Women's Relay Team Breaks School Record, Jiles Ties KU Record
March 8, 2008
Washington Last Chance Results
AMES, Iowa/Fayetteville, Ark. – Kansas’ women’s 1,600-meter relay team broke the school record in qualifying for the NCAA Championships while senior Julius Jiles tied the school record in the men’s 60-meter hurdles. Seniors Ashley Brown and Libby Harmon and freshman Julia Cummings each capitalized on their final opportunities to improve their NCAA marks for the University of Kansas track and field teams at this weekend’s last chance meets.
After missing an NCAA provisional time by less than a second at the Big 12 Championships last week, the women’s 1,600-meter relay team took advantage of their final opportunity to qualify for the NCAA Indoor Championships. The team of senior Crystal Manning and juniors Sha’Ray Butler, Charity Stowers and Nickesha Anderson etched their names into the Kansas record book with their winning time of 3:35.86 at the ISU Invite. They broke the school record of 3:39.12 set at the same meet in 2003.
Also at the NCAA qualifier in Ames, Iowa, Jiles tied the school record in winning the men’s 60-meter hurdles at 7.84. His career-best mark matched Aaron Thompson’s effort at the same meet in 2006 and improved his previous best provisional time of 7.88.
Brown improved her provisional time in Ames with a season-best finish of 8.36 in the finals of the women’s 60-meter hurdles. Brown, who bested her semifinals time of 8.40, finished third in the event.
At the last chance meet in Fayetteville, Ark., Cummings and Harmon each successfully vaulted past 4.02 meters (13 feet, 2 ¼ inches). It marked a career-best for each of them. Harmon improved her NCAA mark by six meters while Cummings, in her last opportunity of her inaugural indoor season at Kansas, posted a qualifying mark for the first time. Her previous best came in January at 3.82 meters (12-06 ¼ ft.), also at Arkansas.
Senior Matt Baysinger just missed out on the NCAA provisional qualifying time in the men’s 800 meters in Iowa. His ninth-place time of 1:50.77 was less than a second off the NCAA time of 1:50.50.
Next up for the Jayhawks are the NCAA Indoor Championships in Fayetteville, Ark. March 14-15. The list of those accepted into the Championships will be posted on Tuesday, March 11. Start lists for the Championships are posted during the late afternoon on Thursday, March 13.
