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Wisconsin, Arizona State look to defend NCAA DI titles
Wisconsin will look to defend its men's team title and Arizona State will attempt to hold on to the women's team crown this weekend at the 2008 NCAA DI Indoor Track & Field Championships at the Randall Tyson Track Center at the University of Arkansas.
Wisconsin scored 40 points to win its first NCAA title in track and field last year and the first ever for a Big Ten Conference school, with Florida State finishing second with 35 points.
Arizona State won its first ever women's indoor crown with 38 points, inching out LSU who took second with 33.
Headliners from last year's men's competition include Louisville's Tone Belt, who won the silver medal at the 2006 World Junior Championships in the men's long jump with a best of 7.97 meters/26 feet, 1.75 inches. Andre Black, also competing for Louisville, won the men's triple jump with leap of 16.29m/53-5.5, and Donovan Kilmartin of Texas, who won his third national championship in the heptathlon, finishing with 5,998 points.
Top contenders for this year's men's team title include Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee, LSU and Florida State.
Standout performances in last year's women's competition came from South Carolina's Natasha Hastings, who set a collegiate record in the women's 400m, finishing in 50.80 seconds, breaking Sanya Richard's 2004 record of 50.82. Kerron Stewart of Auburn won the women's 60m in 7.15 after taking the 200m (22.58) the previous night. Sally Kipyego of Texas Tech won the 3,000 in 9:02.05 after winning the 5,000m in 15:27.42. Southern Illinois' Brittany Riley had the best mark in women's weight throw history with a toss of 25.56 meters/83 feet 10.25 inches, smashing her previous record of 24.57m/80-7.5.
Top contenders for the women's team crown include LSU, Michigan, Texas A&M and Kansas.
St. Augustine's returns as defending titleholders at NCAA DII Champs
St. Augustine's claimed both the men's and women's team titles and will look to do it again this weekend at the 2008 NCAA Division II Indoor Track & Field Championships at Minnesota State University in Mankato, Minn.
Abilene Christian was the runner-up on the men's side last year with 48.5 points while Lincoln was second in the women's competition with 64 points.
Head Coach George Williams guided St. Augustine's men to a repeat performance of the 2006 championship and the school's 10th national title overall. Senior Jamaal Torrance led the way by setting a meet record in the 200 meters with his time of 21.19 seconds while also winning the 400 meters in 46.58.
Also last year, Ashland senior Kibwe Johnson shattered the Division II record in the men's weight throw with a mark of 25.08 meters/82 feet 3.5 inches, besting the previous mark by 4.50 meters while setting an American collegiate record in the process. Minnesota State-Mankato sophomore Katelin Rains also set a meet and Division II record in the women's pole vault, posting a mark of 4.27m/14-0 to erase the previous mark of 4.00m/13-1.5 set during the 2006 championships.
Lincoln, Williams College are defending titlists at DIII champs
A total of 400 participants are expected to compete in the D-III Indoor Track & Field Championship at Ohio Northern University in Ada, Ohio, this weekend.
Lincoln University won the men's team championship last year with 59 points, while Williams College claimed the women's title with 42 points. For the men, Wisconsin La Crosse was second with 48 points and Wisconsin Oshkosh was third with 43.5. On the women's side, City College of NY was second with 35 and Wisconsin Eau Claire was third with 32.
Will Leer of Pomona-Pitzer topped his own national mark in the men's mile with a time of 4 minutes 8.19 seconds to earn his second straight national title. In women's action, Rachel Anderson of Illinois Wesleyan tied the women's 400-meter all-time mark with a 55.46 to earn the victory. Marcia Taddy of Wisconsin-Platteville took home two national titles, winning the 800m in 2:10.14 and the 1,600m in 4:49.38. Alecia Watson from the City College of New York earned her second national title of the weekend with a leap of 12.17m/39-11.25. She also won the long jump with an effort of 5.85m/19-2.5.
For more information on the NCAA Indoor Championships, visit NCAASports.com.
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