Ryan Whiting threatens 22m with his 21.97m PB in Eugene (© Kirby Lee)
Returning once again to the University of Oregon's Hayward Field, this year's NCAA Championships (9-12) was a mixed bag of excellent and so-so performances.
Perhaps most noteworthy were a number of outstanding double victories, including Blessing Okagbare, who finished the collegiate year undefeated in the women's 100m and Long Jump; Queen Harrison in the women's 100m and 400m Hurdles; Ryan Whiting in the men's Shot Put and Discus, Lisa Koll in the 5000 and 10,000m, and Andrew Wheating in the men's 800 and 1500m -- and by Texas A&M, which repeated its double team championships in both team competitions.
This year’s Championships featured a new format, with 24 qualifiers for each event, semifinals up to 800m with three races qualifying 2x2, and one round in the field events.
MEN'S Wrap -
SPRINTS AND HURDLES:
Jeff Demps of Florida, who first drew notice as a high schooler at the 2008 Olympic Trials here, came into this meet as the 100m favorite and left as the winner. His 9.96w easily beat Rondel Sorillo of Kentucky, who ran 10.09w. Sorillo (TRI) came back to upset favored Curtis Mitchell of Texas A&M in the 200m, 20.36 to 20.45, both aided by a 3.7 tailwind. Demps anchored Florida to win the 4x100 in 39.04, just edging cross-state rival Florida State 39.07.
The 400m was a close race between three of the emerging generation of long sprinters. Mississippi State freshman Kirani James of Grenada won in 45.05 pulling away in the homestretch from Donald Sanford of Arizona State (45.21) and Joey Hughes of Southern California (45.23).
The 4x400 was a screamer, won by Texas A&M in 3:00.89 from Mississippi State, 3:01.66 and Florida, 3:01.87.
The 110m Hurdles were won by Andrew Riley of Illinois, whose 13.45 (+0.7), edged Barrett Nugent of Louisiana State, 13.49 and Ronnie Ash of Oklahoma, 13.51. All three will be back for a rematch in 2011. Johnny Dutch, of South Carolina, who a day earlier had won the 400 Hurdles in 48.75, false-started in the 110 Hurdles. He’ll be back next year, too.
DISTANCES (800M AND UP):
The men’s 800m started with a 1:45.54 heat victory by indoor champion Robbie Andrews, with Charles Jock of California-Irvine fifth in 1:46.17 and not qualifying for the final. The final figured to be between Andrews and 2009 champion Andrew Wheating of Oregon, both strong finishers, and it was. But Wheating stayed closer to the lead and won easily in 1:45.69, while Andrews, seventh with 150m to go, barely took second in 1:46.83.
The longer distance races were tactical affairs. Wheating won the 1500 in 3:47.94, covering the final 400 in 53.5 and the last 800 in 1:50.6. David McNeil (AUS) defended his 5000m title in 13:44.81, outkicking Sam Chelanga (KEN), who ran 13:45.35. Earlier, Chelanga won the 10,000m in 28:37.40. In the steeplechase, Matt Hughes of Louisville pulled away over the last two laps to win by more than 30 metres in 8:34.18.
JUMPS:
A new star emerged in the Triple Jump. Christian Taylor, a Florida sophomore, blew away the field with his last three jumps: 16.68m (1.0), 17.02m (0.9) PB, and 17.09w, winning by ..61cm (!). His fast, low, style reminds one of Jonathan Edwards, and at age 20, he may have a similar future.
Marquise Goodwin of Texas, who set a high school record of in last year’s USATF Championships here, jumped 8.15m (+1.0) on his first attempt, and that was that, with second placer Stanley Gbagbeke (NGR) 19 cm back at 7.96m (+1.2). Decathlon winner Ashton Eaton, who jumped 8.05m two weeks ago and 7.90m Friday, today took only one jump, 7.23m, before retiring with a tight calf.
Indiana’s Canadian sophomore, Derek Drouin, won the High Jump at a modest 2.26m, and an almost-endless Pole Vault ended in victory for Jordan Scott of Kansas, who won on countback at 5.40m from Josh Dominguez of Lousiana State.
