Conference Championship Weekend Review

(Florida-2015 Men's SEC Indoor Champions)

 



The championship season is here and it began with a bang. There several top notch performances from the Power 5 conferences and smaller conferences. One of the joys of collegiate track and field is the amazing team battles that take place during this weekend. So many willing to sacrifice their own individual goals for those of the team. It is exciting to see especially since track and field is mainly an individual sport. Let us recap what was an amazing weekend.

Sprints

This weekend we were expecting a great 60 meter dash battle on the men's side in the Big 12. You had defending outdoor 100 meter champion Trayvon Bromell of Baylor, defending conference 60 meter champion of Texas Senoj-Jay Givens and top ranked 60 meter sprinter this season in John Teeters of Oklahoma State. This race became a big deal the moment John Teeters clocked in at 6.52 early in the season. Although both Teeters and Bromell had ran sub 6.6 it was Givens who defended his title with a time of 6.59 his first under 6.6. Although Givens is the defending champion it was still considered an upset since much was made about Bromell and Teeters.

In the long sprints the SEC was the highlight of the weekend. Aaron Ernest claimed his second conference title in the men's 200 with a time of 20.69. Ernest defeated top ranked senior from Texas A&M Shavez Hart. Hart has been number 1 all season but did not perform well enough to beat Ernest. Ernest first claimed title as a super sophomore.

In the 400 we were without a few big names. Deon Lendore was not able to finish in the preliminary rounds ad Hugh Graham of Florida was injured in the 60 meter dash. However there were still big names in the race. On very big name is junior Arman Hall of Florida who has not ran a race individually all season. The last race he ran was as an anchor on the men's 4x400 relay early in the season. Although not his usual self he still managed to climb into the top 16 rankings and go under 46 seconds with a time of 45.97 for 4th overall. His teammate junior Najee Glass has been the top guy all season and left no doubt after claiming the event title for himself with a time of 45.37. He is Florida's 1st 400 meter SEC champion indoors since Kerron Clement of 2005.

On the women's side Remona Burchell of Alabama stamped herself as the fastest 60 meter collegian. The talented Jamaican sprinter left little doubt with an outstanding race that saw her clock in at 7.08. She had full tenth on next closest competitor Dezerea Bryant of Kentucky who ran 7.18. Bryant who is not only the defending conference champion in the 200, she is also the NCAA defending champion. Bryant did battle with Kyra Jefferson of Florida and was unable to defend her title just barely. Jefferson held onto win with a time of 23.02, the same as Bryant but was able to out lean her by thousandths of a second. 

Jefferson also competed in only her second 400 meter race of the year and was able to finish 2nd with a time of 52.00 to rising star Shamier Little of Texas A&M who claimed the title in a time of 51.37. Little is the defending NCAA champion outdoors in the 400 meter hurdles. Her talent is a lot similar to that of Lashinda Demus who could run both the 400 and 400 hurdles at a high level. With better technique this season is highly possible we may see Ms. Little on team USA this summer.


DISTANCE

Will start on the women's side for distance since we now have yet another new collegiate record holder this season. Emily Sisson of Providence joined a special group after her dominating performance at the Big East Indoor championships when she broke the 5,000 meter national record. Her time of 15:12.22 broke the national and school record. It placed in her in top 3 all time amongst U.S. women in the event. Sisson is graduate student at Providence and simply reminded everyone why she is a force to be reckoned with in long distance racing.

The Michigan State women proved this weekend that their national title in cross country was no fluke. They were every bit as dominant at the Big Ten Indoor championship. The Lady Spartans claimed almost every distance event except two, the 800 and 5,000, however they had four girls in the top 10 and 3 score. They also broke the 12 year winning streak of instate rival Michigan in the women's distance medley relay with a time of 10.57.80 that puts them number 2 in the country. However in the mile Leah O'Connor led the way with a time of 4:32.29. Teammate Rachel Schulist ran a dominating 3,000 meter race with a time of 9:01.25 almost a full 15 seconds ahead of her closest competitor.

At the SEC Indoor championships Arkansas was equally as impressive. The Razorbacks claimed the event title in every distance race but 1, the 5,000 but had three athletes score in the race. Senior Dominque Scott led the way claiming the title in both the mile with a time of 4:32.49. The Razorbacks went 1-3-4-5 in the mile to pick up a total of 25 points in one event. Scott led her team to put up similar numbers in the 3k adding yet another conference title to her trophy case. The ladies went 1-2-4 for a total of 23 points. In the 800 Chrishauna

On the men's side the Oregon Ducks decided to remind everybody why they are defending champions and show case their talent. At the MPSF Championships the Ducks put their best in the men's distance medley relay to approve upon their standing. The Ducks ran the 5th fastest race of all time. Their time of 9:27.02. That time put them number 1 in the country and slightly ahead of previous number 1 Villanova who is also on the top 10 list all time with a time of 9:27.04.

