCAA triple threat.

1.) JAZMINE FRAY (TEXAS A&M)- Fray has had to take a back seat the past few years to Raevyn Rogers formerly of Oregon. Rogers was consistently dominant at the Championship meets and Fray had to sit back and watch. However, this season she has the chance to assert herself as the new champion. At the Rafer Johnson and Jackie Joyner-Kersee Invitational she won the 800 in a time of 2:01.18. Her time seats her firmly in the number one position and gives her almost a two second lead on the rest of the NCAA field. Although we have not entered the post season yet, Fray has put herself in great position.

2018 Weekend Recap 3

(Michael Norman-USC)

The outdoor season rolls on. It is still early in the regular season but the athletes have not gotten the memo. Many of the top athletes in the country are already climbing the all-time lists, collegiate records are still being broken and the team title picture is perhaps cloudier than it has ever been. This past weekend was the first full weekend in April and with warmer temperatures we got better performances.

SPRINTS

In the sprints Michael Norman of USC reminded everyone who the dominant long sprinter truly was. The talented sophomore blazed the track with a time of 20.06 in the men’s 200-meter dash at the Sun Angel Classic. He beat NCAA 400 meter record holder Fred Kerley on the way to victory. Perhaps more impressive was the fact that it was in a negative 1.1 head wind perhaps indicating that Norman could have gone sub 20 without the wind in early April. The 400 is where his bread is buttered but he again proves just how talented he is in the 200.

Gabrielle Thomas of Harvard continues to be a star on the women’s side and especially in her signature event. The talented Ivy League junior blazed the track at the Hurricane Invitational at the University of Miami with a time of 22.32. Her time is the second-best performance in April in collegiate history and of the best performances in the world this season. Thomas certainly has proven her performances this past indoor season was no fluke.

HURDLES

The hurdle events continue to heat up on the men’s side with Ruebin Walters of Alabama blazing the track early to a time of 13.51 on his home track. He had virtually no competition in the race winning by a half second. No other athlete in the race went under 14 seconds. That certainly proves that Walters is still a viable to defeat Grant Holloway of Florida the preseason favorite and defending NCAA Champion.

In the 400 hurdles David Kendziera of Illinois was just finishing up what would be an impressive double when he went under 50 seconds to clock a national leading time of 49.92. He also ran a time of 13.52 earlier in the day to be the only athlete in Division ranked in the top five in both high and low hurdles. Illinois is often known for their hurdling and Kendziera is certainly proving to be another special talent.

Purdue as of late has become quite the power in the sprints in hurdles not only in the Big Ten but on a national level as well. The hurdles have become an event that they have gotten progressive better on the women’s side. Bahamian star hurdler and senior Devyne Charlton leads the group. She broke a stadium record held by Olympian and LSU alumnus LoLo Jones at the Battle of the Bayou. Her time of 12.70 in the 100 hurdles is the fastest wind legal time in the NCAA. Her teammate Symone Black won the 400 hurdles in a time of 56.58 to garner the number two ranked time in the NCAA. With two athletes ranked in the top five in both hurdling events they join LSU and Texas as proven hurdling powers.

DISTANCE

It was the 800 runners this weekend that take the distance highlight. Vincent Crisp of Texas Tech was another highlight of the great meet at Arizona State known as the Sun Angel Classic. Crisp set the track on fire winning a great 800 race with a time of 1:46.31. His time moved him to the number one ranking in the NCAA and gave Texas Tech another threat to help defeat Florida for the team title.

On the women’s side we look to division three. Yes, you read that correctly, division three. Emily Richards of Ohio Northern clocked an outstanding time of 2:02.84 at the Sun Angel Classic. She finished second overall with the only athlete defeating her was a professional runner for Under Armor. She defeated a quality field with a bevy of division one talent. With division three we already know of her school limitations making her performance more impressive.

JUMPS

The jumping events were hot this weekend. All-American senior Barden Adams of Kansas leaped his way to the number two ranked performance in the NCAA this weekend. His mark of 53 feet 4 ¼ inches placed in second behind Florida’s Clayton Brown and another great performance at the Sun Angel Classic. The senior already has conference champion in his trophy case it remains to be seen if he can add NCAA Champion to it as well.

Senior Keturah Orji of Georgia is known more for her performance in the triple jump but this past weekend on her home track Orji proved that she is still a quality long jumper as well. Orji defeated teammate and defending champion Kate Hall with a mark of 22 feet and ¼ inch. She is currently the only athlete over 22 feet this outdoor season and looks to potentially add a national title in the long jump to her trophy case.

