James Corrigan, Sarah Tait Smash Big 12 Meet Records In Steeplechase

By Keenan Gray of DyeStat

Photos by Kylie Graham

NCAA indoor champion Alexis Brown of Baylor continued her breakout year with a world-leading mark in the women’s long jump on day two of the Big 12 Outdoor Championships on Friday in Lawrence, Kansas.

Brown, who already owned the NCAA lead this season with a wind-aided jump of 7.00 meters (22-11.5), won her second consecutive conference title in a new personal best and wind-legal mark of 7.03m (23-0.75) on her first jump of the competition.

Brown also ran the fastest time of the women’s 100 meters preliminary round in 11.45 seconds to go into Saturday’s final as the top seed time.

Brown’s Baylor teammate Molly Haywood also secured a second consecutive conference title in the women’s pole vault at 4.52m (14-10), winning by over eight inches.

In the only track finals of the day, men’s and women’s steeplechase meet records fell at the hands of BYU’s James Corrigan and West Virginia’s Sarah Tait.

Corrigan, U.S. Olympian in Paris, lowered his own meet record by seven seconds to run a personal best 8:22.20. Iowa State’s Joash Ruto was also under Corrigan’s previous meet record in second in 8:25.42, a personal best.

Tait opened up separation between her and BYU’s Taylor Lovell on the last lap to come away with her first individual conference title in the women’s race, winning in 9:44.72 to best Emma Coburn’s 2010 meet record of 9:56.53.

Texas Tech’s Bradford Jennings cleared a personal best 2.22m (7-3.25) in the men’s high jump to earn his first conference title.

Cincinnati’s Fred Moudani Likibi threw a season’s best 20.28m (66-6.50) in the men’s shot put to beat Arizona State’s Brandon Lloyd by over three inches.

Houston’s KeAyla Dove used a first-round throw of 18.14m (59-6.25), a season’s best mark, to win the women’s shot put title.

Arizona’s Reinaldo Rodrigues won the men’s long jump competition with 7.64m (25-0.75).

BYU’s Ben Barton finished with 7,865 points in the men’s decathlon, beating Houston’s Grant Levesque by 17 points for the conference title.

Oklahoma State’s Annie Molenhouse sustained her first-place position after day of the women’s heptathlon to finish with a personal best score of 5,729 points for the conference title.

Preliminary races on the track concluded to make up the rest of the fields for Saturday’s finals.

Houston’s Jamar Marshall Jr. won his heat in the men’s 110 hurdles in 13.37, earning the top seed into the final.

Central Florida’s Adaobi Tabugbo ran a personal best 13.08 in the women’s 100 hurdles to lead all qualifiers.

BYU freshman Tyler Mathews ran 1:47.40 to move into the men’s 800 final as the top seed.

Texas Tech’s Fanny Arendt clocked a personal best 2:03.43 in the women’s 800, advancing with the fastest preliminary time.

Arizona State’s Jayden Davis won his heat of the men’s 400 in 45.60 to take the top spot into finals.

Iowa State’s Rachel Joseph secured the top seed in the women’s 400 final, running 51.21 to win her preliminary heat.

Texas Tech’s Kimarlie Stewart posted the fastest time of the men’s 100 qualifiers, running 10.31.