Williamson Claims 4th Big 12 Outdoor 400M Crown

Track & Field 5/15/2005 12:00:00 AM

May 15, 2005

MANHATTAN, Kan. - Senior Darold Williamson (San Antonio, Texas) became the first sprinter to complete the career sweep in the 400 meters, claiming his fourth straight title in the event with a time of 45.33 on the final day Sunday at the 2005 Big 12 Outdoor Track & Field Championships at R.V. Christian Track Complex. The men's 4x400-meter relay also claimed its fifth straight outdoor crown with a time of 3:04.12.

Williamson also ran a 44.16 split to anchor the 4x400-meter relay to another come-from-behind victory and finishes his Big 12 career with six individual 400-meter titles (two indoors) and seven 4x400-meter relay titles. Sophomore Kevin Mutai (Round Rock, Texas) led off with a 47.18, then handed to sophomore Mark Teter (San Antonio, Texas) who ran 46.43. Teter gave way to junior Wil Fitts (Desoto, Texas), who split 46.00 before handing the baton to Williamson about 15 meters behind the leader, Texas Tech. Williamson tracked down the Red Raiders' All-American Jonathan Johnson on the final turn and blew past him on the straightaway for the win.

"The boys just went out and put us in the race," Williamson said. "I have the confidence that if I'm within 10 meters, I can catch anybody. It means a lot (to win both championships), because I didn't want to go out with a loss in this one. I've never lost (outdoors), and I didn't plan on it today."

The women's team had a great day, placing three in the top eight in three events. Senior Lakadron Ivery (Tyler, Texas) claimed a pair of second-place finishes to go with her silver in the long jump. Ivery ran 11.32 in the 100 meters and 23.08 in the 200 meters. Senior Elizabeth Wilson (Duncanville, Texas) ran 11.56 to finish third in the 100 and 24.04 to finish seventh in the 200. Freshman Carla Grace (San Antonio, Texas) placed sixth with a time of 11.68 in the 100 and sixth in the 200 with a time of 23.81.

Sophomore Monique Ortega (El Paso, Texas) took third in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a career-best time of 10:29.39, while senior Jessa Chance (Southlake, Texas) finished sixth in 10:53.06 and freshman Lyndsy Bedell (Plano, Texas) finished seventh in 10:53.21.

Also scoring for the women, senior Danielle Myricks (Willingboro, N.J.) claimed third in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 58.00. Junior Angel Perkins (Cerritos, Calif.) finished seventh in the 400 meters with a time of 54.27, while sophomore Rena Napoleon (Colorado Springs, Colo.) finished eighth in 54.93. Freshman Brittany Devereaux (Denton, Texas) took seventh in the discus with a mark of 47.56 (156-0).

In the women's relays, the 4x100 squad of junior Marquisha Sefas (Fort Worth, Texas), Perkins, Wilson and Ivery finished third in 44.45. The women's 4x400 relay of Perkins, Ivery, Grace and Myricks ran a season-best 3:30.95 to finish second.

On the men's side, junior Jerome Miller (Houston, Texas) ran a season-best 13.86 to take third in the 110-meter hurdles and fifth in the 400-meter hurdles at 51.19. Teter finished seventh in the 400 meters in 46.94, while Mutai finished eighth in 47.25. Fitts took fifth in the 800 meters with a time of 1:47.47. Junior Rob Morrow (Grapevine, Texas) finished 20th in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 9:26.76, while junior Bo Price (Atlanta, Texas) finished 36th in 15:22.69.

The women finished fourth in the overall team standings, while the men finished 11th. Ivery finished with 27.5 points, the second-highest individual total on the women's side, five points behind Texas' Marshavet Hooker.

The Bears return to action at the NCAA Midwest Regional Championships May 27-28 hosted by Oklahoma at John Jacobs Track & Field Complex in Norman, Okla.

TEAM STANDINGS
WOMEN
1. Nebraska 126.66, 2. Texas 117, 3. Texas Tech 95, 4. Baylor 86, 5. Kansas State 79, 6. Kansas69, T7. Missouri 55, T7. Oklahoma State 55, 9. Colorado 50, 10. Texas A&M 36, 11. Iowa State 29, 12. Oklahoma 21.33.

MEN
1. Texas Tech 149.5, 2. Nebraska 136, 3. Texas 100.5, 4. Kansas 85, 5. Kansas State 71, 6. Texas A&M 52.5, T7. Colorado 48, T7. Iowa State 48, 9. Missouri 44.5, 10. Oklahoma 41, 11. Baylor 37, 12. Oklahoma State 5.

BIG 12 CHAMPIONS
MEN
Darold Williamson - 400 Meters
Men's 4x400-Meter Relay - Mutai, Teter, Fitts, Williamson

ALL-BIG 12 HONORS
WOMEN
Long Jump
Lakadron Ivery - 2nd
April Holliness - 5th

100 Meters
Lakadron Ivery - 2nd
Elizabeth Wilson - 3rd
Carla Grace - 6th

200 Meters
Lakadron Ivery - 2nd
Carla Grace - 6th
Elizabeth Wilson - 7th

400 Meters
Angel Perkins - 7th
Rena Napoleon - 8th

400-Meter Hurdles
Danielle Myricks - 3rd

10,000 Meters
Brittany Brockman - 2nd

3,000-Meter Steeplechase
Monique Ortega - 3rd
Jessa Chance - 6th
Lyndsy Bedell - 7th

Discus
Brittany Devereaux - 7th

4x100 Relay
Sefas, Perkins, Wilson, Ivery - 3rd

4x400 Relay
Perkins, Ivery, Grace, Myricks - 2nd

MEN
400 Meters
Darold Williamson - 1st
Mark Teter - 7th
Kevin Mutai - 8th