Razorbacks seeking ninth straight women’s indoor team title, SEC record 13th overall, with 33-year head coach recognized during final year on eve of championship event in Fayetteville

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Lance Harter has been synonymous with the remarkable success of the Arkansas women’s cross country and track and field programs for 33 years, leading the Razorbacks to six NCAA Division 1 titles and 43 Southeastern Conference championships.

Harter’s name will now be connected with one of the most prestigious venues in track and field, with the announcement Thursday that this year’s SEC Indoor Championships will be contested Friday and Saturday on Lance Harter Track at Randal Tyson Track Center.

Harter, who has led the Razorbacks to three Division 1 indoor crowns, two outdoor championships and an NCAA cross country title during his tenure, was the head coach for the Arkansas women’s program when the Randal Tyson Track Center opened in 2000.

“For more than three decades, Lance Harter has defined success in women’s track and field at the University of Arkansas, within the Southeastern Conference and throughout the nation,” Arkansas Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics Hunter Yurachek said in a statement.

“His remarkable coaching career has resulted in six national championships, more than 40 conference championships and countless All-Americans, NCAA champions, Olympians and record holders.

“Along the way, he has invested in the lives of the young women he has coached, his staff and all those affiliated with the Razorback women’s track and field program. Coach Harter has left an indelible mark on our program and it is only fitting that his signature will now be affixed to the track at the Randal Tyson Track Center for generations to come.”

The announcement for the Lance Harter Track came during a retirement celebration held for the legendary coach Thursday night in advance of the SEC Indoor Championships. Harter is in his final season guiding the Razorbacks, with associate head coach Chris Johnson named as the next leader of the Razorback women’s track and field program.

“I was in shock when they named the indoor track after me,” said Harter, whose signature is located on the infield adjacent to the finish line of the Mondo track. 

A formal resolution adopting the name change will be considered by the University of Arkansas Board of Trustees at its next scheduled meeting March 14-15.

Arkansas is seeking a ninth consecutive women’s team title at the SEC Indoor Championships and 13th overall, which would break a tie with LSU for most in conference history. Harter has also led the Razorbacks to 22 conference cross country championships and nine outdoor track and field titles.

Florida, which captured the last indoor crown in 2014 before the Razorbacks’ streak began, has the potential to halt the impressive run and capture a 10th SEC women’s indoor title.

The SEC Indoor Championships will be held at the Randal Tyson Track Center for the 11th time, with Arkansas winning five of the previous 10 occasions, including the past four editions held in Fayetteville in 2013, 2016, 2019 and 2021.