In the high jump Georgia junior Keenon Laine was another jumping highlight for the University of Georgia. Laine leaped to a mark of 7 feet 5 inches to tie the number one ranking in the high jump. Zarriea Willis of Texas Tech was the highlight on the women’s side leaping to her number one mark of 6 feet 1 ¼ inch. She is one of two women over 6 feet this outdoor season.

THROWS

Maggie Ewen has routinely stolen the headlines this season. After record breaking season last year and this past indoor season she picked up where she left off. On her home track at the Sun Angel Classic Ewen broke her own collegiate record in the Hammer Throw with a mark of 240 feet 6 inches. She also claimed the shot-put with a mark of 63 feet ¾ inch. Her shot-put mark is also the number two ranked mark in NCAA history. Ewen currently ranks number one in three throwing events, the Shot Put, Hammer Throw and Discus. A triple crown is a true possibility.

Gleb Dudarev of Kansas is another positive for the University of Kansas. The talented sophomore competed at the Sun Angel classic and launched his hammer out to 243 feet 11 inches. Dudarev is now the number two ranked thrower in the hammer throw. Dudarev finished third at the NCAA Championship last year and a performance of that caliber this early in the season proves he is certainly looking to improve his place.

MULTI

Senior Tim Duckworth of Kentucky is continuing his dominant season. The talented multi-even athlete is looking to make up for the disappointing performance last outdoor season that saw him finish 19th in the decathlon at the NCAA meet after failing to score in the long jump. Duckworth began this outdoor season with a bang score a total of 8,145 points a new personal best. His performance garnered him the number one ranking in the NCAA and back in the driver’s seat for the NCAA Championship.

RELAY

LSU women’s 4x100 relay continues to be the stand out group this season. They are still the only quartet under 43 seconds and this past week at the Battle on the Bayou they ran the 9^th best collegiate time is history with their mark of 42.50. With two athletes that can run sub 11 seconds is still possible that they dip under 42 seconds.

NEXT

The Tennessee Relays former known as the Sea Ray Relays will be held this weekend at the University of Tennessee the site for the SEC Outdoor Championship. This meet is the biggest meet being held this weekend and will include teams from the SEC, Big Ten and ACC along with a host of other conferences. There should be plenty of big performances from this meet.

2018 Outdoor Weekend Recap 2

(Sydney McLaughlin-Kentucky)

As expected this past weekend was the fire that lit the excitement to the outdoor season. More records fell and new collegiate all-time best were added to the ever-growing list. The team title picture is still not clear but we are now aware that some teams are clearly better than their preseason ranking. In this recap we will try our best to review all the great action that took place this weekend.

HOT RELAYS

This season the relays have been off to a fast start, especially in the 4x100 relay. Houston the defending champion on the men’s side has all the momentum and national attention since they are returning the entire group that did NOT include sprint star Elijah Hall. At the Texas Relays this past weekend they were against number one ranked LSU. It was senior Cameron Burrell who would become the hero, Burrell closed and barely surpassed LSU’s anchor Jaron Flournoy to help the Cougars win with a time of 38.91.

LSU will still retain the number one ranking on the season but Houston has the victory head to head. With the speed that Houston has many are expecting them to go sub 38 and become the first collegiate team to do so. Houston will have to improve the baton exchanges for that to happen.

On the women’s side the most impressive relay this weekend will go to Kentucky’s 4x400 relay team. Sydney McLaughlin was a special highlight at the Florida Relays but along with her teammates they clocked in a time of 3:26.92 to beat Purdue and Florida. McLaughlin had a 49.45 split and the Kentucky Wildcats had a great early season performance. USC will have something to say about their performance when they meet later in the season but that was an impressive early season time.

For honorable mention Florida’s men 4x400 relay earned the number one ranking in the NCAA this season with their performance on their home track at the Florida Relays clocking in at 3:01.00. Their time is impressive early on and is credited to the fact that they have two-sub 45 second splits. LSU women’s 4x100 relay still has the number one ranking after winning in a dominating fashion at the Texas Relays their time of 42.66 is just .01 shy off the national leading mark. No other team has run sub 43 this season.

Another relay of note goes to the Texas A&M women’s 4x800 relay. They broke a 30-year-old Texas Relays record that was held by Texas. Their winning time of 8:30.58 included a 2:03 leg from Jazmine Fray. They may perhaps compete again at the SEC Relays at Arkansas later this season and even lower that mark.

