Tuesday, January 22, 2008
As sophomore pole-vaulter Jordan Scott looked down the runway at a bar suspended 5.41 meters in the air, he began to clap.
“I feel like you’ve gotta get the crowd involved,” he said with a laugh.
Junior sprinter Victoria Howard races ahead of the pack during the prelims of the women's 60-meter dash Saturday in the Anschutz Sports Pavilion. Howard placed second in the finals with a time of 7.66 seconds. Teammate Nickesha Anderson, junior sprinter, won the race in 7.43, a new Anschutz Pavilion record. Howard also placed first in the 200-meter dash with a time of 24.44 seconds.
As the sound of unified clapping began to pick up throughout the Anschutz Sports Pavilion, Scott made his attempt at the mark. Although Scott did not clear the 5.41 meters, the 2007 indoor and outdoor Big 12 Champion managed to take home his third victory of the season, clearing 5.26 meters.
Sophomore Kirk Cooper followed Scott, placing second with a personal best pole vault of 5.11 meters.
“Kirk really helped me out,” Scott said. “He PRed today, which is awesome. I love jumping with my teammates.”
These performances were only two of many showings by the Kansas Track and Field team at the Kansas Invitational last Saturday against Tulsa University, Missouri, Wichita State and UMKC.
In addition to Scott and Cooper’s domination, junior Nickesha Anderson set a new Anschutz facility record in the 60-meter dash with an NCAA provisional qualifying time of 7.43 seconds.
“My goal was to run a 7.5 and I did that in the prelims,” Anderson said. “Running a 7.43 tops it all. It was a great performance for me.”
Junior Victoria Howard finished at a close second with a time of 7.66 seconds.
“Victoria is a great athlete,” Anderson said. “We push each other during practice, but when it all comes down to it, I run against the clock.”
Howard also placed first in the 200-meter dash with a time of 24.44 seconds, just shy of her 24.30 personal best time.
Photo Gallery
Kansas Track: Jayhawk Invitational
Photo gallery of the Jayhawk Invitatonal Saturday in the Anschutz Sports Pavilion.
Lauren Bonds also put on an impressive show with her second victory of the year in the 3000-meter run with a time of 10 minutes, 3.21 seconds. A late burst of energy on the final lap gave Bonds a dramatic victory over Wichita State’s Mica Land. Bonds said her late kick is typical of the way she likes to run, but added that she wants to be more consistent in future races.
Senior Kate Sultanova, who already provisionally qualified for the NCAA Championships, won the women’s pole vault with a 4.13-meter vault. Senior Libby Harmon took second with 3.68 meters.
Senior Matt Baysinger brought the Jayhawks another victory in the 600-yard dash with a time of 1 minute, 11.71 seconds. “It’s always nice to sleep in your own bed the night before a meet,” he said.
On a more serious note, Baysinger said the Jayhawk team is one of the best in the nation.
“This team has tremendous potential,” he said.
Senior Paul Hefferon, senior Patrick McGowan and sophomore Bret Imgrund finished first, second and third respectively in the 3,000-meter run. Hefferon finished with a time of 8 minutes, 35.39 seconds followed by McGowan’s 8 minutes, 40.70 seconds and Imgrund’s 8 minutes, 43.38 seconds.
Junior Sha’Ray Butler and Freshman Kendra Bradley placed second and third respectively in the 400-meter dash with times of 58.04 seconds and 58.37 seconds.
Other strong performances include senior Maresia Pencil’s victory in the 600-yard dash with a personal best time of 1 minute, 24.68 seconds, junior Zlata Tarasova’s second place finish in the women’s weight throw with a 18.79 meter throw and senior Crystal Manning’s 5.95 meter first-place long jump.
pullquote
“It was a little bit frustrating. I was looking for an improvement from last weekend and it didn’t happen.”
—sophomore Kelsey Erb
Sophomore Kelsey Erb took second in the women’s high jump, clearing 1.63 meters.
“It was a little bit frustrating,” Erb said. “I was looking for an improvement from last weekend and it didn’t happen.”
She went on to stress that the season is very early and vast improvements will still be made.
“It’s all about getting better at one thing every day and taking our time,” she said.
The Jayhawks will have another great opportunity to improve this Friday, as they host the Jayhawk Classic, their second home meet in two weeks.
“Jumping in the same place two weekends in a row is a huge opportunity,” Scott said.
Events will take place at Anschutz and are scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m.
—Edited by Katherine Loeck
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