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DyeStat Big Board - Arkansas Piles Up Points To Take Team Title - NCAA Division 1 Women's Indoor Championships 2021Published by
Tara Davis Soars To Collegiate Record In Long Jump; Gittens Runs Down Collegiate Pentathlon Record, Adds High Jump Title; BYU Women Defeat Arkansas For DMR Title Follow the DyeStat Big Board for updated news throughout the NCAA D1 Indoor Championships. PREVIEW - 10 Storylines TEAM SCORES - (Final) Arkansas 68, Texas A&M 57, LSU 39, USC 35 TEAM PROJECTION Going Into Saturday: Arkansas 62, Texas A&M 59
Saturday, March 13 Triple Jump Final Texas A&M's Deborah Acqua hit a big personal best in the second round of 46-10 to take the lead and moved to No. 3 on the all-time list. Then, Texas Tech's Ruth Usoro came along in the sixth round and matched the lead with 46-10. And since Usoro's second-best jump of 46-7.50 in the fifth round was superior to Acqua's second best, she won. Acqua only took two jumps and passed the final four rounds. Wow. WINNER: Ruth Usoro, Texas Tech, 46-10 (14.27m) What She Said: POST-RACE INTERVIEW
Mile Final Colorado's Sage Hurta asserted herself over the final three laps and broke away from Arkansas duo Krissy Gear and Kennedy Thomson to win in 4:30.58, a personal best time. WINNER: Sage Hurta, Colorado, 4:30.58 What She Said: POST-RACE INTERVIEW 60m Final Kemba Nelson of Oregon blew up formcharts and ran a perfect race to break the collegiate record with 7.05 seconds. That gives the Ducks a sweep of the indoor 60-meter titles. Nelson came into the weekend with a personal best of 7.19. Her final was a revelatoin. Twanisha Terry of USC was second in 7.14, slightly off her prelim of 7.09. WINNER: Kemba Nelson, Oregon, 7.05 What She Said: POST-RACE INTERVIEW
400m Final USC's Kaelin Roberts did not yield to freshman star Athing Mu of Texas A&M. Roberts was aggressive early, took the pole position from Mu and held her ground. There was some contact as Mu tried to pass with 100 meters to go, but Roberts held to the rail and that proved to be essential to getting to the finish line first in 50.84 seconds, good for No. 11 all-time on the collegiate list. Mu was second in 51:03 and Florida's Talitha Diggs finished third in 51.26. Mu's teammate, Charokee Young got valuable team points for fourth place in 51.41. WINNER: Kaelin Roberts, USC, 50.84 What She Said: POST-RACE INTERVIEW
60m Hurdles Final Ackera Nugent of Baylor emerged from an evenly matched field to grab the title with 7.92 seconds. Daszay Freeman of Arkansas held tough for the Razorbacks to collect second place with 7.99 and eight points. WINNER: Ackera Nugent, Baylor, 7.92 What She Said: POST-RACE INTERVIEW
800m Final Aaliyah Miller made a courageous move to break away early and she was able to withstand a 56-second opening 400 and built enough of a lead to hang on to the victory in 2:00.69, matching Jazmine Fray for No. 2 on the all-time collegiate list. Charging up behind her at the finish, Laurie Barton of Clemson hung on to second as Arkansas' Shafiqua Maloney tried to lunge past. Barton's 2:01.21 edged Maloney's 2:01.22 and that .01 cost the Razorbacks two points. WINNER: Aaliyah Miller, Baylor, 2:00.69 What She Said: POST-RACE INTERVIEW 200m Final A tremendous final race of the season for Kentucky's Abby Steiner took her to a new stratosphere, with 22.38 seconds matching the collegiate record of Gabby Thomas, tying for No. 2 all-time on the American list and No. 5 all-time in the world. Tamara Clark of Alabama ran a lifetime best 22.45 for second place. WINNER: Abby Steiner, Kentucky, 22.38 What She Said: POST-RACE INTERVIEW
3,000m Final With Arkansas desperately needing to pull big points out of this event, the Razorbacks got 17. Up front, BYU's Courtney Wayment kept her own hot streak alive and beat Arkansas' Lauren Gregory, 9:01.47 to 9:01.67. Auburn's Joyce Kimeli, doubling back from her win in the 5,000 on Friday, took third in 9:02.79. Then Arkansas went 4-5 with Katie Izzo (9:03.85) and Abby Gray (9:05.52). That sealed the deal and Arkansas defended its team title from 2019. WINNER: Courtney Wayment, BYU, 9:01.47 What She Said: POST-RACE INTERVIEW
4x400m Relay Final Texas A&M was trailing 62-47 going into the final event, so the team title was off the table. Still, the Aggies came in as the collegiate record holders and ran fast enough to claim the final win of the night, in 3:26.68. Athing Mu, stung by her loss to USC's Kaelin Roberts in the 400, came from behind with a sensational 49.54 split to bring home the relay title. It was the fastest relay split ever recorded by a woman indoors. USC was second in 3:27.91 and Arkansas added some additional points with third place in 3:28.07. WINNER: Texas A&M, 3:26.68
