HOUSTON, Texas — LSU track and field coach Pat Henry knew the timing, facility and circumstances could be right for a big day for his teams on Saturday.
His teams exceeded even his expectations, however, as his men’s and women’s teams came up with a breakout performance at the Tom Tellez Invitational.
“I think we had a tremendous day today, I’m really pleased with the kinds of performances we received,” Henry. “We thought we could come here and really step up the level of intensity for our outdoor season and we were able to do that. This was a really nice effort heading into Texas Relays next week.”
LSU kick-started a strong day on the track with a pair of NCAA automatic qualifying times in the short relays.
The defending NCAA Champion Lady Tiger 4×100-meter relay started things off with their third consecutive victory in the event. Bianca Rockett, Lolo Jones, Stephanie Durst and Muna Lee combined to run an NCAA automatic qualifying time of 43.90 seconds.
It was the first time this season that the Lady Tigers ran that order, switching Durst from second to third leg, trading places with Jones. The move puts Durst on the curve on the third leg, an ideal position for the third-place finisher in the 200-meter dash at the NCAA Indoor meet.
For Lee, Jones and Durst, it was the beginning of a spectacular day. Lee, a fourth-place finisher in the 100-meter dash a year ago won the short sprint in a time of 11.25. The wind, however, registered at 4.1 meters per second, making it ineligible for NCAA qualifying purposes.
Jones made her outdoor debut in the 100-meter hurdles and did not disappoint. The sophomore All-American beat former LSU great and two-time NCAA champion Joyce Bates in an extremely fast race. Jones edged the 2000 NCAA champion by .01 posting a wind-aided time of 12.87.
Durst ran the 200-meter dash for the first time outdoors. The sophomore from Houston won the event with ease in a time of 23.15, just off the NCAA automatic standard.
The Tiger 4×100-meter relay had struggled in the early stages of the season and had failed to get the stick around in either of their first two competitions. Henry changed up the order this week and the change paid immediate dividends.
The foursome of Walter Davis, Robert Parham, Pete Coley and Bennie Brazell circled the oval in a time of 38.97, the first sub-39 second by a Tiger relay since setting the school record in the event at the 1998 NCAA Outdoor Championships.
For Davis, the NCAA champion in the triple jump and runner-up in the long jump, it marked his first appearance on the track in an LSU uniform. He later went on to win the long jump with an impressive mark of 26 feet 9 inches.
Parham made a significant breakthrough in the 200-meter dash, winning with a time of 20.64 with the aid of a slight wind. The mark improves his provisional status significantly as he entered with a season best time of 20.82 at the LSU Alumni Gold Relays two weeks ago.
Brazell, a member of the LSU football team, returned to his native Texas and looked particularly sharp. In only his second outing of the season in the 400 meter hurdles, the freshman ran an NCAA provisional time of 50.76, edging teammate Lueroy Colquhoun who ran a time of 50.87. Brazell’s time ranks seventh in LSU history.
As Henry mixed the order up on his short relay, he did on his mile relay as well and received similar results. Henry swapped out Parham for Peter Simon who led off and handed to Coley, while Colquhoun and Alleyne Francique ran the third and anchor legs as the Tigers ran an NCAA and world-leading time of 3:02.70, the third-fastest time in school history.
A year ago the Tigers used a then-school record time of 3:01.73 to edge Baylor in a classic dual. The rematch, however, was no competition as the Tigers won the relay by more than six seconds this time around.
Francique, the NCAA champion at 400 meters, ran his first quarter of the outdoor season and looked sharp, winning the event in a provisional time of 45.61. Coley finished third in a busy day for the sophomore, clocking a time of 46.71.
In the women’s 400-meter dash, Ronetta Smith continued to look strong in the early stages of the season. Smith gave LSU a sweep of the titles in the quarter, running a provisional time of 52.69.
In the field Maria Romero produced the first provisional qualifier for the Lady Tigers in the javelin since Kim Poche in 1996. Romero came up with the top mark by a collegian, posting a throw of 153-1, the fourth best throw in LSU history. Teammate Neely Falgout finished second with a mark of 141-11.
Candice Gonzalez was the top collegiate finisher in the women’s hammer throw and continued her early season hot streak, posting a throw of 180-10.
Mallory McDonald completed a strong showing for the LSU women’s throwers with a runner-up throw of 162-9 in the discus, the fourth best throw in school history and just off an NCAA provisional mark.
In other action, late Friday night Tiger distance standout Likhaya Dayile finished 23rd in a loaded 10,000-meter field at Stanford, but ran a provisional qualifying time of 29:29.01.
LSU returns to Texas next weekend as both squads travel to Austin for the 75th Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays from Thursday through Saturday.