6,415!
What an eventful weekend, there was a total of 21 new number
one performances. The marks and times displayed this past weekend are
championship level. As we close out our final weekend in January and head to February,
we have moved into the second phase of the regular season and should be
prepared to see more championship level performances. In this post we will look
at each number one mark and discuss the latest team rankings.
SPRINTS/HURDLES
Women
Favour Ofili of LSU made her debut this past weekend and put
the country back on notice. The talented Nigerian dipped under 22 seconds in
the 200 last outdoor season and is the fastest returning 200 meter runner in
NCAA history. She ran a dominant race at the Razorback Invitational on the
campus of Arkansas with a time of 22.53.
The woman that Ofili defeated was Talitha Diggs of Florida
who ran 22.65 and turned around and ran the national leading time in the 400,
51.34. Diggs is now currently ranked number one in the 400 and three in the 400.
Although she was defeated by Ofili she has proven to be quite the sprinter and
is the only sprinter to be ranked in the top four in all three sprint events.
With that speed I expect for Diggs to fully lower her 400 mark.
Men
Micah Williams of Oregon continues on his redemption tour
with a new national leading mark in the 60 meter dash, a time of 6.49. He ran against
a strong field but the closest athlete him to him ran 6.65. In the 60-meter sprint,
an extremely short race, this proves his level of dominance. Williams is not
new to 6.4 but everyone time he does it, it proves to be more and more
impressive his level of consistency.
In the 400 Christopher Bailey of Arkansas ran an overall
personal best to win the Razorback Invitational. His time of 45.09 is a strong
mark at this point in the season and will make him a contender this post
season. We should not be surprised if he dips under 45 seconds indoors. He won
his race by more than a second and he is one of only two athletes to have gone
under 46 seconds.
Giano Roberts of Clemson ran a strong race on his home track.
He finished second with a time of 7.66 in the race to take the national lead.
The only athlete capable of beating Roberts is a current professional
unattached athlete. Roberts was a part of a strong trio for Clemson last year
and this year is starting to be much of the same.
Distance
Women
Michaela Rose of LSU ran a incredible 600 meter race early
in the season proving her strength for the 800 would be strong. She won the
Razorback Invitational 800 meter race by more than two seconds with her
national leading time of 2:01.66. She is the only athlete currently under 2:02
and that is her first 800 of the season. Rose is having a great start to her
2023 campaign and I am convinced we will hear more from her in the future.
It is no surprise that Katelyn Touhy appears her again. She
is already ranked number one in the nation in the 5k and now is number one in
the mile. Touhy ran at the Dr. Sander Invitational and against a professional/collegiate
field. Her time of 4:24.26 allowed for her to finish third overall but as the
top collegian. She has almost a 7 second lead on the nation in the event and is
currently the only athlete under 4:30 in the mile. It remains to be seen what
she will do come championship time but one thing is for certain we will hear
her name being called as a champion.
Men
Crayton Carrozza of Texas is not new to this blog. We have
mentioned his name multiple times before. He just competed at the Boston
University John Thomas Terrier Classic, a big distance meet, Carrozza ran a
strong final 200 meters to outkick the field and claim the title with a time
of1:46.28. He won the race by over a second a vaulted to the number one spot
nationally. The Longhorns have a strong depth at the 400–800-meter range and
Carrozza is currently at the top of the 800 group.
The mile was certainly the highlight of the weekend. It also
played a huge part in the team title rankings. Washington loaded up their home
track for the UW Invite. They produced a total of 8 milers to run a sub-4-minute
mile. That is not a typo, 8! That is an incredible display of depth. Leading
the way was sophomore Joe Waksom with his national leading time of 3:51.9. What
perhaps is even more impressive is that this was against a strong field that include
some of Stanford’s best and they now have the top four times in the country.
That DMR will be hard to beat.
Back at the University of Boston another number one performance
was being performed by Drew Bosley of Northern Arizona. Northern Arizona has
been a top tier distance power for quite some time and lately when they have
been mentioned it has been due to Nico Young. Bosley is proof that they are
more than a one-man wrecking crew since he is our latest NCAA record breaker.
