Via Jeremy O’Brien
A Texas Tech men’s team hungry to show its ability to bear down and get the job done in the opening round of an NCAA Championship did just that Wednesday by qualifying a nation-leading seven runners in addition to sending three field athletes to the podium.
Three individuals scored for Tech on the first day. Brandon Bray and Drew McMichael both were named First Team All-Americans, fighting to score in a historically talented pole vault field. The seniors were strong from the start, both surpassing the program record of 18′-2.5″ (5.55m) when they cleared 18′-4.5″ (5.60m). McMichael topped out there, but Bray, with the school record in hand, joined six other competitors at 18′-8.25″ (5.70m) to comprise the largest group to ever clear 5.70m at a national championship meet. Bray finished in seventh with his 5.70m – the best seventh-place finish ever at a title meet – for Tech’s first two points of the meet. McMichael was just behind his teammate, finishing eighth for one point and a personal best in his final meet as a Red Raider.
“The competition was just off the charts,” said assistant coach Tom Slagle, who oversees the vault group. “I was hoping Brandon and Drew could get in the mix and be a part of it. What they did was just incredible.”
Bray’s accomplishment is even more impressive considering he broke his foot at the Corky Classic – just the first meet of his senior indoor season.
Justin Hall scored for the first time in his collegiate career, doing so in the long jump with a fourth-place finish. Hall’s five points were clutch for Tech, as he was the lone long jumper of three that qualified to score. The junior was hot from the start, landing his fourth wind-legal leap of at least 7.70m in a row when he recorded a jump of 26 feet on his second attempt. One attempt later, he tied for the fifth-farthest jump in program history when he marked a 26′-5″ (8.05m) to seal a fourth-place finish. Odaine Lewis made the final after sitting ninth following the first three jumps, but could not move up the leaderboard to score.
Three podium appearances signaled great news for Tech on day one, but it is the sheer number of future podium appearances that sets the Red Raiders apart from the other teams competing in Austin. Tech qualified a nation-leading seven for championship races to be held Friday.
It began with the 4×100 relay team, which for the third time this season broke the school record. This time, the foursome of Keion Sutton, Divine Odururu, Andrew Hudson and Jacolby Shelton dipped nearly a quarter-second below their previous mark of 38.83 to run a 38.57. The time placed them second in their heat, which qualified them for an automatic bid to Friday’s final.
Oduduru and Hudson both went on to qualify individually in the 200m. Oduduru dipped below the 20-second barrier for the third time this season – something no other man in the world has done. He ran a 19.97 for what was the best time in the semifinal. Hudson went under 20.10 for the second straight meet, running a 20.09 to secure an at-large spot. Friday will mark the first finals appearance of the senior’s outdoor career.
Oduduru’s sub-20 came after going sub-10 in the 100m just an hour prior. Though just 10 men in history had done both on the same day coming into this season, Oduduru has now done it twice in the past month and a half. The junior ran a blistering 9.94 and 19.76 at Baylor in April to become the collegiate leader in both events – a title he will still hold going into the championship races for both.
Norman Grimes Jr. did his job in the 400m hurdles to earn a lane in the final. The two-time and defending Big 12 Champion in the event ran sub-50 for the fifth time in his last six races, going 49.39. He led the field after taking a strong final curve and cruised to what would be a second-place finish to secure an auto bid.
Though the sprints and hurdles group qualified a nation-leading seven for title races on Friday, Robinson emphasized the fact that, despite a strong semifinal day, it was just that: a strong semifinal day.
The 800m saw two Tech qualifications in the form of Vincent Crisp and Jonah Koech. The latter won his heat while the former snagged one of the two at-large bids with his time of 1:47.46. The duo came out looking for redemption in their primary event after a collision in the semifinal of the 800m at the indoor national meet cost them a chance at points. After a strong and clean preliminary Wednesday, the two will race for points on Friday.
Axel Hubert rounded out his first day of the decathlon with 3,924 points – placing him 12thin the standings. The freshman bounced back from a tough 100m in the pouring rain to march his way up the leaderboard in the ensuing three field events. Hubert climbed as high as fifth place with near-PRs in both the long jump (23′-2.75″) and shot put (48′-8.25″). A 50.85 in the 400m set him back to 12thto round out the day, but his second day will feature some of his strongest events, such as the 110m hurdles and javelin.
The second day of NCAA Outdoor Championship action will commence Thursday and will feature the first day of women’s competition, as well as the final five events of Hubert’s decathlon.
Courtesy of TexasTech.com
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