Friday, March 12 Shot Put Final Adelaide Aquilla of Ohio State, who came into the competition ranked sixth and got off to a rough start Friday with two fouls, caught a career-best throw in the fourth round with 59-5.50 (18.12m) and won the Buckeyes' first women's indoor shot put title. Aquilla's big throw added a foot to her previous best. Aquilla placed 12th at the 2019 NCAA Indoor Championships. Defending champion Samantha Noenning from Arizona led through the first three rounds and her best throw, a slight improvement, came in the fifth round with 58-0.50 (17.69m). Arizona State's Jordine Van Klinken got a big early throw of 57-7.50 (17.56m) that held up for third place. WINNER - Adelaide Aquilla, Ohio State, 59-5.50 (18.12m) What She Said: "Over the past couple of years, I've made really big jumps in the weight room and technically, just to further improve my throw. I think going into Austin, Texas, I was a little bit nervous, I was a true sophomore and it was my first big national meet, so coming in today, I was just kind of focused on confidence. This year has put everybody in a lot of difficult situations and I think my coach (Ashley Kovacs) and I have tried to make the most out of these difficult situations and learn and grow from them, so we just kind of came in with the mindset of making the most out of what I've learned to do over these past two years, and learning to make my throw happen."
On the influence of Ashley Kovacs as her coach:
"It's been really, truly incredible. I would not be the same athlete that I am today without her. She has taught me so much, just from going all over the world and learning from different coaches, and from her own perspective.
She knows how to talk to us about specific things that other people who haven't thrown in these high-level meets might not know what to say. She has words of experience and from everybody in the world, she truly has every knowledge available."
On the development of Ohio State as a championship throws program:
"It's very exciting to see in the next couple of years what is going to happen. I'm very excited for outdoors, because we have Sade (Olatoye) returning and we have two other girls hopefully able to compete. We have a lot of great potential and it should be very exciting to see what happens outdoors and how deep our squad goes."
On surpassing 18 meters and 59 feet for the first time in her career:
"It is very reassuring. We've known that this throw has been in me for a while, it was just a matter of getting it out during the competition. I'm very excited to go into the outdoor (season), because it gives me a lot more street cred, I guess. Just going into outdoor, I'm really excited to compete against everybody and see them push me and me push them, so it will be very fun."
High Jump Final Tyra Gittens became the first double winner on the women's side, winning the high jump after taking the pentathlon with a record-setting score on Thursday. She is the first athlete in meet history to pull off the pentathlon/high jump double. Gittens led an all-SEC parade of the top four spots, matching the feat from 2017. Gittens took one attempt at 6-4.25 (1.94m) , which was a centimeter higher than her lifetime best clearance at 6-4 (1.93m) on Thursday. She won the competion when she was the only athlete to clear 6-2.75 (1.90m) and she got it on her second try. South Carolina freshman Rachel Glenn finished second thanks to a first-attempt make at 6-1.50 (1.87m). Anna Hall of Georgia cleared the same height and finished third. Abigail O'Donoghue of LSU was fourth with 6-0.50 (1.84m). WINNER: Tyra Gittens, Texas A&M, 6-2.75 (1.90m) What She Said: "I didn't really know how to feel. I know what I can do, but how do you repeat yesterday? I took a chance and I trusted my training and today was a success. I'm really happy with just how everything has come together. I can't really say I'm surprised, but I'm so proud of myself, I really am. "High jump has been my first love for forever. It was my first event when I started track and field, so having the success that I've been having in it, it's definitely reassuring and it's a confidence booster. I'm excited for outdoors, and I'm excited for all the seniors that weren't indoors to be outdoors, and I'm excited to continue to see what I'm capable of, because if you had asked me like six months ago about the Olympic standard in the high jump (1.96m), I would have been like, 'Maybe, that would be great,' but now that I see that it's very reachable and achievable, I'm getting excited. I'm excited to try it again."