The Gators got a huge team boost from the outstanding 800 meter duo of Andres Arroyo and Ryan Schnulle. Junior Schnulle claimed his first conference title with a time of 1:48.25 over Arroyo who finished second in 1:48.48. Their 18 points were huge in helping the Gators to the SEC title. Both have ran better this season, most notably Arroyo who has a 1:46 effort that currently ranks him number 2 in the NCAA.

A new star is born in the men's mile and he is not from any other power 5 conferences. Senior Cristian Soratos of Montana State burst onto the scene as a contender a few weeks ago with his national leading time of 3:55.27. He surpassed previous number 1 Edward Cheserek of Oregon. He followed up that performances by winning three events at the Big Sky conference meet. Soratos won the mile, 800 and anchored his team's distance medley relay. On top of that he ran a leg on the 4x400 relay that finished 5th. That equates to 34 points! Yes from 1 individual. He is a true talent and fare favorite to win the mile in two weeks at the NCAA Indoor Championships


HURDLES

Welcome back Kendra Harrison of Kentucky. Harrison like Arman Hall missed majority of the indoor season. She certainly made her presence known early. In the preliminaries she ran the 2nd fastest time of the year with a time of 8.03. In the finals she vaulted to clear number 1 and a personal best time of 7.92. Bridgette Owens of  Florida who held the number 1 time finished in a distance 2nd with a time of 8.08.. I personally expected for Harrison to take a step back after sprint coach Tim Hall left Kentucky after 1 year to coach at Tennessee. However she returned to form rather quickly and did not miss a step.

On the men's side sophomore Omar McLeod of Arkansas ran a race for the ages. His time of 7.49 places him the 5 all time of 60 meter hurdles. McLeod by way of Jamaica is part of a growing successful trend of Jamaican hurdlers. McLeod and other Jamaican hurdles have something that many American hurdlers are missing and that is speed. I believe without a doubt that McLeod can break Reggie Torain's NCAA record of 7.47. The closes competitor has not even dipped under 7.7.

THROWS

There was another NCAA record set this season. Michael Lihrman of Wisconsin is the defending champion in the men's weight throw. If there was any doubt about him being able to defend his title he ended that discussion this past weekend by obliterating the NCAA record with a mark of 83-11 3/4. Lihrman now has 9 of the 10 best throws all time in NCAA  history. Lihrman also moved up to number 3 in the history of the world.

In terms of team points senior Stipe Zunic of Florida was huge. The Gators have spent a lot of time as a runner up at the SEC meet to Arkansas. This year the Gators exceeded expectation when available. The Gator senior claimed the men's shot put to give his team 10 points with a throw of 66'11 1/2. He is currently ranked number 2 in the NCAA and is another key piece to the Florida Gators team title hopes.

On the women's side senior Tori Bliss of LSU joined another elite group earning the SEC Indoor Shot put title by surpassing 60 feet. Her mark of 60-1 was a new personal best and solidified her spot as the nation's number 1.

Brea Garrett is also a defending NCAA Champion from Texas A&M. However she was outclassed by a fellow SEC competitor from Missouri in Kearsten Peoples who placed her name in the record books with a throw of 73-8. Ida Storm of UCLA also threw her name into the pot when she won the MPSF Indoor conference title with a throw of 73-6. This makes for an interesting competition at the  NCAA Championships sine Storm was last year's runner up.

JUMPS

The event that has garnered the most attention on both sides men and women has been the pole vault. The national record has been under constant threat on both sides because of the amazing talent at the  NCAA level.

On the women's side Demi Payne of Stephen F. Austin set the NCAA record with a mark of 15'7 early this season. Payne competed at the  USATF Indoor Championships since her conference meet was last weekend. Payne notched an easy victory with a mark of 14-11 marking her potentially as the next great pole vault star. Her main competitor  Sandi Morris of Arkansas has already defeated her one this season and set a personal best at the SEC Indoor Championships. The two will look to meet again at the NCAA Indoor Championships in 2 weeks.

On the men's side the NCAA record holder Shaw Barber of Akron is actually still in school. Barber set the NCAA record with a mark of 19-4 1/4 at the Tyson Invitational. Barber remains the only collegian over 19 feet. It seems every since weekend Barber is attempting to break the NCAA record. Barber continued his torrid pace of getting over 19 feet by winning the MAC title by more than 2 feet.

Athletes who compete in both the long jump and triple jump for a while was a rarity. There has been a steady increase in athletes who compete in both events. Senior Marquis Dendy is even more rare since he is a champion in both events. He again proved this weekend that he is the best horizontal jumper in the nation. Dendy joined the all-time collegiate list again with a mark of 56-6 1/2 in the triple jump. He claimed the long jump title in 26-3 3/4 on day 1 of the SEC Championships. Dendy provided 20 much needed points to the Gators. Dendy is currently ranked number 1 in the triple jump and number 2 in the long jump and could win the national title in both events.

