Feb. 7, 2002
WACO, Texas -
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This Week
Baylor travels to Houston to participate in the Southwest Indoor Classic Sat., Feb. 9. The meet will be held at the Bill Yeoman Field House with field events beginning at 9 a.m. and running events starting at noon.
Large field awaits Baylor in Houston
Baylor will face competition from 11 other teams at the Southwest Indoor Classic this week. Teams scheduled to participate include Abilene Christian, Louisiana-Lafayette, New Orleans, Northwestern State, Rice, Sam Houston, Southern Mississippi, Stephen F. Austin, Texas A&M, Texas Southern and UTSA.
4x400 relays among the best in the nation
Both Baylor's men's and women's 4x400 relay teams are listed among the nation's top-12 according to this week's Trackwire rankings. Last weekend at the Tyson Invitational both the men and women posted provisional qualifying times. The foursome of Zsolt Szeglet, Michael Smith, Joel Martin, and Darold Williamson turned in a season-best mark of 3:08.27, while the women's team comprised of Jasmine Esiere, Chava Demart, Tiffany Wise and Barbara Petrahn clocked a season-best 3:38.96.
Bears in the Big 12
With the Big 12 Indoor Championships just over two weeks away Baylor has seen several athletes post top times in the conference this season. In all, 11 individuals and six Baylor relay teams are ranked among the top-five in the conference standings. Seniors Barbara Petrahn and Lanie Millar, along with juniors Debbie Thornhill and Ferenc Bekesi and the men's 4x400 relay team currently own the fastest times in the Big 12 in their respective events. Petrahn has posted a time of 1:22.72 in the 600 yards, Millar owns a 2:08.28 mark in the 800 meters, Thornhill has recorded a 16:59.39 time in the 5,000 meters, Bekesi clocked a 4:02.95 in the mile, and the men's 4x400 team holds top conference honors in the event with a 3:08.27 mark. A complete list of Baylor's top-five conference performers and times can be found on page two.
Roessler sets school record
Senior thrower Rachal Roessler shattered Baylor's indoor weight throw record tat the LSU Purple Tiger Invitational on Jan. 26 throwing for a distance of 59-9 1/2. Roessler eclipsed the previous record (51-1 9 3/4) by nearly a foot, a mark she set last season at the Big 12 Championships in Lincoln, Neb.
Hart begins 39th season at the helm
Clyde Hart begins his 39th season as the head coach of Baylor's track and field program this season. In his tenure at BU, Hart has firmly established the Bear program as one of the best in the nation. Hart has coached athletes to 23 national championships (11 individual/12 relay) and 429 All-American awards (143 individual/286 relay). Named the men's assistant coach for Team USA at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia, Hart has coached athletes to ten world record performances. In 1996, he was named the Coach of the Year by the United States Olympic Committee. That year he coached Michael Johnson to gold medals in the 200 meters and the 400 meters at the Games of the 26th Olympiad in Atlanta, Ga. Hart was also named the NCAA Indoor Coach of the Year in 1996 after garnering such honors in 1989. A four-time Southwest Conference Indoor Coach of the Year, Hart has established Baylor as "Quarter Mile University," after producing 14 4x400 relay national champions and four 400 meter national champions.