On being in 15th place after two jumps and the adjustments she made to jump 6.43m in the third round and eventually PR with a 6.68m jump in the fifth round:
"I was definitely annoyed. I know that my body was fatigued and my coaches recognized that as well, so I went from (a shorter approach). I was fatigued, and I knew no matter how much I pushed, I wasn't going to be able to reach the board from (a full approach). On my (third) jump, my coach (Sean Brady) scooted me up and I took a chance and I trusted my approach and I went with it. I still wasn't on the board, but I was able to be in a better position to get a good mark.
"In the finals, that's definitely when I started feeling it. I was really trying and in my head, I was like, 'Tyra, just push, you got this,' but your body can take only so much, and I could feel my body kind of breaking down with every jump and on the last jump, I pushed up and my body was like, 'Sorry Tyra, you don't have anything left.' But I still gave it all that I have and today I could definitely say I gave everything that I could, and I'm really happy that a PB came out of that."
On scoring 26 points for Texas A&M, the third-highest total ever by any female athlete in a single year at the NCAA Indoor Championships:
"I came in today and my motivation was to get 25 points, because I knew I was seeded number one in the pentathlon and the high jump, and fifth in the long jump, so I was like, if I can get 25 points, then I've done it. But I'm really happy that I pushed myself and I tried to better my goals.
"I'm actually impressed with myself about that, because I'm surprised my body was able to stay together after a pent like yesterday, because yesterday was pretty brutal. But I'm happy that I have the training staff and the support team that I have to keep me motivated throughout the whole weekend."
Pole Vault Final A long, drawn out competition finally came down to LSU's Lisa Gunnarsson going over the winning height at 14-11.50 (4.56m). That was a lifetime best for Gunnarsson and the heightest clearance in the NCAA this year. She went two bars higher than anyone else in the competition. WINNER: Lisa Gunnarsson, LSU, 14-11.50 (4.56m) What She Said: "I just focused on what I was supposed to do. Don't think, just jump. Especially after winning, I wanted to stay calm because I knew I had more to give." On her attempts at the Olympic standard of 4.70m:
"I had some really good attempts. I felt I was close. Just gotta keep working and I'll get that too."
Long Jump Final Tara Davis of Texas, ranked No. 3 coming in, threw down lifetimes bests in the second and third rounds and her leap of 22-9 (6.93m) was a massive best and collegiate record. She didn't need to jump after her third jump as the record mark held up to win by close to a foot. It moved Davis to No. 6 on the all-time American list and 36th in the world. With eight jumpers over 21 feet, it was the deepest competition in the history of the NCAA Indoor Championships. Claire Bryant from Florida moved from fourth to second on her sixth attempt, going 21-11.75 (6.70m) for a new personal best. Tyra Gittens of Texas A&M, already a double winner, collected six more points for the Aggies with her third place jump of 21-11 (6.88m), another personal best. Gittens' 26 points are the third most in meet history, following Carlette Guidry's 30.5 in 1998 and Elva Goulbourne's 28 in 2003. WINNER: Tara Davis, Texas, 22-9 (6.93m) What She Said: "It feels amazing. Like I said, it's been a long time coming. Ups and downs, injuries all over the place, and I finally got the jump that I've been wishing for and praying for, and it just feels good to be a collegiate record holder and to even touch 22 feet again." On how workouts had been going since Big 12 Championships and what gave her the indications that big jumps were coming:
"This past week of training has been really good. On Tuesday, I had a really good practice, jumping 22-5 from a short approach. I just knew I had to get my rhythm down on the runway and just had to attack the board the way I've been attacking it during practice.