True freshman Keturah Orji of Georgia took down defending NCAA Champion Senior Ciarra Brewer of Florida in the women's triple Jump at the SEC Championships. It is the 3rd time this season that Orji defeated Brewer. Orji is apart of growing successful track record American women in the triple jump. Orji is still learning more about the long jump and could join Dendy as a successful double jumper. Orji finished 3rd in the long jump behind Shakeela Saunders of Kentucky who won the long jump with a mark of 21'6.

Orji's Georgia teammates had a 1-2 sweep in the High Jump. Both Leontia Kallenou and Tatiana Gusin surpassed 6 feet. Kallenou leaped to 6-2 3/4 while Gusin reached 6-1 1/2. Senior Bryan McBride of Arizona State had the best high jump of the weekend with a mark of 7-5 to place his amongst the top 4 in the country and this event should be highly competitive at the NCAA Indoor Championship meet.

The men's heptathlon top honors goes to Garrett Scatling of Georgia who led a 1-2 finish by scoring a total of 6,036 points at the SEC Indoor Championships.

The women's pentathlon top honors goes to Kendell Williams also of Georgia. Williams a talented sophomore remains one of the best young American stars. Williams dominated the competition at the SEC Championships scoring a total of 4,519 points.

Week 3 Recap

(Trayvon Bromell-Baylor)



This past weekend there were some great performances to witness. There were a lot of quality team meets around the country with ranked programs competing against one another. There was the headlining meet the Rod McCravy Memorial at Kentucky, the Notre Dame invitational and the Texas A&M Quadrangular. Each meet had athletes post some impressive marks. Let us review this weekend's top performances.

SPRINTS

As usual we will start off with the Sprints and America's next great sprint star sophomore Trayvon Bromell of Baylor. Bromell reaffirmed his status as up and coming star last outdoor season by setting an American junior record in the 100 meter dash with a time of 9.97. He had an average indoor season last year. This season he has gotten off to a rocket start to prove that last indoor season was a fluke. Bromell clocked in at 6.54 to set a meet record at the McCravy Memorial in Kentucky in the 60 meter dash. His time matches the top time in the country and puts him in perfect position to win the indoor 60 meter crown.

The most impressive long sprint performance came from Bralon Taplin of Texas A&M. Taplin put incredible distance between himself and the rest of the field. Taplin clocked in at 45.78 to win the 400 meter dash at the Texas A&M quadrangular. He ran that race with no one within a second of his time. Taplin is next in line to be apart of a great set of 400 meter runners at Texas A&M.

On the women's side Morolake Akinosun of Texas beat an impressive field in the women's 60 meter dash. The top three performers were all competing at the McCravy Memorial. After a solid start she could not be caught winning the race with an impressive 7.22. Jasmine  Todd of Oregon who still holds the nation's number 1 time finished second with a time of 7.26.

Her teammate sophomore Kendall Baisden also ran an impressive 400 meter race against a top tier field. Baisden clocked in at 51.81 to earn the nation's top mark. Fellow sophomore from Miami also ran an equally impressive race with a time of 51.82.

Cierra White of Texas Tech scorched the track in the women's 200 meter dash at Texas A&M. White defeated Ashton Purvis of A&M with a national leading time of 23.18.  White is coming an outstanding outdoor season and will be a force to reckon with this season.


FIELD EVENTS

The field events were hot this weekend all over. After the national record in the women's pole vault was broken twice last weekend many other field event athletes have decided to join in on the fun. In the triple jump youth was served at the McCravy Memorial. On the women's side Keturah Orji a freshman from Georgia set a indoor American junior record with her leap of 45-10 1/2. She surpassed the defending NCAA Champion Ciarra Brewer of Florida who also surpassed 45 feet with a mark of 45-2 1/4.

On the men's side it was all Florida. Defending outdoor triple jump champion Marquis Dendy of Florida made his season debut with a mark of 52-8 1/4, his freshman teammate Keandre Bates also made noise with a mark of 52-0. As great as their performances were the top performance in the country belongs to Matthew O'Neal of South Florida who leaped to 53'11 this past weekend to claim the top mark in the country.

In the women's pole vault Demi Payne of Stephen F. Austin again proved that she is the true number one in this event by setting the NCAA record again. Her mark of 15-7 is 6 inches better than the next performer in the NCAA.

In the men's shot put Ashinia Miller of Georgia had an impressive performance this past weekend at the McCravy memorial. Miller threw for a mark of 66-7 3/4. His performance put him atop the rankings in the country and continues the success in the throwing events at Georgia. Tori Bliss of LSU led all women throwers with a mark of 57-4 3/4 in the shot-put placing her in the top spot as well.

Georgia continued there impressive performance in the field events by winning both multi-event competitions at the McCravy memorial, the heptathlon and pentathlon. Kendall Williams winning the women's pentathlon with a total of 4,609 points, nearly 2,000 more than her closes competitor. Garrett  Scantling won the men's heptathlon over his teammate Maicel Ubo with a total 5,886 points while Ubo had 5,847. Teammate Devon Williams, the brother to Kendall Williams rounded out the top three to finish third with 5,538.


