NEW YORK — The LSU track and field team got off to a strong start at the Armory Collegiate Invitational or “Meet of Champions” on Friday as both the men’s and women’s sprinters looked sharp on the indoor track here in New York City.
“We had a lot of good things happen today,” said LSU head coach Pat Henry. “I think that we qualified pretty well and we were able to win some heats. Coming in, we wanted to win our heats, because winning heats is the most important thing that you can do on the first day.”
In a showcase of some of the nation’s premier sprinters, LSU set the tone for a successful second day by winning seven preliminary heats and by also advancing seven competitors to Saturday’s championship round.
LSU’s 10-time All-American Muna Lee provided the highlight of Friday’s competition by recording a breathtaking time of 23.18 in the preliminary round of the women’s 200-meter dash. Despite slowing down in the final 20 meters, Lee earned the fastest collegiate time of the indoor season and broke her own Armory Invitational record of 23.19 set in 2002.
Along with Lee, the Lady Tigers’ qualified two athletes in the 200-meter event as both Monique Hall and seven-time All-American Stephanie Durst earned spots in the final. Hall, the 2001 Junior College National Champion, finished the preliminary round with a time of 23.90, while Durst recorded a heat-winning mark of 23.89.
On the men’s side of Friday’s sprint events, freshman sensation Kelly Willie and five-time All-American Pete Coley each cruised to victories in their respective heats of the 400-meter competition. Willie, the top high school sprinter in the nation a year ago, won his preliminary race with a time of 46.78, while Coley finished in 47.40.
“Muna Lee turned in a very fast time and Kelly Willie had a fast time as well,” said Henry. “We did a really solid job of putting ourselves in a good position for tomorrow and that’s exactly the position that we wanted to be in.”
Two Lady Tigers advanced to the championship final of the 400-meter event on Friday as Nadia Davy and Hazel-Ann Regis finished first in their preliminary heats. Davy, the 2002 Junior College Champion in the 400 meters, registered a time of 53.91, while Regis crossed the finish line in 53.82.
In the men’s shot put championship, LSU’s Joe Lochridge earned his second-consecutive fourth-place finish against some of the nation’s elite competition on Friday as the Tigers’ junior reached a distance of 58-3. Last week, Lochridge placed fourth at the Gator Invitational in Gainesville, Fla, with a throw of 57-11 1/4.
“I also think that Joe (Lockridge) did a lot better in the shot put, which was the one final that the men had today,” Henry said. “He improved and had one of his season’s best, so that’s good. It was close to being the best that he’s ever done and we’re very optimistic for him in the rest of the season.”
LSU’s Dianne Harrison registered a fifth-place finish in the high jump championship with a height of 5-5 at the Armory Collegiate Invitational. The Lady Tigers’ ever-improving freshman from Nashville, Tenn., was topped only by South Carolina’s Chelsea Hammond (5-8 3/4), North Carolina’s Tatyana Kirichenko (5-7), Purdue’s Angela Anoliefoh (5-7) and Erin Price of Alabama (5-5).
In the women’s weight-throw event, LSU’s Mallory McDonald earned second-place honors on Friday as the Lady Tigers’ sophomore from Stow, Ohio, finished with a mark of 62-5 1/4. North Carolina’s Laura Gerraughty finished first in the competition after throwing for a distance of 65-2 3/4.
Competition at the prestigious Armory Collegiate Invitational will resume on Saturday at 9 a.m. (CST) with the field events here at the Armory Track and Field Center in New York City.