Huskers Dominate Nebraska Invitational

LINCOLN ? The University of Nebraska men’s and women’s track and field teams dominated their only home meet of the outdoor season, the Nebraska Invitational, Saturday at Ed Weir Stadium. Huskers won 15 event titles and claimed six new NCAA regional qualifications as they prepared for next weekend’s Big 12 Outdoor Championships.

                                

Oliver Williams Jr. became the sixth-fastest all-time NU performer in the men’s 100-meter dash when he won the event in a blazing time of 10.34. The mark broke his previous best time of 10.40 and reached the regional-qualifying standard.

 

Nebraska swept the top four spots in the men’s 110-meter hurdles with each athlete notching a season-best time. Richard Davidson Jr. led the way with his clocking of 13.75, while Nenad Loncar finished second in 13.83. Courtney Jones (13.84) and Aaron Ross (14.17) finished in third and fourth places, respectively, with each recording career-low times.

                                              

Nate Probasco continued his strong 2005 season by running a wind-aided personal-best time of 20.65 while winning the men’s 200 meters. The time ranks No. 1 among all NCAA Midwest Region athletes, as well as 12th nationally this season.

 

The Huskers dominated the men’s hammer throw with Issar Yazhbin (204-10) and Tom Donlin (191-4) each recording career-best spins to sweep first and second places.

 

Daniel Roper earned his first regional qualification of 2005 to win the men’s triple jump with his outdoor personal-best leap of 49-4, while Dmitrijs Milkevics gained regional-qualifying status in his second event of the season (along with the 800 meters) by winning the men’s 400-meter dash in 46.95.

 

Other members of the Husker men’s team to claim event titles included Mark Harrison (52.25) in the 400-meter hurdles, Aaron Nasers (1:49.48) in the 800 meters, Ray Scotten in the pole vault, and NU’s 4x100-meter relay (39.86) team of Abolins, Williams, Probasco and Dusty Stamer.

 

Several Husker women posted tremendous performances, including Egle Uljas, who won the women’s 400 meters in 53.40. Uljas gained her second regional qualification of the year to go along with her existing mark in the 800 meters.

 

Anne Shadle’s strong senior campaign continued with a personal-best mark of 2:07.55 to win the women’s 800 meters. Shadle currently owns the team lead in two events (800 and 1,500 meters).

 

Jamie Senkbile improved her career best in the women’s hammer throw by six feet with her third-place spin of 180-6. Senkbile surpassed her first-ever regional-qualifying standard with the effort.

 

Other NU women’s winners Saturday included Priscilla Lopes (13.52) in the women’s 100-meter hurdles, Kwonya Ferguson in the women’s triple jump (42-2 ?) and Kayla Wilkinson (170-0) in the women’s javelin.

 

One other notable performance was turned in by current Husker redshirt Becky Breisch, who was competing unattached. Breisch set an Ed Weir Stadium record in the women’s discus with a career-long heave of 208-5. The mark would have been an NU record for the 2004 NCAA champion if she had been officially competing for Nebraska, while it would also lead the nation by nearly 20 feet. Breisch will return to competition with the Huskers as a senior in 2006.

 

“We had some good, solid improvements today in some events, and we had some events that we didn’t so as well as what I had hoped we would do,” Head Coach Gary Pepin said. “We’re still to the point where we have to decide who our (Big 12 Championships) team will be. There are probably some people who made the team this week who weren’t on it before, and others who may have fallen off.”

 

With men’s and women’s indoor titles already in hand, Nebraska will attempt to become the first program to earn a second sweep of the conference championship trophies next weekend when it travels to Manhattan, Kan., for the Big 12 Outdoor Championships. The Huskers have claimed all four titles once previously (2000) during the Big 12’s nine-year history. Texas (1999) is the only other conference team to ever earn the sweep.