Distance

The distance event are starting to warm up. Many premier athletes made their indoor season. At Kentucky there was clearly no bigger name than that of Edward Cheserek of Oregon. Cheserek ran the 3,000 meter run in 7:49.56. He had a 5 second lead against the closest competitor his teammate Johnny Gregorek.

Cheserek's performance was only part of an extremely successful weekend for Oregon. Eric Jenkins led the team to a 1-2-3 sweep in the 5k with his winning time of 13:31.76. The Duck also had a 1-2 finish in the men's mile with Colby Alexander winning with a time of 4:00.84. Furthermore they claimed the men's distance medley relay with a time of 9:32.61 four seconds ahead of runner up Florida.

Dominque Scott of Arkansas won the women's mile in Kentucky with a impressive time of 4:32.48. She won her race convincingly with a 7 second margin. She also anchored the women's distance medley relay to a victory over Florida by more than 5 seconds.

At A&M Shelby Houlihan of Arizona State ran impressive 3,000 meter race that places her atop the NCAA by more 10 seconds. Houlihan almost going under 9 minutes with her winning time of 9:03.71.

4x400  Relay

The meet at Kentucky had a lot of impressive performances. However many of the top tier long sprinters did not compete in individual races. However they made up for it with two outstanding races. First the Florida women get things started off right by going 3:30 to break a school record in the first meet with a time of 3:29.58. Robin Reynolds ran a terrific lead off leg and Claudia Francis who transferred from Oregon ran an outstanding anchor leg to hold off Arkansas and Texas who both ran under 3:31.

The Florida men were without 200 meter champion Dedric Dukes who is out injured. However Florida has earned the moniker as 400 meter "U" because of their development and depth in the event. Nick Uruburu ran the 3rd leg this time and did an admirable job. Najee Glass ran an outstanding first leg that equated to 45.3 start. Arman Hall who ran the anchor leg had his work cut out for him with hard charging Vernon Norwood of LSU closing the gap and almost winning. The Gators broke the meet record with a time of 3:04.22 without Dedric Dukes. Their performance was quite impressive. It looks like it will be another great year for the 4x400 relay.

Another big meet will headline next weekend, it is the Razorback Invitational at the University of Arkansas. Many of the same teams will be at this meet along with Texas A&M. Expect more exciting performances and finishes.

Week 1 and 2 Review

(Jasmine Todd-Oregon)



It is mid-January and there have been plenty of noteworthy performances already. Most of the performances have been performed by sprinters. It is early in the season and still time for athletes all around to perform. The sprinters that have made the early noise have mostly been women.

Remona Burchell came on late last season with a time of 7.11 to claim the indoor 60 meter dash title. If she wants to defend her title she will likely have to put up a record performance and get started early this season. Already Jasmine Todd of Oregon has gotten started with a time of 7.15. Todd has been bitten by the injury bug the last few seasons and will look to finally put together a complete season. Todd's performance set a new facility record at the University of Washington's indoor facility. She had chase from true freshman Ky Westbrook of USC who clocked in at 7.18 to lead an impressive core of sprinters at USC. Kentucky senior and defending indoor 200 meter champion Dezerea Bryant saw to it to make some noise as well with a time of 7.18 and a NCAA leading 200 time of 23.12.

On the men's side the 60 meter dash is also warming up. John Teeters of Oklahoma State blasted off to a time of 6.54 which is currently the nation's number 1 time. NCAA 100 meter champion Trayvon Bromell of Baylor also dipped under 6.6 with a time of 6.58 putting him in 3rd place. Fellow talented sophomore of Mississippi Jalen Miller impressed many in week 1 with a time of 6.56. The early impressive times lead me to believe of the possibility that one of these young sprinters will possibly dip under 6.5 and run 6.4. It's too early to tell but expect some fireworks.

The hurdles had some amazing marks as well. In the 60 hurdles one of the preseason favorites Bridgette Owens of Florida broke her meet record this season with a NCAA leading time of 8.10. Owens has had some injury troubles while at Florida but had a great outdoor season. Fellow Michigander Cindy Ofili of Michigan earned the number three mark in the nation this past week with a time of 8.18.

On the men's side in the hurdles talented junior Isaac Williams of Houston earned a nation leading mark with a time of 7.72 at the beginning of the year to defeat a talented field. Defending champion Omar McCleod of Arkansas by way of Jamaica claimed the number two mark in a competitive dual against Texas with a time of 7.76. Donovan Robertson of Ohio State also tied the number two mark with a time of 7.76. All three are young talents that should be a big part of the sport in the future.

In the field events Donald Scott of Eastern Michigan got things started very early in the men's triple jump with a leap of 53 feet 7 1/2 inches. Scott is one of the many returning All-Americans and now that his football eligibility has been exhausted he can fully focus on the triple jump and can be considered a threat to win the title overall. Fellow MAC athlete Shawn Barber of Akron University also put up a noteworthy performance surpassing 19 feet the in the men's pole vault. Barber seems to be getting an early leap on defending his title.