"I'm basically at my home track in Arkansas. I'm always here and I love the runway and I love the track so much. I just knew, 'What do I have to lose?' I'm just going to go out here and jump my best and see if I can PR, and if I don't, I don't, and if I do, congrats to me. Other than that, I was like, 'Let's just go out here and have fun. You're here, you're healthy,' and I just went for it."
On how she felt after jumping 6.71m in the second round and what adjustments she made going into her third, and final, jump:
"I didn't even do my approach correctly on the 6.71m, and I was like, 'OK, if I do my approach correct, I will be jumping near 23 feet,' and I did it correctly, obviously."
On her confidence being restored entering the outdoor season, and how it feels to know she has a legitimate chance to make the Olympic team after improving to the No. 6 American indoor jumper in history:
"My confidence has been shot through these two years, and this has built my confidence up way higher now, and I got a big ol' head, but I've got to keep it down low on that one. I have so much more left in the tank. I only did three jumps and I know if I did the next three, I could have gone farther, but we've got to wait for that. We have to relax. It feels really good to be up at the top with those amazing athletes that I'm now ranked with, and I'm just really excited for what's in store in the future."
Mile Prelims Three Arkansas runners, including Heat 1 winner Krissy Gear, advanced to the final and so did a pair of BYU runners. Sage Hurta of Colorado, the Heat 2 winner, ran 4:37.04 for the fastest time.
60m Hurdles Prelims Based on prelims results, this is going to be a very competitive final. Chanel Brissett of USC ran 8.04 to win the first heat but all eight who advanced were within .12 seconds.
400m Prelims Athing Mu of Texas A&M stepped off the accelerator on the home stretch and eased into the top time of the prelims with 51.02. She was more than half a second faster than her teammate, Charokee Young, who had the second fastest time (51.62). Big points from the Aggies in this final could put the team on the bring of a national team title.
60m Prelims Twanisha Terry from USC, third in the 100 meters at the 2019 Outdoor Championships, asserted herself with a very fast 7.09 time in the prelims, which is the fastest time in the NCAA this season and a personal best. Kiara Grant of Norfolk State was impressive in the other heat, dashing to 7.11. Kemba Nelson of Oregon (7.13) and Jada Baylark of Arkansas (7.15) also ran personal bests for the third-and fourth-fastest times of the semis.
800m Prelims Without Mu in the mix, this event is wide open. BYU's Claire Seymour logged the fastest time with 2:03.97 and Clemson's Laurie Barton was second with 2:04.07. Lindsey Butler of Virginia Tech, the top seed with a best this season of 2:01.96, safely advanced with 2:04.61.
5,000m Final Auburn's Joyce Kimeli was a reluctant early leader and swerved out to lane 3 on a couple of occasions to invite someone else to set the pace. But as the laps wore on Kimeli stayed in front and then had the speed late to capture the title in 15:48.98. Minnesota's Bethany Hasz, who earned the Elite 90 award for having the highest GPA among all indoor finalists at 3.96 and will make the transition to cross country Monday, made a late charge to finish second in 15:49.62. Elly Henes of North Carolina State was third in 15:49.86 and Air Force's Mahala Norris took fourth with a lifetime-best 15:51.73. WINNER - Joyce Kimeli, Auburn, 15:48.98 What She Said: "I'm not good at leading, but I always try to push the pace a little bit. It was really challenging, because almost everybody else who was racing today, we were mostly at the same level, which was really hard for one person to take the lead. I'm always thankful for the ladies, because we tried, all of us, to run fast and it's not easy. "During the last few laps, I realized we were about to run like 16 minutes, which is slow to me, so I tried to take the lead and said, 'I'm not going to turn back again.' Katie Izzo was right there with me and she tried to push a little bit, and I was like, 'Thank you God,' she's now coming, because that is the person I always race with and I know she's fast, so I was going to accept the challenge."
On being ready to take command of the race at 4,000 meters:
"I was psychologically prepared for the last 1,000. That's what I was ready for, because when I saw that the pace was going up a little bit and everybody else was in there, I was ready for anything in the last few laps, because I know everybody else could have a kick."
On Auburn head coach Ralph Spry calling her "Champ" since her freshman year and now being called the "NCAA Champion":
"That means a lot. My head coach (Ralph Spry) used to call me 'Champ' since my freshman year, so whenever he says that, it builds my attitude to know that I am a champion, and I always take that as a special gift from him because that's a blessing to me and it helps me know that I can do it."