THROWS:
Arizona State senior Ryan Whiting confirmed his status as one of the world’s top shot putters with a series which included four puts of 21m or better and a stunning final put of 21.97m. Almost as impressive was fast-improving Kansas freshman Mason Finley, who improved his PB by more than a metre with 20.68m. The same duo finished 1-2 in the discus, Whiting winning with 59.06m to Finley’s 58.35m.
Craig Kinsley of Brown University won the javelin at 76.29m, becoming his school’s first NCAA champion since Gil Borjeson won the Hammer Throw in 1952. Walter Henning of Lousiana State won the men’s hammer with a final-round throw of 72.79m.
Oregon’s Ashton Eaton won his third consecutive Decathlon, posting an impressive first day total of 4500 points which included marks of 10.37 (+ 0.5), 7.90m (+1.1) and 46.28, and concluding with 8457 points, just eight points short of the collegiate record set by Trey Hardee in 2006.
WOMEN'S Wrap -
SPRINTS AND HURDLES:
Texas-El Paso’s Blessing Okagbe (NIG), improving rapidly in her first year as a sprinter, showed an excellent start to lead all the way and win the 10m from Porsche Lucas of Texas A&M. Okagbare’s time of 10.98 was wind-aided (+2.8). but she was much the best. Lucas came back to win the 200m in a wind-legal 22.83, a metre ahead of her teammate, Jenoba Tarboh. Tarboh and Lucas ran the first two legs of A&M’s winning 4x100 in a good 42.82.
Hampton University’s two-time indoor champion Francena McCorory ran strongly all the way to win the 400m in 50.69; only Jessica Beard was within 10 metres at 51.02. In the 4x400, an unseeded Oregon team, inspired by the capacity hometown crowd of more than 12,000, edged Texas A&M, 3:28.54 to 3:28.57.
Queen Harrison of Virginia Tech was in a class by herself in winning both hurdles in world-class times. On Friday she won the 400m Hurdles by six metres from Ti’erra Brown of Miami in 54.55. On Saturday she was even better in the 100m Hurdles, winning in 12.67 (+1.8), with Brown again second in 12.84.
DISTANCES (800 AND UP):
NCAA 800m indoor champion Phoebe Wright on Tennessee led all the way to claim the outdoor title as well, finishing in 2:01.40, six metres better than Molly Beckwith of Indiana. Charlotte Browning of Florida won the 1500 in 4:15.84.
Penn State senior Bridget Franek, who calls the steeplechase “exciting, you never know what might happen” won the steeplechase by herself in a good 9:38.86, a full 13 seconds ahead of Colorado sophomore Emma Coburn.
Lisa Koll of Iowa State not surprisingly won the 10,000m on Wednesday, running 32:49.35 and beating her Iowa State teammate, Betsy Saina, by some 130 metres. Two evenings later, in the 5000m, Koll set the pace from the start, ran defending champion Angela Bizzarri into the ground, and won by the same 130m margin in 15:23.80.
JUMPS:
Okagbare duplicated her NCAA Long Jump victory with 6.79m here, completing an undefeated year. In the Triple Jump, Patricia Mamona of Clemson improved her Portuguese national record with a winning jump of 14.01m (1.3). The Pole Vault was won by Indiana State’s Kylie Hudson with a 4.45m clearance, and the High Jump by Amber Kaufman with 1.86m. Alabama’s Chealsea Taylor, who cleared 1.87m to win the Heptathlon high jump earlier in the afternoon, could only jump 1.76m.
THROWS
Best of the throws were last-round winning efforts by Evelien Dekkers (NED) of Florida to win the javelin in 58.99m, and Nikola Lomnicka (SVK) of Georgia to win the hammer with 65.57m. Mariam Kevkishvili (GEO) of Florida and won the shot put with 18.11m; the Discus was won by Jeneva McCall of Southern Illinois with 54.98.
The heptathlon was won by Brianna Theisen (CAN) and Oregon, who fell short of her hoped-for goal of 6100, but not by much, finishing with a PB of 6094.
James Dunaway for the IAAF
