Eades Makes Clean Sweep of Hurdles in Manhattan

Manhattan, Kan. ? The Ward Haylett Invitational in Manhattan, Kan., was the site for the final regular-season road meet of the 2008 season for the Nebraska track and field team on Saturday. The Huskers showed they are in prime form for a run at the title at the Big 12 Conference and Midwest Regional meets as the Husker women brought home seven event victories while the men added another six top finishes.

 

Nikita Eades was the star for the Husker women on Saturday as the sophomore from Aurora, Colo., swept the hurdles with wins in the 100- and 400-meter hurdle events. Eades started out the meet by improving her regional-qualifying time in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 13.46. The time is the fastest this season for the NU women, bettering Karyn LaCour’s time of 13.51 from the Kansas Relays on April 19. Eades is projected to move into the No. 4 spot in the Midwest Region, followed by LaCour at No. 5. Eades was not done for the day as she then posted the top time in the 400-meter hurdles at 1:01.78. It was a season-best performance for Eades.

 

On the men’s side Tyrell Ross shot out of the blocks and never looked back as the Mullica Hill, N.J., native destroyed his personal-best in the 110-meter hurdles with a first-place time of 13.80. Ross is projected to vault up to the No. 4 spot in the Midwest Region, right behind teammate Lehann Fourie who ran 13.71 at Drake Relays on April, 26.

 

Ross was then part of a pack of Huskers who took the top six spots in the men’s 400-meter hurdles. Freshman Adam Dailey led the way at 52.22 while Eric Lund finished second with a new personal-best and regional-qualifying time of 52.22. Andrew Pearson finished third at 52.99, Ross in fourth at 53.61, Nick Makukutu in fifth at 53.72 and Jared Gillmore in sixth at 54.87.

 

In the field events, Kayla Wilkinson won the javelin for the fourth time during the 2008 outdoor season with a throw of 168-4 (51.32). The lone time she hasn’t won the javelin was on Friday, April 25, at the Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa, where she finished second. On the men’s side Keith Lloyd won the shot put with a throw of 56-8 ? (17.28). Lloyd and Bryan Bell also improved their regional-qualifying marks in the hammer throw. Lloyd finished in second with a toss of 202-1 (61.60) with Bell finishing right behind him in third at 193-7 (59.01).

 

In the 3,000-meter steeplechase both David Adams and Mikel Thomas added their names to the Midwest Regional qualifying list. Adams knocked almost 21 seconds off his personal-best to finish in first at 8:57.87. Thomas finished right behind him in second with a time of 8:58.74, shattering his personal best by almost 32 seconds. On the women’s side Jen Webers cut nearly 18 seconds off her personal best with a first-place time of 10:59.43. It was a promising moment for Webers as it is only the second time ever that she has run the event. She also competed at the Concordia Invitational on April 13, in Seward, Neb., where she finished first with a time of 11:17.03.

 

In other distance action, Ari Goldstein and Jen Pancoast each brought first-place honors back to Lincoln for the Husker women. Goldstein won the 5,000-meter run with a time of 17:44.34, while Pancoast paced the field in the 1,500 meters at 4:34.97. On the men’s side, Eric Thies won the 5,000 meters with a time of 15:43.31, while Kyle Custer won the 1,500 meters with a time of 3:55.62.

 

The 4x100 team of Chi Kalu, LaCour, Eades and Rachel Butler teamed to finish in first and just 1.18 seconds short of a regional-qualifying time at 46.88.

 

The Huskers will now get ready for the Nebraska Open on Saturday, May 10, at Ed Weir Stadium. The field events are scheduled to start at 11 a.m. with the women’s hammer throw and men’s javelin. The running events are set to start at Noon with the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase. Fans are encouraged to come out and support the Big Red as admission will be free and it may be the last chance to catch some of the Huskers in action as it is the last meet of the regular season. The Huskers will also host the NCAA Midwest Regional meet on May 30-31.