Cunningham soars to outdoor best

With 6-6.25 (1.99m) clearance, she matches indoor PR from last year in Portland; Bowie wins second title in 100 and Houlihan captures first 5,000 championship

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

When Vashti Cunningham practices with her father Randall in the middle of the afternoon in the unforgiving Las Vegas heat, it might cause some to question their training methods.

Cunningham answered any skeptics in impressive fashion Friday at the USATF Outdoor Championships at Hornet Stadium at Sacramento State.

Cunningham was clean on her first four bars and cleared an outdoor-best 6 feet, 6.25 inches (1.99m) on her second attempt to win another national championship, the third of her career to go along with a pair of indoor titles.

“This is what I'm used to. Everybody else is like, 'When are we going to get the shade?' and I'm like, 'I have to (deal with this) every day, you can (deal with it) for one day,’” said Cunningham, who made her second straight outdoor U.S. national team and the fourth American roster of her career, including indoors.

“My dad puts me through some crazy conditions and I think it gets me ready for everything I need to be ready for.”

With Chaunte Lowe and Brigetta Barrett, who had combined to win 10 of the past 11 outdoor titles, both out of the competition by the time the bar was raised to 6-3.25 (1.91m), it left former Arizona standout Liz Patterson and Olympian Inika McPherson to chase Cunningham.

“It kept building me up when I was going clean because I'm just not letting other people affect my performance,” Cunningham said. “That was a big thing for me. You just have to focus on yourself and stay confident within yourself.”

Patterson and McPherson both cleared 6-3.25, but it was only Cunningham left at 6-4.25 (1.94m) and ultimately 6-6.25, equaling her indoor best from last year's indoor nationals in Portland.

“It's so good to have it outdoor because is like 'track' but outdoor is 'real track,’” Cunningham said. “It feels so good to have it on a real track and I'm just blessed that I can still come out here and compete the same way I do indoors. This is the type of performance I have been hoping to have every meet this season. I am hoping this type of performance sticks through the rest of my season thru Europe.”

Tori Bowie achieved her first goal on the way to potentially securing medals in both sprints in London, winning her second 100-meter title in 10.94 seconds, with Oregon teammates Deajah Stevens and Ariana Washington taking second and third in 11.08 and 11.10.

“The goal today was to finish top three, so finishing first is great,” Bowie said. “I’m extremely excited and I still feel like I have a ton to work on before Worlds because I really hope to do well.”

Stevens made the Olympic team in the 200 and Washington qualified for the 4x100 relay pool last year in Rio de Janeiro, but did not compete in the prelims or finals.

“(It’s a) dream come true. Last year after making the team and not getting to run, this year I wanted to come out and not give them any excuses,” Washington said. “I wanted to come out and make the team individually so nobody has to decide.”

After Oregon became the first program in an academic year to win national titles in cross country, indoor track and field, along with outdoor track and field, Stevens knew it would be another significant challenge to make the American roster again with the depth of sprinting talent in the country.

“It has been a very rewarding season but it has also been a very difficult season,” Stevens said. “I am just happy I am here right now because of it. Everything happens for a reason and I live by that.”

With Shannon Rowbury attempting to make the U.S. team in both the 1,500 and 5,000, in addition to Molly Huddle pursuing another 5,000-10,000 double, fellow Olympian Shelby Houlihan relied on her impressive kick in the final lap to prevail in the 5,000 final in 15:13.87 for her first national title.

“I was thinking I had to make a huge move to drop them because I know how tough they are,” Houlihan said. “I was just trying to give it everything I had in the last 100 and hope to hold them off. I was kind of eyeing the scoreboard to see if anyone was coming on me but I was able to hold them off so it felt good.”

Rowbury, who still has the 1,500 final Saturday, placed second in 15:14.08.

“I pushed my coach to do the double and I know tomorrow’s gonna be tough, but today’s goal was to make the team in the 5K,” Rowbury said. “I don’t know if I’ll do both if I make it in the 10k, but now I have to shift my focus to (Saturday).”

Huddle, who won the 10,000 title Thursday in 31:19.86, placed third in the 5,000 in 15:15.29, ahead of Missouri junior and reigning NCAA indoor and outdoor champion Karissa Schweizer in 15:18.69.

“We thought about it and since this might be my last real track season before I move up [to the marathon], so I thought might as well try both),” Huddle said. “I’d never done it before and it seemed feasible.”

Training partners Ajee' Wilson (1:58.94) and Charlene Lipsey (1:59.96) posted the two fastest 800 semifinal times, with Brenda Martinez and three-time NCAA outdoor champion Raevyn Rogers of Oregon both clocking 2:00.93 to take the top two spots in their heat.

Former Oregon standout Phyllis Francis led all qualifiers into the 400 final in 50.20, with USC junior Kendall Ellis producing a lifetime-best 50.24. NCAA indoor champion Shakima Wimbley of Miami (Florida) won her semifinal in 50.53.

Reigning Olympic 400 hurdles gold medalist Dalilah Muhammad led all qualifiers into the semifinals by clocking 54.36.