In the women's pole vault there are two who are far ahead of the competition by at least a foot. Demi Payne of Stephen F. Austin and Sandi Morris of  Arkansas. This past weekend both athletes brook the NCAA record, yes in the same weekend. First it was Morris with a mark of 15' 1.5 then later Payne with a mark of 15'2.25. For Arkansas it was business as usual as they routinely have turned out great vaulters. The two will likely battle it out for another national record later this season.

Keeping up with excellence in the MAC Akron continues there success in the women's weight throw. In their dual against Kent State this past weekend there top two athletes scored the top two marks in the nation with a throws beyond 70 feet. Leading the way was Alexis Cooks who threw for 71'1.5 followed by Brittany Funk with a mark of 70'11.25. Both marks are impressive and draw more positive attention to the MAC conference.

Maddie Myers of Washington had the most impressive distance performance of the weekend at the Washington Preview by winning the women's 3,000. Myers won the race by more than 8 seconds with a time of 9:16.03. Morgan Scheutz of LSU also had an impressive weekend as LSU is giving more effort in developing quality distance runners. Schuetz claimed the top time in the women's 800 with a time of 2:06.32. These two talented sophomores are names we should expect to hear more of in the future.

This coming weekend is the Rod McCrary Invitational at the University of Kentucky. Many of the nations premier programs will be competing including, Florida, LSU, USC and Miami amongst others. This is an opportunity for us to really validate the rankings many of the top tier programs have received.

Track Season is Back! 2015 Preview Part 1

 



Welcome back to all you crazy track heads. In attempt to explain my long-term absence I will only let you know that I took a break to simply re-charge and emphasize that this blog will solely focus on track and field in the collegiate realm. There are a lot of exciting things on the horizon for the sport of collegiate track and field. With this season comes a World Championships and makes every performance that more important. Let us come together and preview what should be an outstanding season both indoor and out. This is part 1 and will focus solely on the sprints.


SPRINTS

I really enjoy the sprinting events within this sport which is the reason why I generally start off with them in majority of posts. This season that will continue but I do promise to mix things up throughout the season.

There are plenty of great champions returning in the sprints at both the national and conference level. In the 60 meter dash Remona Burchell of  Alabama by way of Jamaica returns as the defending champion. Burchell blasted onto the scene at the end of the indoor season last year by running her best race at the championship meet with a time 7.11. Burchell hadn't won the SEC Indoor title and was only considered a dark horse behind favorite Dezerea Bryant of Kentucky. Both are expected to light it up this season on the women's side. Byrant is also the defending champion at 200 meters.

In the long sprints the University of Texas again proves to be the premier program at recruiting and developing for the 400. After Beverly Kearney resigned many expected for the program to falter. That was until Olympian Tonja Buford Bailey was hired on as the women' sprints and hurdles coach and may have taken the program to an even higher level. The Longhorns have two returning champions. The 2013 400 meter champion in Ashley Spencer and the 2014 400 meter champion Courtney Okolo, both outdoors. Also in the mix is 2014 World Junior Champion Kendall Baisden. It is totally possible for the Longhorns to sweep this event this season.

On the men's side a lot veteran talent returns and also a infusion of new talent. There is no defending champion returning in any of the short sprints however there are some big names returning. The biggest name perhaps is Cameron Burrell. Burrell was a freshman sensation last year. Burrell held onto the top mark in the 60 meter dash for a while with a time of 6.55. He in my opinion is the favorite to win the event. His toughest competition may come from two stud freshman in Kendal Willis and Trentavis  Friday of Florida State. Florida State has a long history of success in the 60 and 100 meter events.

In the long sprints it is clear that the battle is between Florida and Texas A&M. Both have returning champions from the outdoor season and have consistently produced some of the best 4x400 relays in collegiate history. In the 200 senior Dedric Dukes of Florida returns as the only sub 20 second performer from last season. Dukes aides both sprint relays and has shown to be a complete well rounded sprinter. Deon Lendore of Texas A&M and also a sprinter has been a dominate force in this event since his arrival and is a huge part of his teams national title hopes like Dukes for Florida. Both will face strong competition from the other's school. Shavez Hart for Texas A&M in the 200 and Arman Hall from Florida in the 400. Bbth  Dukes and Lendore will have careers following college and possibly be competitng for medals this coming summer at the World Championships.

On the women's side in the 4x400 relay it's Texas and everybody else. Even after losing the defending 2013 NCAA Champion in the 400 meters the Lady Longhorns were still able to run one of the fastest times every ran in NCAA history. All that talent returns a year older and wiser. Florida and Texas A&M will continue to be challengers but may not have enough sufficient talent to compete.

On the men's side in the 4x400 relay it will be Texas A&M and Florida all over again. Both programs went under 3 minutes last season and will continue to electrify again this season. The nod goes to Florida since they are returning every piece of the relay from last season and hope to include a healthy Arman Hall. LSU will continue to be apart of the upper echelon of this group since they surprised both programs last indoor season and won the 2014 NCAA Indoor crown in this event. I expect another national record in this event.

