Wednesday, June 18, 2008
It’s hard to believe now that Nickesha Anderson and Crystal Manning were once separated by thousands of miles and a body of water.
Perhaps that’s because Anderson, Hanover, Jamaica, junior, and Manning, Terrell, Tex., senior, have always had their successes linked together as teammates on the KU track & field team.
Last week’s final meet of the season in Des Moines, Iowa, proved to be no different.
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KU’s All-American Finishes
Egor Agafonov — third place, hammer throw (69.92 meters) Stephanie Horton — eighth place, shot put (16.12 meters) Nickesha Anderson — third place, 200 meter dash (22.76 seconds) and fourth place, 100 meter dash (11.66 seconds) Crystal Manning — seventh place, triple jump (13.40 meters) and ninth place, long jump (6.26 meters)
The duo helped propel the Jayhawk women to their highest NCAA team finish in school history. The 15th-place finish bettered KU’s previous best of 24th, set in 1999.
There, the duo became permanently connected for their outstanding performances at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Each garnered All-American honors in two events at the same championship meet, the first time that had happened for any female in KU track & field history.
Anderson and Manning were two of four Jayhawks to earn All-American status, joined by female shot putter Stephanie Horton and male hammer thrower Egor Agafonov. The top eight Americans in each event gained All-American honors, along with any international athlete who finisheed in the top eight.
Anderson did so in both the 100 and 200 meter races. She finished third in the 100 meters in 11.66 seconds and fourth in the 200 in 22.76 seconds and said she wasn’t surprised with the achievement.
“The thing is, it’s what I’ve been training for all year,” Anderson said. “I put everything into it. That’s a great accomplishment because a lot of people wanted to do it, and I made it to the finals.”
Manning had never made it to the NCAA championships for the long jump before pulling off the double in Des Moines. Her best long jump at the meet measuring 6.26 meters put her in ninth place, while her triple jump of 13.40 meters placed her seventh.
Manning said she couldn’t have scripted a much better way to end her Kansas career.
“It meant a lot,” she said. “At first, coming to KU was a total change, and I didn’t know if I was going to be successful at this school. I had to get used to the people and the atmosphere. It was like a shock to me. But I feel like I was real successful here at KU.”
Anderson and Manning were the only Jayhawks to qualify for the outdoor championships in more than one event. Anderson said sharing the two-time All-American honor with Manning was particularly special.
“Even though she does the long jump and the triple, we’re really good about going to see each other,” Anderson said. “We share. Whoever cooks calls the next person for dinner. That’s how close we are.”
Horton, meanwhile, nearly missed out on the finals in the shot put. But her final preliminary toss of just over 16 meters pushed her from 11th to sixth. She eventually finished eighth overall, becoming KU’s first female All-American in the event since 1987.
On the men’s side, Agafonov was the only Jayhawk to advance to the final day of competition, as the KU men finished 38th overall. His best toss in the hammer throw, 69.92 meters, placed him in third and also earned him a spot in Kansas track and field history. He became the first male Jayhawk in 35 years to earn All-American honors for three straight seasons.
Agafonov said his strategy to conserve energy paid off.
“My goal was to throw as far as I could at that moment, and basically I did it,” he said. “I was ready for that moment. I didn’t throw far during the practices. I tried to do this to be my best not in practice, not in warmup, but exactly in competition.”
Agafonov, like many of his track and field teammates, will disperse from campus in hopes of qualifying for the 2008 Summer Olympics in his native country of Russia.
Soon, Anderson will do the same. She said she planned on returning to Jamaica to compete in the Olympic trials in two weeks. Manning, too, will fly west to try qualifying at the United States Olympic trials in Oregon.
But no distance can separate them now in the record books at Kansas.
— Edited by Christine D’Amico
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