June 13, 2009
Complete Results
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Baylor took third place in both the men's and women's 4x400-meter relays on the final day of competition at the 2009 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships on Saturday afternoon at the John McDonnell Field.
The men's team finished with 13 team points to tie for 20th overall, while the women's squad scored 21 points to finish in 10th place. The women's finish ties for the best in Baylor history. The Lady Bears also finished 10th in 1998 and 1999, while their 21 points are the second-highest total behind 25 points in 1998.
The men's team finished in the top 20 overall for the sixth-straight season. Combined with six straight top 20 indoor finishes, the Bears have finished in the top 20 on 12 straight occasions.
"Great day for the ladies," said head coach Todd Harbour. "We had to fight hard all year, and they did a really good job. Lot of comeback stories on the ladies' side, as well as the men. Erin Bedell making a huge comeback this year. Brittany Bruce. She's been amazing the last half of this season. She's really stepped up. DeAna, a little girl, she barely made the finals. And pop a long one like she did. It was just a total team effort on the ladies' side."
The women's relay finished third with a season-best time of 3:29.52. The time ranks as the third-fastest in Baylor history. Katrina Taylor led off for the Lady Bears with a 53.4-seconds split to hand off in a tie for first place. Brittany Bruce got out slowly in the first 200 meters, falling to fifth place, but made a strong kick to pass off in second with a split of 51.9 seconds.
Diamond Richardson held the Bears in second place through the third leg with a split of 52.2 seconds. Tiffany Townsend, running anchor for the first time in her career, gave up ground to LSU over the first 200 meters, but made a strong carry over the last half, splitting 51.8 seconds to finish in third.
"I'm so excited," said Townsend. "I wanted us to run that all year long. So this being the last run, I was so happy. I just wanted us to run faster and do our best. I'm satisfied. As an individual, I'm satisfied. As a relay, for our 4x4 and our 4x1, I'm happy. We did well. We got fourth last year here and we stepped it up and got third this year. So I'm happy."
The men's 4x400-meter relay finished in third place with a time of 3:01.12, losing their first race against collegiate competition in over three years. The Bears entered with a 42-race winning streak against NCAA teams, with its last loss coming at the 2006 NCAA Outdoor Championships when the Bears finished third. The men's relay squad earned All-America honors for the 30th-straight season, and has finished in the top three for the 42nd time including indoor and outdoor seasons. Zwede Hewitt led off for the Bears with a 45.9-seconds split, passing the baton near the lead after one lap. Marcus Boyd settled into third place on the backstretch, and made a strong move down the home straightaway to hand off in second place with a 45.1-seconds split.
Texas A&M got out quickly on the third leg, while Baylor third leg J.T. Scheuerman ran in third place. Scheuerman moved over the last 100 meters to hand off just in front of the Aggies in second place with a 45.5-seconds split. Quentin Iglehart-Summers had a strong carry, losing some ground on the leaders through 200 meters, but made a move with 150 meters to go. The senior split 44.2 seconds in his final race for Baylor to put the Bears in third place.
"I wasn't trying to let them get away, they're just fast," said Iglehart-Summers. "Someone said that Justin Oliver ran 44.1, so the Twin had to split 43. There just wasn't much I could do about that. I gave it my all. I tried to do what I could do. Man, it hurts more. We've been trying to go 2:59 for so long, and they went 2:59. That hurt more than anything. I'm not going to lie. I'm hurting emotionally, not even physically. I feel fine leg-wise. They ran their hearts out. I feel so bad that I couldn't' come through for them. That's the worst part about it. I feel like I let them down. That was my fault that we didn't win. All three of them ran their race. I just wish I could have done a little more for them."
Chris Gowell ran a personal best time of 1:46.88 to finish fourth overall in the men's 800 meters. The time ranks as the second-fastest time in Baylor history. Gowell, who was slow through the first lap in both of his preliminary races, got out quickly through 400 meters, clocking 51.0 on the first lap. The leaders started their move on the backstretch of the second lap, and Gowell countered with a move at 200 meters. The junior swung wide off the final turn then moved to the inside lanes to finish fourth overall.
"I think every race has been good," said Gowell. "I've always been close to my pr. Coming in here, it's always been my main goal to run three races, two 1:47s and a 1:46, that means a lot to me. Coach has been working on my strength to be able to cope with the three races, so I'm really pleased to come out with a pr."
Gowell's All-America honors in the 800 meters is the first for Baylor since Wil Fitts took eighth in 2006. The fourth-place finish is the second-highest in the event in Baylor history and the best since Terril Davis finished third in 1990.
Townsend finished fifth overall in the women's 200 meters with a time of 23.04, while Trey Harts took seventh in the men's 200 meters in 21.09. Both earn All-America honors in the 200 meters for the second-straight season.