NCAA Championship Part 1 Men's Review

(Oregon Ducks Men's National Champs)

This past weekend fans of collegiate track and field were treated to a phenomenal championship meet hosted by the University of Oregon. A packed house was on hand to see if the Oregon men and women could complete a championship sweep. The number 1 ranked men’s team lived up to the height winning with a total of 88 points.

For the Oregon men things began as they always do with their dynamic distance core. Freshman Edward Cheserek was the first NCAA Champion with a time of 28:30.18 in the men’s 10,000 meter race defeating Kennedy Kithuka of Texas Tech. Cheserek would continue his success finishing second in the men’s 5,000 behind Lawi Lalang of Arizona. Cheserek led a 2-3-4 charge for Oregon who scored a total of 34 points between the two events.

The only challenger to Oregon was the University of Florida. Heading into the championship meet the Gators have either won or finished 2^nd at the past 5 NCAA Outdoor Championships dating back to 2009. At their last national championship the Gators did not compete with the same intensity or fire that they normally do. However at this meet they would and competed very well. While Oregon dominated the distance events Florida was strong in the sprints and jumps.

Junior Marquis Dendy has not performed to his usual level the past two outdoor seasons either due to injury or foul trouble. This season he has had to deal with injuries but would not let that hold him back. He began by winning the men’s Long jump in cold windy conditions. Dendy was the only athlete over 26 feet with a winning mark of 26-3 earning him a legal qualifying mark for USATF Nationals. Dendy followed that performance by winning the Triple Jump two days later with a wind-aided mark of 55-11 ¼. His mark in the triple jump was just shy of two feet further than his closes competitor. Dendy added 20 valuable team points to the Gators who finished 2^nd overall with 70 points.

(Marquis Dendy)

In the sprints Dedric Dukes led the way for the Gators. Dukes, the only NCAA athlete to break 20 seconds in the 200 meter dash again broke the 20 second barrier with a time of 19.91 in barely wind-aided race. Dukes also anchored the winning 4x100 relay with a time of 38.73 over Texas A&M. The Gators scored 1 point in the men’s 100 dash with sophomore Antwan Wright finishing 8^th and 5 points in the 400 with Najee Glass in 5^th and Hugh Graham Jr in 8^th. Senior Eddie Lovett added another 4 points in the 110 hurdles.

(Dedric Dukes)

Oregon had some help in the sprints and hurdles from senior Eric Berry who finished 2^nd in the 400 and true freshman Devon Allen who won the 110 high hurdles in school and Pac 12 record time of 13.16. Allen surpassed Aleec Harris ofUSC who set the Pac 12 record earlier in the season with a time of 13.18.  Harris finished 2^nd to Allen with the same time he led with early in the season. Arthur Delaney added the final 2 sprint points in the 200 meter dash running 20.79 for 7^th.

Other notable performances came from freshman Trayvon Bromell of Baylor who clocked in at 9.97 to win the 100 meter dash title and set a World Junior Record. Bromell defeated favorite senior Dentarious Locke of Florida State. Locke clocked in at 10.02 for 2^nd place. Texas A&M junior Deon Lendore did not break 45 seconds but still managed to win the men’s 400 title in a time of 45.02 and anchor the Texas A&M 4x400 relay to number 2 all time with a time of 2:59.60. The men’s high jump was absent James Harris of Florida State who earned the indoor title. However junior Bryan McBride of Arizona State has been solid all outdoor season and continued his success by winning the high with a mark of 7-5 ¾.

(Trayvon Bromell)

In the throwing events none of the events were claimed by seniors. Junior Sam Crouser of Oregon stood out as he was a big part in scoring vital points for the Oregon Ducks. Crouser provided the most he was allowed by earning the championship title on his last throw with a mark of 252-7 to add another 10 points to Oregon’s total.

After all that the Ducks still had not stopped scoring, junior Dakota Keys scored another 6 points by finishing 3^rd in the men’s decathlon with a point total of 8,068. Keys had a strong day 2 after sitting in 7^th place after day 1. Maicel Ubo of Georgia was the winner with a point total of 8,182 after two days of solid performances. 

Overall solid performance by the men of Oregon on their home track. They will be losing some key members to their championship team but have a great group of recruits. Next season should be awesome. 

NCAA Regional Review

NCAA Outdoor Championship Preview Post 1

With regional qualifying nearly 2 weeks ago the field has been set for the athletes who will compete at the NCAA Outdoor Championship. There are plenty of new stars and a few returning champions. The performances this season have been an amazing and it is quite possible than an NCAA record may fall.

SPRINTS/HURDLES

As always in division 1 the sprints are expected to be highly contested. With a bevy of stellar athletes to compete this year just making it to the finals is honorable. In the men’s and women’s 100 and 200 meter dash Texas A&M looks to complete a sweep of the event. The Aggies will be relying on SEC Champions Prezel Hardy and Olivia Ekpone.

