Track & Field Welcomes 11 Teams to Michael Johnson Invitational
4/18/2018 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field
Michael Johnson INVITATIONAL MEET CENTRAL
Live Results | Live Video (FloTrack) | Baylor Performance List
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Foundation
€‹Between welcoming 10 other schools, worrying about the weather and putting on a meet that will run basically all day, Todd Harbour won't relax until the end of the last 4x400 relay in Saturday's Michael Johnson Invitational.
€‹"I do get excited, but when you're running off a whole meet it's always a lot of work and a lot of details," Harbour said. "We have great meet directors in Evan (Iluzada) and Jeremy (Vitt), and I trust those guys. But, as the head coach, there's always a little element of it that you just can't really enjoy it because of what you're trying to do, making sure everything is running smoothly."
€‹Beginning with the men's hammer and women's javelin at 9 a.m., the meet at Clyde Hart Track & Field Stadium features a total of 10 top-30 squads, highlighted by the No. 2 Texas Tech men, No. 3 Texas A&M men and women, the No. 9 Texas women and 11th-ranked Arkansas men.
€‹As the host team, Baylor comes in ranked 21st on the men's side and No. 29 for the women. Also in the field are Notre Dame, Iowa State, Oklahoma State, Abilene Christian, Stephen F. Austin and the Northern Illinois women.
€‹"Last few years, we've had quality, quality teams, and nothing's changed this year," Harbour said. "There should be plenty of competition in every event, so I'm looking forward to it. We have Olympians and medalists added to a collegiate field with the likes of Texas and A&M, Texas Tech, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, Iowa State. It's a great group."
€‹In addition to the college athletes, the entrants include Jenn Suhr, gold medalist in the pole vault at the 2012 Olympics and silver medalist in 2008; Javier Culson from Puerto Rico, the bronze medalist in the 400 hurdles at the 2012 Olympics; Phillis Francis, a gold medalist in the 4x400 relay at the 2016 Olympics and reigning world champion in the 400 meters; Tiffany Townsend, who holds the Baylor record with 17 All-America honors; and Tiffani McReynolds, the stadium record-holder in the 100-meter hurdles.
€‹In addition to running in the 100 and 200 meters, Townsend (2008-11) will be recognized as one of this year's Baylor Legends along with Terril Davis (1987-90). Before the 5 p.m. evening running session, Baylor will recognize its 14 seniors at approximately 4:30 p.m.
€‹This is Baylor's first graduating class that spent its entire four-year careers at the new Clyde Hart Stadium.
€‹"I'm going to show them the video (Friday) at our team meeting of the inaugural opening up, the first time we opened those doors and let them all come in," Harbour said. "The senior class that is graduating, this was the first class that we had this and have gone four years on it. For them, this is all they've known. That's kind of an even neater deal, we finally graduated a class from this facility. We still pinch ourselves every day coming to work and realizing how special this place is."
€‹Baylor will also host the Big 12 Outdoor Championships on May 11-13, with only the NCAA West Preliminary Championships (May 24-26 in Sacramento, Calif.) and the NCAA Championships (June 6-9 in Eugene, Ore.) to follow.
€‹"This is always the meet for us," Harbour said. "Texas Relays comes so earlier, and we have a little fun down there. But, this is the time of the year you starting getting serious. For some of them, this will be their shot. We'll basically move on with about half of our team after this. We focus in on those that are going to go on to the Big 12 meet and on to Sacramento and beyond that. We have about 35, probably, that have at least qualified for the first round, we think. So, this is the point in the season where you get serious."
€‹That includes junior quarter-miler Wil London, a silver medalist in the 4x400 relay at last summer's World Championships in London. He has his sights set on winning the 400 meters at the NCAA Championships.
€‹"I have the greatest confidence in the world to go out there and win it," he said. "There's no one out there who I feel like can beat me. So, I'm going to do everything I can to prepare myself for when that day comes." €‹
WACO, Texas -- Baylor track and field gears up to host its second home meet of the season, welcoming 11 teams to the Michael Johnson Invitational on Saturday at Clyde Hart Track & Field Stadium.
The men's hammer and women's javelin throw will kick off field action at 9 a.m. CT. The afternoon running events begin at 1 p.m. while the evening running events start at 5 p.m. FloTrack will live stream the meet to subscribers starting at 1 p.m. CT.
Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for youth, ages 2-17. All tickets are general admission. Baylor students get in free with a valid student ID.
Before the evening running events, Baylor will recognize its 14 seniors at approximately 4:30 p.m. on the track. Also, track & field alumni Terril Davis (1987-90) and Tiffany Townsend (2008-11) will be recognized as this year's Baylor Legends presented by the Baylor "B" Association at 7:10 p.m.
The meet will feature 11 teams from across the country, including top-30 teams in No. 2 Texas Tech, No. 3 Texas A&M, No. 11 Arkansas, No. 21 Baylor and No. 22 Texas on the men's side and No. 3 Texas A&M, No. 9 Texas, No. 25 Texas Tech, No. 28 Notre Dame and No. 29 Baylor on the women's side.
Other teams competing on Saturday include Abilene Christian, Iowa State, Northern Illinois (women), Oklahoma State and Stephen F. Austin.
Last weekend, 12 Bears competed at the Texas Invitational in Austin with two freshmen coming back with event titles. Jayson Baldridge ran a personal-best time of 51.57 in the 400-meter hurdles to win the race while Tuesdi Tidwell jumped 12' 9.5" (3.90m) to take the pole vault title. Taylor Bennett (200m), Wil London (200m) and Maxwell Willis (100m) all competed in their first individual races of the outdoor season.
Heading into the meet, BU holds several top-30 national marks. Junior Wil London holds the nation's ninth-best time of 45.90 in the 400 meters and 20th-best time in the 200 meters (20.72). Senior Kiana Hawn leads the women's side with a seventh-best mark of 57.60 in the 400-meter hurdles. Kiana Horton (200m), Alex Madlock (triple jump), Howard Fields III (400 meters), Devin Meyrer (5,000m) and Anna West (5,000m) all hold top-30 national marks in their respective events.
The women's and men's 4x400-meter relay currently hold the third and eighth-best times in the nation while the men's 4x100-meter relays ranks 15th.
Next week, Baylor will head to Fayetteville, Ark. to compete at the National Relays Championships from April 27-28.
FOLLOW ALONG
Results and a full recap will be posted following the conclusion of the meet. Heat sheets, live results and a live video stream ($) link is available at meet central on www.BaylorBears.com.
FloTrack will begin its live stream at 1 p.m. CT on Saturday.
For live results this weekend, follow the team on Twitter: @BaylorTrack.