Bosley competed against a strong field and finished fifth overall along with
being the top collegian. His 3,000-meter race time was 7:36.42 and it is a new
NCAA indoor record. He is just a sophomore but is currently the best in the
country.
In the 5,000-meter run new Tennessee athlete Dylan Jacobs
took the national lead with a time of 13:11.01 to finish fourth at the Boston
University John Thomas Terrier Classic. He is the third number one mark from
that meet alone. Jacobs previously competed at Notre Dame and was top tier
performer for the Irish and he has seamlessly transferred to Tennessee to give
them a strong boost with their distance talent. Jacobs already entered the
season as a national title contender with having a NCAA title in the 10,000
last outdoor season.
JUMPS
Women
Lamara Distin of Texas A&M is still the class of the
field in the women’s high jump. After setting multiple records in 2022 she has
kicked off her 2023 season with a strong start. She led a strong field at the
Razorback Invitational with a mark of 6 feet 2 ¾ inches (1.90m). Distin is in
her senior year and clearly has shown that defending her title is certainly in
her grasp.
Men
Senior Sondre Guttormsen of Princeton is the defending NCAA
Champion in the men’s pole vault. He could have turned professional last season,
but seeing as he is a Ivy-League student it should come as no surprise that he
is remaining a student athlete. He garnered the first 19 foot mark in the pole
vault this season. Winning at the HYP meet, his mark of 19 feet 2 inches (5.84m)
is a clear cut number one mark. Guttormsen is in prime condition to defend his title.
Jeremiah Davis of Florida State is having a strong start to
his season. He took a national lead in early January and now has returned to the
top. Davis took down an impressive field at the Razorback Invitational leaping
to a mark of 26 feet 11 ¼ inches (8.26m). Davis nearly earned a 27 foot mark
indoors. If you doubted Davis earlier in the season it is clearly time to take
him serious now.
Throws
Former NCAA Champion Jorinde Van Klinken of Oregon further
improved upon her number one mark. She launched a throw in the shot put of 60
feet 10 ½ inches to win the Texas Tech Open. Van Klinken is currently the only
athlete in the country with a mark over 60 feet and her strong start to the
season continues.
MULTI’S
Women’s Pentathlon
In the women’s pentathlon Camryn Newton-Smith of Arkansas
State has taken the national lead with a score of 4,356 points after winning
the Texas Tech Open. Newton-Smith’s performance is more noteworthy given the fact
that she defeated an All-American is Texas sophomore Kristine Blazevica. Newton-Smith
has never been mentioned her before, but she has certainly earned it with her
great performance last weekend.
Men’s Heptathlon
Our preseason favorite Kyle Garland of Georgia has consistently
lived up to the hype he built as a high school star. At the Texas Tech open this
past weekend he scored a total of 6,415 points. It is an impressive school
record and the second best mark in NCAA history. Of the seven events he scored
a total of 6 personal bests! Just an incredible performance against a strong
field that included Texas senior Leo Neugebauer. Garland broke the NCAA record
last outdoor season so it should come as no surprise that he could potentially
break the record this indoor season.
RELAYS
Women
There were some impressive relay times this weekend. In the
4x400 relay Arkansas proved their depth was too much for Florida with their
national leading time of 3:26.40. In the DMR Stanford women lived up to the
hype with their winning mark of 10:55.15. Its still early in the season but now
that we are finished with January expect for more eye-popping times even though
both times are impressive.
Men
I though after watching the Razorback Invitational that I
had seen an NCAA Championship preview in the men’s 4x400 relay. There were
several lead changes that came down to a strong anchor from Ryan Willie of Florida
to clock in at 3:04.11 over USC 3:04.12. However Georgia actually ran the best
time of the season at the Texas Tech open with a time of 3:03.74 and second overall
was Alabama that ran 3:03.99 at Clemson. The best three relay times are all in
the SEC and within a half second of each other. I expect for all three programs
to have lowered their times before then.
The DMR time from Virginia of 9:27.8 is a nice time but
without seeing what Washington is capable of I will withhold my thoughts on
this race this early in the season.
TEAM RANKINGS
Washington mean have taking over the number one ranking.
They certainly have proven solid depth and could sweep the mile indoors. On the
women’s side Arkansas proved their depth this weekend impressing the nation on
their home track.
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