Hardy a senior at Texas A&M arrived with much fanfare as the top 100 meter sprinter in high school. He was known for his killer anchor leg at the Texas High School Championship and earning the title of World Youth Champion. He has been a little bit short on individual hardware since arriving in College Station but now he has the perfect opportunity to claim the sprinting double. In the 100 top returnee and favorite, senior Dentarious Locke of Florida State looks to prove that sub 10 second performance last season was no fluke. They both will receive strong competition from true freshman Trayvon Bromell of Baylor who lit up the NCAA circuit and shocked the world with his 9.77 wind-aided performance at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship.

(Prezel Hardy)

Olivia Ekpone also arrived at Texas A&M with notoriety. Ekpone graduated from Eleanor Roosevelt in Maryland which at the time was one of the nation’s premier high school programs. The past two seasons the junior has had two sit behind her teammates. This season she pushed through and marched her way to the top. At the SEC Outdoor Championship she completed a double winning the 100 and 200, and running one of the fastest times in NCAA history in the 200 with a time of 22.23. In the field with her will be hometown favorite Jenny Prandini of Oregon and top ranked sprinter Ramona Burchell of Alabama. Burchell has the top time in the NCAA with a time of 11.03 and claimed the NCAA indoor title in the 60 meter dash.

(Olivia Ekpone)

The 400 an ever growing event has some real international level talent. On the men’s side you have Arman Hall of Florida, Deon Lendore of Texas A&M by way of Trinidad and Tobago, Bralon Taplin of Texas A&M by way of Grenada, Brycen Spratling of Pittsburgh, Hugh Graham of Florida and Mike Berry of Oregon. All men listed have earned the title of NCAA All-American in this event in previous years. This season however Lendore has dominated the event without earning a single loss. Lendore is currently ranked among the top 5 400 runners in the world with his NCAA leading time of 44.36. His top challenger of the past season has Hall of Florida. Hall suffered an injury at the SEC championships and is trying to round himself back into shape. The task may be too tough as Lendore looks at the solid choice for the tile.

On the women’s side Texas has not skipped a beat in this event. Since former coach Beverly Kearney’s arrival she has done an amazing job of making Texas the 400 meter University of the NCAA for women sprinters. This season new women’s sprint coach is Olympic Silver Medalist in the 400 hurdles, Tonja Buford Bailey. She has possibly taken the program to new heights with the recent performances of her athletes. Bailey has three athletes capable of running 50 seconds, defending champion Ashley Spencer, Courtney Okolo and true freshman Kendall Baisden. With the talent Texas has they are certainly capable of a 1-2-3 sweep. 

(Phyllis Francis)

Senior Brianna Nelson also of Texas is no slouch either and proves the solid depth that Texas has. Oregon star Phyllis Francis seems to be the only challenger to this solid group of runners. Francis claimed the indoor title with a NCAA record of 50.46. Francis has yet to run 50 seconds this outdoor season and Okolo has almost broken the 50 second barrier with her NCAA leading time of 50.03. With all the star power in this reason it is clear to claim the title it will require a 49 second performance.

The 110 meter hurdles was once a rivalry event between Wayne Davis of Texas A&M and Eddie Lovett of Florida. Both hurdlers are obvious leaders and catalyst to the rivalry between the two programs over the past few years. Joining the conversation this season is new Pac-12 record holder Aleec Harris of USC and freshman Devon Allen of Oregon. Harris claimed the top time in the country at the Pac-12 meet with a time of 13.18. His time is one of the best in NCAA history and sky-rocketed him to the position of favorite.

(Aleec Harris)

Sharika Nelvis of Arkansas State is the big name in the women’s 100 hurdles. Nelvis claimed the NCAA Indoor title and is top returnee from last outdoor season. Nelvis a nationally ranked 100 meter sprinter is one of the many rising stars in this event. Bridgette Owens of Florida, Jasmin Stowers of LSU and Kendra Harrison of Kentucky will challenge her for the crown.

Harrison of Kentucky will also look to earn a title in the women’s 400 hurdles completing the hurdles double. Harrison is the only athlete in the field to have run 54 seconds. Janeil Bellille of Texas A&M and her teammate freshman Shamier Little will again be a strong challenge to the talented Wildcat. Little one of the nation’s best 400 runners is still learning to transition her amazing speed into great hurdling.

On the men’s side this event has not been as competitive as in years past. None of the top athletes have yet to run 48 seconds in the 400 hurdles this season. Michael Stigler of Kansas is the favorite to win as the top returnee along with Nebraska senior Miles Ukaoma. Ukaoma leads a group of four athletes in this event for the Cornhuskers and looks to continue their tradition of great hurdlers.

Relay Predictions

4x100 Relay Men: Texas A&M   4X100 Relay Women: Texas A&M

4X400 Relay Men: Florida           4x400 Relay Women: Texas

NEXT POST: DISTANCE 

Championship Weekend Recap

What a great weekend for fans of collegiate track and field. Each of the major conferences had some amazing performances and the smaller mid-major conferences had some stellar marks as well. Let's take a look at the two top programs this weekend.

