Lopes Falls Short of Hurdles Final

HELSINKI, Finland ? Priscilla Lopes fell just shy of qualifying for the women’s 100-meter hurdles final Wednesday at the World Track and Field Championships. Lopes, who competed for Canada, recorded the 10th-fastest time overall during the semifinal round of competition.

The 2004 NCAA 60-meter hurdles champion, Lopes finished fifth in the second of three semifinal heats with a clocking of 12.91. The second heat was the fastest of the competition, as the day’s top three times were notched despite being the only race run into a slight headwind.

While the Whitby, Ontario, native was eliminated short of the finals for her second straight world championship event, she managed to outrun a couple of talented rivals. Finishing behind Lopes was 2003 World Champion Perdita Felicien (12.94), who defeated Lopes to win the Canadian national title last month, as well as Virginia Powell (13.02) of the United States, who edged Lopes twice last season to win NCAA titles in the 60-meter hurdles indoors and 100-meter hurdles outdoors.

Only one Husker remains in contention in Helsinki. Dmitrijs Milkevics, the 2005 NCAA outdoor 800-meter champion, will battle the world’s best middle distance runners in the 800 beginning Thursday, Aug. 11 at 12:20 p.m. CT.