Jayhawks Tally Four Wins on Final Day of Holiday Inn Invitational

LINCOLN, Neb. – Two more victories from senior Diamond Dixon and a pair of career bests from junior Lindsay Vollmer led the way for the Kansas women as the Jayhawk Track & Field teams competed on the final day of the Holiday Inn Invitational Saturday afternoon. In all, the Jayhawks were victorious in six events at the meet held inside the Bob Devaney Sports Center.
 
Vollmer continued her early-season heroics Saturday after again taking down a pair of her own personal bests. The combined-event specialist began the day in the shot put and saved her best throw for last, hitting a mark of 12.19 meters (40’0″) on her third attempt. The throw bested her previous indoor best by nearly four inches and ended up earning her a 17^th-place finish.
 
Just 10 minutes later the Hamilton, Mo., native headed to the starting blocks for the final of the 60-meter hurdles. In the prelims a day earlier Vollmer posted the fastest qualifying time at 8.55, but made sure Friday that she would not leave Lincoln without taking down her personal record in the event for the second-straight week. Vollmer used the final 20 meters to pull away from the field and cross the finish in 8.45, which shaved .02 seconds off her previous best, which she set at the Bill Easton Classic a week ago. The time earned the junior an easy victory and puts her at No. 14 in the national standings.
 
Vollmer’s day still wasn’t done however as she joined forces with Nashia Baker, Lydia Saggau and Natalie Becker in the distance medley relay. The freshman, Baker, got the team off to a strong start in the 1,200m leg before handing off to Vollmer, who extended the Jayhawks’ lead over her 400-meter leg midway through the race. From there, Saggau and Becker were never challenged. Becker crossed the finish as the clock read 11:42.06, giving the Jayhawks the victory by nearly 12 seconds. As of Saturday the quartet’s time ranked No. 2 in the NCAA so far this season.
 
Dixon backed up her stellar performance in the 60-meter prelims Friday night with another first place performance in the final Saturday afternoon. After tallying the top qualifying spot in the prelim heats with a personal best time of 7.48, the senior leaned through the finish in the final in nearly identical fashion, winning the race in 7.49. Dixon led a strong group of KU runners in the event as the Jayhawks swept the top four finishes. Sophomore Tianna Valentine was the runner-up to Dixon as she clocked in at 7.52. Sophomore Sydney Conley took third in the event less than 24 hours after notching a win in the long jump. Conley posted a personal-record time of 7.56 and was followed by freshman Zainab Sanni, who turned in a time of 7.65 to claim fourth.
 
After Dixon added a runner-up finish in the 200 meters, she hit the Devaney Center track for the final time as the lead-off leg in the 4×400-meter relay. Dixon, along with Alisha Keys, Whitney Adams and Rhavean King passed the baton around in 3:45.61 to post Kansas’ fourth and final victory of the day.
 
In the final of the men’s 60 meters, DeMario Johnson also entered the day as the fastest qualifier from Friday. His prelim mark of 6.79 was also a career best. The senior was unable to duplicate those efforts in the final Saturday as he sped through the finish in 6.87, which was good enough to earn him a third-place finish.
 
The Jayhawks will return to Lawrence for their final home meet of the indoor season when the teams play host at the Jayhawk Classic on Friday, Jan. 24. The event is slated to begin at 9 a.m. with the women’s weight throw and conclude at 8:15 p.m. with the men’s 4×400-meter relay. Get live updates from the Jayhawks’ performances and results by following on Twitter at @KUTrack.
 
 
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