Fayetteville, Ark.?Several members of the Nebraska men’s and women’s track and field teams posted amazing performances during Friday’s opening session of the Tyson Invitational, hosted by the University of Arkansas at the Randall Tyson Indoor Track Center. Three Huskers?senior Priscilla Lopes and juniors Arturs Abolins and Dmitrijs Milkevics?recorded marks that rank among the top two for all NCAA athletes this season.<?xml:namespace prefix="o" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"?>
Milkevics, the 2005 NCAA outdoor champion in the men’s 800-meter run, notched the most notable performance with his school record-setting time of 1:47.54 that won the Invitational section of the men’s 800 meters. The time, which currently ranks No. 1 in the NCAA this season, broke Milkevics’ own <?xml:namespace prefix="st1" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"?>Nebraska men’s record of 1:47.82, which he set as a freshman in 2004 during preliminary heats at the NCAA Indoor Championships.
A Riga, Latvia, native, Milkevics out-kicked second-place Jackson Langat (1:47.86) to win Friday’s race, which included three professional runners. The performance, which ranks as the 12th-best time in the world this year, gave Milkevics the second automatic qualification to the NCAA Championships for the Husker men’s team this season.
Nebraska’s first NCAA automatic bid came from the legs of Abolins, who earned runner-up honors in the Championship division of the men’s long jump earlier Friday with a career-long leap of 25-9 1/2. He just surpassed the auto standard of 25-9 1/4 to finish behind Italy’s Andrew Howe. Abolins’ previous personal best was 25-6 1/4, which he registered as a freshman in 2004. The Riga, Latvia, native also moved into second place on the NCAA performance list with the leap.
Lopes also recorded an impressive mark on Friday with her season-best time of 8.01 in the women’s 60-meter hurdles. While the former Olympian and NCAA champion finished second in the event to Michelle Freeman (Puma), she did post the fastest time among all collegiate athletes, as well as the top mark in the nation for the 2006 season. Lopes entered Friday’s action with a share of the national lead with her previous season-best time of 8.06, which she set at last weekend’s Frank Sevigne Husker Invitational.
Also competing in the 60-meter dash, Lopes bowed out of the semifinal round after registering a time of 7.49. She reached the semis after winning her preliminary heat with a time of 7.40. Lopes claimed the eighth and final spot for the semis by edging out USC’s Alexis Witherspoon by one-hundredth of a second.
In other action Friday, sophomore LeRon Williams notched a new NCAA provisional qualification for the Husker men’s team after leaping to a career-best 24-6 1/4 to finish seventh in the College division of the men’s long jump. The mark squeaked by the provisional standard by only three-quarters of an inch.
Junior Peter van der Westhuizen earned second place in the Championship section of the men’s mile run with a personal-best clocking of 4:03.54. The NCAA provisional-qualifying time ranks No. 17 nationally this season.
Other impressive Huskers performances in Fayetteville included those by sophomore Channing Anseth, who won the College division of the women’s 5,000 meters with a career-best time of 17:11.37, and junior Kim Pancoast, who finished fourth in the women’s College division mile run (4:53.43).
Visit the link at the top of this page for complete results from Friday’s opening session of the Tyson Invitational.
Nebraska also has a large contingent of athletes competing at the Iowa State Classic in Ames, Iowa, on both Friday and Saturday. Leading the Huskers was senior Aaron Ross, who qualified for Saturday's final in the men's 60-meter hurdles with a 15th-place overall finish during the prelims with a time of 8.02. Sophomore Demea Carter recorded a personal-best of 23-10 to place 11th in the men's long jump, while sophomore Tamara Solari finished sixth in the women's weight throw (61-5).
The Tyson Invitational continues Saturday, as several Nebraska athletes will compete during the meet’s final day. Included among the field will be Sara Jane Baker (high jump); Nate Probasco (200-meter dash); Egle Uljas (800 meters); Gable Baldwin and Ray Scotten (pole vault); Dusty Jonas and Aaron Plas (high jump); and Daniel Roper (triple jump). Two-time NCAA champion Becky Breisch (shot put) will lead the NU women's squad at the Iowa State Classic, while NCAA All-Americans Aaron Nasers (800 meters) and Oliver Williams Jr. (60 meters) are two members of the Husker men's team scheduled to compete.