MEET CENTRAL

By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Foundation

With a list of out-of-state entrants from Miami, Fla., Notre Dame, Air Force, George Mason, Northern Illinois and Cal State Fullerton, coach Todd Harbour says Saturday's Michael Johnson Invitational at Clyde Hart Track & Field Stadium will be the "premier meet in the country this weekend."

In addition to four top 25 teams on both the men's and women's sides, the meet also attracted a field of elite athletes that includes 2012 Olympic gold medalist Jenn Suhr in the pole vault and NCAA champions Donavan Brazier in the 800 and Miami's Shakima Wimbley and Texas A&M's Fred Kerley in the indoor 400.

"All your big ones in Texas are coming," Harbour said. "I think it's the premier meet in the country this weekend. FloTrack will be streaming it live again, so it's going to be an outstanding weekend. You've got Olympic medalists, you've got NCAA champions, you've just got some very, very elite athletes that will be competing."

One that's not is former Baylor All-American and 2016 Olympian Trayvon Bromell, who is still coming back from Achilles' surgery. But, he will be among the 19 seniors recognized at around 4:30 p.m., in between the afternoon and evening sessions.

"He's just taking his time, making sure he's ready to go," Harbour said. "He's hosting a breakfast for the team, and he's actually going to be recognized with the seniors. He's getting ready to graduate and get his degree. That was a big deal to him, to be recognized with the senior class."

That group of seniors includes Felix Obi, a former NCAA indoor triple jump champion who has the No. 1 outdoor mark this season with a school-record leap of 54 feet, 8 ¼ inches. But like Bromell, he will be sidelined this weekend with a knee injury he suffered competing in the long jump at the Baylor Invitational two weeks ago.

"It's just more of a precautionary (move) right now, to get him ready for conference," Harbour said. "He's got a little cartilage deal going on, but I think he'll hopefully be ready to go. That's the only big one we're holding. The rest of them are ready to roll."

Ranked 19th nationally on the men's side and 24th on the women's, Baylor has five other top-10 national marks with freshman Maxwell Willis in the 100 meters (4th, 10.08), sophomore Wil London in the 400 (3rd, 45.46), sophomore Taylor Bennett in the 200 (9th, 22.76), senior Cion Hicks in the shot put (8th, 56-9 ¼) and the men's 4x400-meter relay (3rd, 3:03.11).

A lot of those marks, including Hicks' school-record toss in the shot put, came at the Baylor Invitational. The Bears go to the Texas Tech Quadrangular meet next week in Lubbock before heading to Lawrence, Kan., May 12-14 for the Big 12 Outdoor Championship.

"This time of the year is when we really start trying to focus on getting back to that high level of competition," Harbour said. "You come off the (NCAA Indoor Championship) in March, so you kind of catch your breath a little bit. But now, we're at that point in the season where nay little break you thought about taking after a long indoors, that's over. . . . This is the beginning of the stretch drive for us in the outdoor season, so our athletes are geared up."

Other ranked teams in the field include Texas A&M (2nd), Texas Tech (8th) and Texas (10th) on the men's side and A&M (8th), Texas (9th) and Miami (19th) in the women's field.

Miami and Notre Dame are making their first trips to Waco and are joined by Abilene Christian, Air Force, Angelo State, Cal State Fullerton, George Mason, Lamar, Northern Illinois, SMU, Stephen F. Austin, Tarleton State, Texas, Texas A&M, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, TCU and Texas Tech.

Pulling double duty this weekend are wide receiver Chris Platt from football and forward Raegan Padgett from soccer. Platt is scheduled to run on Baylor's "B" 4x400 relay team after playing in the Green & Gold Spring Game at McLane Stadium, while Padgett is slated to run in the evening session of the 200 meters after playing in soccer's 1 p.m. scrimmage vs. SMU.

"We've had great crowds, and I think (Saturday) may be our best ever with the spring game finishing up," Harbour said. "You should be able to just come over and check it out a little bit. . . . Hopefully, the wind will lay down a little bit. It doesn't look like it's going to be warm, maybe in the 60s, so perfect track weather."

Field events begin at 9 a.m., with the afternoon running session set for 1 p.m. and the evening session starting at 5, following the senior recognition.

Tickets for the meet are $10 for adults and $5 for youth, ages 2-17. Baylor students get in free with a valid student ID.

Field events for the Michael Johnson Invitational begin at 9 a.m. with afternoon running events starting at 1 p.m., while an evening running sesion begins at 5 p.m. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for youth, ages 2-17. All tickets are general admission. Baylor students get in free with a valid student ID. Gates will open at 8 a.m. Prior to the evening running session, Baylor's 19 seniors will be recognized at 4:30 p.m.

The other 18 teams that are slated to come to Waco to battle the Bears, include Abilene Christian, Air Force, Angelo State, Cal State-Fullerton, George Mason, Lamar, Miami, Northern Illinois, Notre Dame, SMU, Stephen F. Austin, Tarleton State, Texas, Texas A&M, Texas A&M-CC, TCU and Texas Tech.

Baylor's squads are coming off of an off-weekend, after hosting the Baylor Invitational on April 8. The women's team is currently ranked No. 24 in the nation, while the men are listed as the 19th-best squad by the USTFCCCA.

In total, BU has 73 competitors scheduled to take part in the home meet. Baylor's men's team will have 34 participants competing, while the women will have 39 athletes in action.

Baylor owns six NCAA top-10 marks:à ¢Ã¢' ¬Ã‹ € Maxwell Willis (100m, 4th in 10.08), Taylor Bennett (200m, 9th in 22.76), Wil London (400m, 3rd in 45.46), Felix Obi (triple jump, 1st in 54-8.25 [16.67m]), Cion Hicks (shot put, 8th in 56-9.25 [17.30m]), and the men's 4x400-meter relay team (3rd in 3:03.11).

Several Olympians will be in Saturday's field including pole vaulter Jen Suhr (2012 gold), as well as NCAA champions, including Donovan Brazier (800 meters, 2016) and 400-meter hurdler Shamier Little (three-time champion).

Following the Michael Johnson Invitational, the Bears will travel to Lubbock, Texas for the Texas Tech Tech Quadrangular on Friday, April 28.

A complete schedule, heat sheets and live results for the meet can be accessed on BaylorBears.com. The meet will be streamed live by FloTrack, but requires a subscription.

Follow @BaylorTrack on Twitter for updates on the team all season.