(Prezel Hardy-Texas A&M)

TEXAS A&M IS THE REAL NUMBER 1

This past weekend at the SEC Outdoor Championship the men of Texas A&M had an opportunity to seize the number 1 ranking from the University of Florida. After a dominating performance at the Texas Relays which saw Florida take both sprint relays, Texas A&M has been looking for an opportunity to flex their muscle. This past weekend they did just that.

The weather definitely a bit too cold for majority of the southern schools. The meet lost some valuable competitors to cramps and strains. Texas A&M would still weather the storm with a dominating weekend. They got things started right by winning the 4x100 relay and setting a new meet record. The top ranked team Florida was without star runner Arman Hall who succumb to cramps on Friday. The Gators still ran a great time of 38.68 to finish third.

The Aggies would continue their sprint domination by claiming the 100 and 200 by Prezel Hardy and the 400 with Deon Lendore. In the 100 and 200 teammate Shavez Hart also claimed runner up honors in both races. Top ranked Dedric Dukes of Florida who is still the only sub 20 second runner of the season in the 200 finished third, while top 100 runner Diondre Batson of Alabama also injured himself Friday in the prelims of the 200.

With Arman Hall the 4x400 relay was certainly in doubt for the Gators. True freshman Nick Uruburu who qualified as the only freshman runner in the 400 meter final, took over relay duties. Texas A&M seemed to be too much thanks in part to a powerful anchor leg by Deon Lendore. Lendore completed a solid weekend running a powerful anchor leg. Earlier in the meet he clocked a time of 44.36 to break a school record and finish number 2 in the world behind Lashawn Merritt.

In the hurdles Wayne Davis continued his phenomenal outdoor season running a time of 13.23 against a solid field. His rival Eddie Lovett of Florida was a distance third clocking in at 13.58. Teammate Greg Coleman was the only athlete under 50 seconds in the men's 400 hurdles. Coleman won the race in a time of 49.88 a personal best and facility record.

Heading into this week expect for the rankings to change. Florida although short handed still seemed to lack the fire necessary to compete against A&M. This is now two championship meets in a row where the Gators showed little intensity. Look for the Gators to get things right for the NCAA Championship in early June.

(Courtney Okolo-NCAA 400 Record Holder)

HOOK 'EM LADY LONGHORNS!

Beverly Kearney was one of the best coaches NCAA history. She led the Lady Longhorns to three outdoor national titles and multiple conference championships. You would expect for there to be a major decline in production and development at the University of Texas until the foundation under the new regime would be built. That was not the case at Texas, Mario Santegna has returned Texas to the top of the NCAA landscape and looks to keep them there for the foreseeable future. This past weekend was proof that the program is in good hands and women's sprint Tonja Buford-Bailey is one of the best.

When you think of the 400 in women's collegiate sprinting the first school that comes to your mind is Texas. Beverly Kearney did such a great job of recruiting and developing 400 runners she was able to win multiple national titles in the 4x400 relay and open 400. The school is responsible for the most recognizable American female 400 runner Sanya Richards-Ross. Buford-Bailey is an Olympic medalist in the 400 hurdles and also knows quite a bit about the 400.

The Longhorns went 1-2-3 in the event and that is not the impressive stat. They went 1-2-3 without defending national champion Ashley Spencer and that too is not the impressive stat. Courtney Okolo had the most impressive stat of the group clocking in at 50.03 to win the event and claim a new NCAA collegiate record. True freshman Kendall Baisden finished 2nd with a time of 50.46. Her freshman time was faster than that of Richards-Ross. Senior Brianna Nelson finished 3rd with a time of 51.22.

In the short sprints their Texas had sophomore transfer Morolake Akinosun just simply dominate. Although wind-aided her times were quite impressive, 10.96 in the 100 meters and 22.17 in the 200 meters. Ashley Spencer also competed in both events finishing 5th in the 200 and 6th in the 100. Spencer also anchored the winning 4x100 relay in a time of 43.54 with Baisden, Okolo and Akinosun.

Senior hurdler Danielle Dowie of Texas earned her 2nd conference title in the women's 400 hurdles with a time of 56.62. Sophomore teammate Melissa Gonzalez added valuable team points in the event as well finishing 4th with a time of 58.39.

In the distance events Marielle Hall added another championship title to the many victories earned by Texas. Her performance in the women's 1,500 was 8 seconds ahead of the runner up and a new stadium record with a time of 4:20.82.

In the field events senior Shanay Briscoe was literally an everyday performer. Briscoe competed in both the heptathlon and women's high jump finishing 4th in the heptathlon and winning another high jump title to add 15 points to the team total. Fellow jumper in the pole vault Kaitlin Petrillose continued her record season for the Lady Longhorns claimed the event title with a mark of 14-6 a new conference and meet record. Her mark was more than a foot higher than the runner up.


The Longhorns performance over the weekend vaulted them to the top of NCAA rankings surpassing Florida. We enter phase 2 of the championship season heading into the regional preliminaries the following week. Expect more of the same for both programs heading the NCAA Outdoor Championship.