"Being a champion for the school is good leadership, because I showed the rest of them what we can do as a team. My teammates, they appreciate my work and they keep on calling me 'the champion' and my coaches and everybody does too. I don't take it for granted, but I take it as a blessing and I take it that I can do it, because being a champion is not for everybody."
200m Prelims As expected, college leader Abby Steiner from Kentucky got off to a good start and posted the fastest qualifying time of the day, running 22.62 to win the first heat. Five more women ran under 23 seconds, including Tamara Clark of Arkansas (22.77), Anavia Battle of Ohio State (22.90), Kynnedy Flannel of Texas (22.93), Delecia McDuffie of North Carolina A&T (22.94) and Twanisha Terry of USC (22.96).
Distance Medley Relay Final Courtney Wayment of BYU took the baton even with Arkansas' Krissy Gear, but made a decisive move to pass and ran away with the victory in 10:52.96 for the Cougars' first women's DMR title. Wayment split 4:32.90. Gear, cycling back from a victory in the mile prelims, split 4:37.07. WINNER - Brigham Young, 10:52.96 What She Said (Wayment): On the significance of winning the championship against Arkansas, and capturing the first national title in any event for coach Diljeet Taylor:
"It definitely means more than just a national title. You know, two of our girls, Lauren and Alena Ellsworth were on the team last year that didn't get to race the DMR because of COVID, and it's Liv and my first time being on the DMR." "It was more than just winning a national title tonight, it was racing for what we've been through this last year. My coach (Diljeet Taylor) talked about winning the wait, and it was a hard last year, but tonight was just about doing it for your team and for your heart, and for coach Taylor, so it was definitely an awesome night."
On her personal breakthrough this year:
"I think a lot of the breakthrough is just opportunity. Unfortunately, my earlier years of collegiate running, I struggled with injury, and it's a real thing and most runners experience it during college, and it was just waiting for the right time and right opportunity to showcase what I've been working for. You know, it's taken five years, but I wouldn't trade any of the last four or five years for what they have been. They have built to this moment, and it's just more about consistency and believing in the long-term goals, even when they seem so far away."
On winning BYU's first DMR title, after taking second in 2019 and not being able to race last year as the pre-championship favorite:
"It hasn't officially set in yet. But it definitely is just an incredible feeling. We have a tattoo on our back that says 'BYU - Run for Her' and tonight was more than just me as her or my other three teammates racing the DMR or even coach Taylor, it was more than that. It was for everyone back home and in our locker room who is part of the team. It's an incredible thing and I'm just grateful that we get the opportunity to be here and to just put our best foot forward."
Thursday, March 11 Pentathlon - Erin Marsh of Duke jumped into the early lead of the women's pentathlon with a victory in the first event, the 60-meter hurdles. Marsh was timed in 8.13 seconds and collected 1,100 points. Right behind her is one of the favorites, Tyra Gittens of Texas A&M, who ran a personal-best 8.27 seconds for 1,068 points. Seven women ran 8.51 or better. - Gittens had no misses through 6-4 (1.93m), which is a lifetime best and a collegiate pentathlon record in the women's high jump. She went out at 6-5 (1.96m), but collected a whopping 1,145 points. Anna Hall of Georgia also surpsassed 6 feet, topping out at 6-1.50 (1.87m) for 1,067 points. Gittens is in the overall lead with 2,213 points and Hall is second with 2,099 and Marsh is third with 1,979. Gittens is 39 points ahead of her personal-best pentathlon (4,612) from Jan. 29-30. - Gittens came within a couple inches of her lifetime best in the shot put and was the top point-scorer in that event with a mark of 45-5.75 (13.86m). She has 2,998 points through three events, which is 101 points up on her best and 71 points up on record-holder Kendall Williams' 2016 Indoor Championships total through three events. Hall is second with 2,721 points and Marsh is third with 2,627. - Gittens pulled out a clutch third attempt in the long jump and went 21-7.25 (6.58m) to put the collegiate record within her grasp with one event remaing. With 4,031 points, she needs 2:31.6 in the 800 meters to surpass Williams' 2016 total of 4,703 and break the record. Marsh and Hall are separated by just four points in the competition for second place. Gittens is the first college athlete to score more than 4,000 points in the first four events. Her 800-meter PR is 2:29.95. - Gittens ran 2:28.22 in the event that she struggles with the most, the 800 meters, and it was more than enough to break Williams' NCAA record. Despite being the second-slowest in the field, she finished with 4,746 points to smash the record by 43 points. Gittens total is the third-highest in the world this year and becomes the 35th best in world history. WINNER - Tyra Gittens, Texas A&M - 4,746 points (Collegiate record) What She Said - "After I finished, I told my coach (Sean Brady) that today didn't even feel like luck, it didn't even feel like a lot of work, it felt like everything I've been doing in practice just came together. Nothing was an accident. It definitely took a lot of effort, but today means so much to me." "When I was younger, like during my freshman year, and I saw the collegiate record, i was like 'Oh my God, I don't think I can do that, but I can definitely come somewhere in that area.' But as I grew up and matured, I definitely saw that it was a lot more achievable than I first thought, and I'm just so happy that I was able to do it today."