INDIVIDUAL STARS

True freshman Sydney McLaughlin continues to be one of the many positive highlights from this season. An Olympian as a high school athlete in one of the toughest events, she has had a great career so far. At the Florida Relays she perhaps left the meet as the overall MVP. She won the 200 meter dash in 22.36 and the 400 meter dash in 50.07. Her time in the 400 is the fastest for a U-20 athlete since Sanya Richards-Ross. Her 400 time is also the new number one in the NCAA and she may not even contest the event this outdoor season. She also ran a 49.45 split in the 4x400 relay that propelled her team to number one in the nation.

Elijah Hall is Houston’s latest sprint star, never mind that Cameron Burrell is still there. Hall who became the new Indoor world record holder in the 200 lit the track on fire this past weekend at the Texas Relays. In the 200-meter Invitational he beat professional sprinter Dedric Dukes to win in a time of 20.11. His time was one of the few non-wind aided times from a windy weekend. Hall anchored their winning 4x200 relay with a time of 1:21.20 and ran the second leg on their winning 4x100 relay for a total of three victories.

Senior Prakel of Oregon is just one of many talented distance runners that the Ducks have this season. Prakel competed in the 1,500 at the Stanford Invitational and led a Oregon sweep in the event. Prakel’s national leading time of 3:39.75 is an impressive early season time. Prakel missed the NCAA Outdoor meet last season and has been a solid performer for the Ducks all year and finished third in the mile this past indoor season. Josh Kerr of New Mexico is still the headliner but Prakel is a proven challenger.

Senior Karissa Schweizer of Missouri continues to be the story all season long. The talented distance runner decided to try her hand at the 10,000-meter run at the Stanford Invitational. In that field she was competing against professionals such as Gwen Jorgensen. Schweizer proved she could compete with the best in a long-distance event. She finished third behind Jorgensen and fellow professional Carrie Demoff but she was the top collegian in the race and her time of 32:00.55 was the eighth fastest in NCAA history. Schweizer who has been breaking records throughout her career will likely continue to do so as the season progresses.

At the same meet in Stanford Allie Ostrander began her outdoor season with a bang as well. Ostrander competed in her favored event the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Ostrander is the defending NCAA Champion and a high-level competitor in all long-distance events. Ostrander clocked in a winning time 9:38.57. Her time is the eighth best time in collegiate history and a reminder to everyone that she is still the athlete to beat.

UP, UP and AWAY

The jumpers this weekend decided to join the party. There were quite a few number one performances including Lisa Gunnarson of Virginia Tech. Gunnarson becomes the latest Pole Vault stud in the NCAA. Gunnarson won the Pole Vault at the Texas Relays with a leap of 15 feet 1 inch. Her time equals the seventh best time in NCAA history and was done against the top vaulters from Arkansas in the field. Gunnarson has put everyone on notice with that performance.

In the men’s pole vault the Texas Relays produced another hot matchup. Chris Nielsen of South Dakota and Devin King of Southeast Louisiana joined the all-time top 10 list. Nielsen looking to avenge himself after finishing second at the NCAA Indoor meet won with fewer attempts over the winning height. Their mark of 19 feet ¼ inch is the first 19-foot mark since 2016 season. Nielsen a talented sophomore can use this to further cement his status as the favorite to win the outdoor title and earn him his second national title overall. King has yet to produce on the NCAA stage and could use this as motivation not only change that prove that he can win the NCAA title as well.

THROWING HEAVY

The throwers had themselves quite a weekend as well. More athletes joined the all-time list and became new number ones for the season. Denzel Comenentia of Georgia continued great season with a throw of 250 feet 3 inches to win the hammer throw at the Texas Relays. Comenentia’s throw is the seventh best mark in NCAA history and places him as the new number one over Anders Eriksson of Florida and Rudy Winkler of Rutgers. Winkler still has the further personal best and has Olympic Games experience making this event quite interesting. This event is also important to Florida and their team title hopes. They have two athletes in the top five and will be counting on Eriksson for big points.

FINAL SAY

A windy final day at the Texas Relays hurt some of the top tier times at the meet. Aleia Hobbs of LSU clocked in at 10.86 but her performance was well over the legal wind limit. Hobbs has already proven what she is capable of and it will be interesting to see later this outdoor season.

This coming weekend there will be more competitive meets. You have the Specs-Towns Invitational at the University of Georgia, Battle at the Bayou at LSU and the Battle of Blues at Duke University. There should be more records broken and all-time lists changed as that has been the theme the past year and a half.