6/11/04
Track concludes day two competition at NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships
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| Raasin McIntosh |
AUSTIN, Texas – After lightning and heavy rain washed out nearly all events on Wednesday, sunshine and outstanding performances on the track and in the field highlighted day two action on Thursday at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in front of 8,000 fans at Mike A. Myers Stadium. The third-ranked UT women qualified four athletes and the 4x400m relay for Friday and Saturday finals, while the ninth-ranked men also advanced four athletes and the 4x100m relay.
The UT women’s 4x400m relay composed of senior Alyssa Aiken (Chantilly, Va.), sophomore Sanya Richards (Pembroke Pines, Fla.), senior Raasin McIntosh (Houston, Texas) and freshman Jerrika Chapple (Lancaster, Texas) broke South Carolina’s two-year old meet-record (3:26.46) with a 3:25.58 clocking in the prelims, more than three seconds faster than the next best qualifier (South Carolina, 3:28.85).
After three events scored on the women’s side, Georgia leads with 18 points. Arkansas and LSU are tied for first with 10 points each after two events scored on the men’s side.
In the first event of the day, senior Tom Engwall (Hutchinson, Minn.) posted the fifth-best qualifying mark in the javelin with a mark of 235-7 (71.82m) on his final throw in the prelims to advance to Saturday’s final. Texas’ 4x100m relay composed of senior Jermaine Cooper (Giddings, Texas), and sophomores Quincy Boles (Harker Heights, Texas), Brendan Christian (Austin, Texas) and Ashton Collins (New Orleans, La.) recorded a time of 39.42 to just make Friday’s final as the ninth team in the field.
Christian next competed in his first of two open events on the day in the 100m. The former Austin Reagan star clocked a wind-illegal 10.06 to qualify fourth overall for the finals. In the 200m, Christian finished with a time of 20.35, which was the third-best qualifying time, as he advanced to Saturday’s final. Collins failed to make the finals with a windy 20.86 clocking. Christian is aiming to become Texas’ first national champion in a sprint event since Charlie Thomas won the 220 yards at the 1954 NCAA meet. His first chance will be on Friday at 9:20 p.m. in the 100-meter dash final.
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| Andra Manson |
Freshman Andra Manson (Brenham, Texas) cleared 7-1.50 (2.17m) on his first attempt to advance out of the qualifying round in the high jump. Manson was successful on his first attempt on all four of his heights in the prelims. Junior Mark Floreani (Chicago, Ill.) was UT’s final qualifier on the day in the 3,000m steeplechase. Floreani clocked 8:59.04 as one of 14 qualifiers for Saturday’s final.
In other action on the track, Cooper finished with a windy time of 13.71 in the 110-meter hurdles and did not make the finals, while senior Jonas Hamm (Hamburg, Germany) finished with a time of 3:47.83 in the 1,500m, just two qualifying spots away from making the finals.
On the women’s side, freshman Marshevet Hooker (San Antonio, Texas) lowered her personal-best in the prelims in the 100m with an 11.14 clocking, which makes her UT’s third-best performer all-time in the event. In addition, Hooker’s time is the fifth-best all-time performance under all conditions.
Following the 100m, the Longhorns advanced all three of their athletes to the finals in the 100-meter hurdles. Senior Nichole Denby (Moreno Valley, Calif.) posted the second-fastest qualifying time with a windy mark of 12.82, while McIntosh and sophomore Ashlee Williams (Dallas, Texas) finished in 12.86w and 12.90, respectively, to advance to Friday’s final. Williams’ time lowered her personal-best for the second consecutive meet and ties her with McIntosh as UT’s second-best performers in school history.
Later in the evening, Williams also qualified for the finals in the 200m with a time of 22.93. Sophomore Latashia Kerr (Houston, Texas) (23.51) and senior Natasha Staten (Philadelphia, Pa.), meanwhile, failed to advance to the finals. Kerr finished in 23.51, while Staten crossed the line in 23.69.
The Longhorns concluded the day on a high note in their final event in the 4x400m relay. UT’s quartet of Aiken, Richards, McIntosh and Chapple easily qualified first overall for Saturday’s final with a meet-record 3:25.58. South Carolina posted the next best qualifying time at 3:28.85, followed by LSU in 3:31.34.
In the field, freshman Michelle Carter (Ovilla, Texas) finished with a 51-2.75 (15.61m) measure in the prelims and did not make the finals. Hooker, meanwhile, placed 32nd in the long jump with a mark of 18-3.75 (5.58m).
Of note, the Texas women’s 4x100m relay was disqualified late Wednesday evening for using mark-up materials other than that which were meet approved. An appeal filed by the Longhorns Thursday morning before competition began was denied.
Friday’s action is set to begin at 11:00 a.m. in the field with the final in the women’s discus, while the first running event starts at 7 p.m. with the women’s 4x100m relay final. The men’s decathlon is also set to begin Friday afternoon with the long jump. The shot put, high jump, and 100 and 400 meters are the four other events also set to commence on Friday.
UT Women’s Qualifiers
Marshevet Hooker – 100m
Nichole Denby – 100m Hurdles
Raasin McIntosh – 100m Hurdles
Ashlee Williams – 100m Hurdles & 200m
4x400m Relay – Aiken, Richards, McIntosh, Chapple
UT Men’s Qualifiers
Tom Engwall – Javelin
Andra Manson – High Jump
Brendan Christian – 100 & 200 meters
Mark Floreani – 3,000m Steeplechase
4x100m Relay – J. Cooper, Boles, Christian, Collins