On her third attempt in the long jump and how it contributed to the final outcome:
"The last jump, I was like, 'Tyra, just do it, just take the chance,' and as soon as I took off, I was like, 'This is it,' and I was just so happy that I was able to do that and ultimately score some points for my team, because at the end of the day, this is national championships and every point counts, so it definitely means a lot more, because I know I just did some stuff for my team."
On her pride in running the 800 the way she did and setting a PR:
"I am so proud. I think the 800 was definitely the thing that I am most proud of because of how much of a mental block and mental funk it is for me. Even though it wasn't an amazing time, I broke out of that mental blockage and it was definitely needed. Today, I came into this meet saying, 'However anything else goes, I don't care, because the 800 is one thing I know I need to work on, and I was so happy, I could cry that it turned out the way it did. I stuck to the plan."
On high jump series and confidence it created for Friday's final:
"After Texas Tech, I was on too much of a high after the high jump and I couldn't get myself together for the rest of the events. Today, I got excited and I applauded myself, but then I put it in the background and focused on shot put. It isn't until now that it's all hitting me that I cleared 1.93m today. It gives me a lot of confidence to know that I can push myself tomorrow, because I know I will be competing against some amazing women."
Weight Throw Final - Makenli Forrest of Louisville, the runner-up in 2019, launched a career-best throw in the third round, lost the lead and then came up with a clutch final throw of 76-3.75 (23.26m) to grab the victory by two centimeters in the second-closest final margin in championship history. Her earlier throw 75-0.50 (22.87m) mark improved her best by more than a foot. Rachel Tanczos of Notre Dame came up with a season's best throw of 76-3 (23.24m) in the fourth round to take the lead away from Forrest, but her final attempt was a foul. Shey Taiwo of Ole Miss survived fouls in the first two rounds and rallied for second place with a sixth attempt that flew 75-3.25 (22.94m). Teammate Jasmine Mitchell, the No. 1 seed, threw 75-1.25 (22.89m) and finished fourth, making them the first pair since 2004 to both surpass 75 feet at the same championship. Auburn's Madi Malone threw 72-8.50 (22.16m) in the fourth round and took fifth. In the first round, NCAA hammer champion Camryn Rogers of Cal got off a career-best throw of 72-1.75 (21.99m) to grab an early lead and added to it in the sixth round with 72-5.25 (22.08m), but finished sixth. WINNER - Makenli Forrest, Louisville - 76-3.75 (23.26m) What She Said - "It doesn't feel real yet. I always wanted to be national champion, but I just never expected to see the day. Today was a great competition and there were a lot of great girls out there, so I'm just excited to have competed against them and come out on top." On joining D'Ana McCarty, NCAA weight throw champion in 2009-10, as Louisville's only indoor champions in any event:
"I'm excited that my name gets to be mentioned in the same competition as her. It's really exciting because D'Ana has her face on the side of our facility, and now I'm hoping to get my face up there as well since I won."
On throwing 23 meters for the first time in her career:
"It means a lot. One of my goals today was to come in and break the school record, which is 22.76m, so after I beat that on my third throw, I just wanted to go out there and try as hard as I could to get a good mark, so I'm excited to be part of the 23-meter club."
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