No. 12/No. 20 T&F Closes 2022 MJ Invitational with 11 Wins

Friday, April 22

Waco, Texas

All Day

Baylor

Michael Johnson Invitational

No. 12/No. 20 T&F Closes 2022 MJ Invitational with 11 Wins

4/23/2022 8:47:00 PM | Track & Field

Meet Results

Nnamdi Prosper retakes national lead in the javelin throw

By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
            From his office window, Baylor coach Michael Ford watched in disbelief as freshman Chinecherem Prosper Nnamdi ("Zaza") unleashed a nation-leading javelin throw of 265 feet, 11 inches Saturday afternoon at the Michael Johnson Invitational.
            "It was weird, because I got to see it from my office window, and I said, 'Man, that thing is staying up there for a long time,''' Ford said.
            Bettering his own school record (257-3) that he set at last month's Texas Relays, Zaza opened with a throw of 257-6 and then shattered it with a stadium-record mark of 81.07 meters that is .001 centimeters off the Nigerian record. That also puts him back on top of the NCAA rankings a day after Virginia's Ethan Dabbs went 263-9.
            "I was competing against myself, because that was my goal, to go over 80 meters this season," Nnamdi said. "I felt like I need to do what I'm supposed to do. Not to be motivated by anybody else, but try to get distance for myself."
            That was one of the biggest highlights of a Michael Johnson Invitational that saw Baylor record another nation-leading mark and 11 collegiate wins (seven women's, four men's) in the two-day meet at Clyde Hart Track & Field Stadium.
            "I think overall, we had an awesome track meet," Ford said. "We still have to stay healthy, because we got a couple people banged-up today. But, I think once we get back healthy, have one more track meet and get a week off before conference, I think we'll be ready to go."
            Senior Jayson Baldridge got things started the right way on Friday, when he beat freshman Nathan Ezekiel's nation-leading time in the 400-meter hurdles with a PR time of 49.10 that gives the Baylor teammates the top-two times. Ezekiel finished second among collegiate athletes with a time of 49.35.
            "Nathaniel is one of the strongest guys in the country," Baldridge said. "He's a young kid, and he's coming on fast. I'm happy to help him and work with him over the season. At practice, we challenge each other every single day. I help him out, he helps me out. It's a blessing to have somebody of that caliber to train with."
             Baldridge and Ezekiel are Baylor's best 1-2 in the 400 hurdles since Bayano Kamani and Michael Smith went 1-2 at the 2001 NCAA Outdoor Championships.
            Asked if they could match that feat, Baldridge said, "Anything can happen. If it stays like this, for sure."
            Trying to build depth in the relays, the Baylor men had two 4x100-meter groups go under 40 seconds and finished 1-2 among college teams, trailing only the Hurdle Mechanic professional team anchored by Wil London.
            Baylor's "A" team of Laurenz Colbert, Isaiah Cunningham, Kamden Jackson and De'montray Callis was just five-hundredths of a second behind the pros in 39.59, followed by the "B" team of Baldridge, Hasani Barr, Dillon Bedell and Matthew Moorer in 39.68.
            In a lightning-quick 100-meter hurdles, Baylor sophomore Ackera Nugent ran the fastest collegiate time with a 12.79, finishing behind a pair of pros in Tonea Marshall (12.36) and Chanel Brissett (12.52).
            "It feels amazing, because those are the girls I'm going to be competing against in two or three years," Nugent said. "Getting a chance and an opportunity to compete against those ladies right now is really exciting."
            Baylor nearly got the sweep in the hurdles, but Elijah Morris (13.65) and freshman Johnny Brackins (13.78) were clipped by UTA's Joel Bengtsson (13.59) in the men's 110-meter hurdles.
            Kavia Francis and Imaobong Uko went 1-2 in the 400 meters with respective times of 52.54 and 52.89 and came back two hours later to run legs on the 4x400 relay with Mariah Ayers and Gontse Morake to clock a season-best time of 3:30.21 despite extremely windy conditions.
            "I thought the ladies ran really well," Ford said. "You don't have Aaliyah (Miller) on there and still ran almost two seconds faster."
            It would have been a quick turnaround for Miller, the 2021 NCAA Indoor national champion in the 800 meters. Running in the meet's penultimate event, she was the first collegian with a season-best time of 2:05.55 in a race that featured Olympic gold medalist Athing Mu running a smooth 2:02.07.
            "I think the thing for her, of course, is she didn't run much indoors," Ford said of Miller. "And then the first meet, she ran pretty much a solo race by herself and went 2:06. But, having Athing, you have the Olympian to run with, and I thought (Miller) ran a great race, a very tactical race for her today, in the wind."
            In a blistering final heat of the women's 100 meters that included three professionals going under 11.0 seconds, Caira Pettway and Nugent went 1-2 among collegiate runners with times of 11.11 and 11.13. Pettway's PR time is just two-hundredths of a second off the school record (11.09) held by Nugent.
            Cunningham finished just off his PR with a 10.19 clocking in the men's 100, edging Texas Tech's Jacolby Shelton (10.21) and Texas A&M's Ryan Martin (10.23) as the top collegiate athlete in a field that included Nike's Raymon Ekevwo with an overall  winning time of 10.04.
            Bryce Deadmon and London, who were part of the relay pool for USA at the 2020 Olympics, finished 1-2 in the 400 meters. Trey Fields finished seventh overall and third among collegiate runners with a time of 46.12.
            Even with Fields and Moorer sitting out the final event, the Baylor men's 4x400 relay of Cunningham, Bedell, Ezekiel and Barr challenged NCAA indoor champion Texas A&M (3:02.23) and finished second in 3:04.44.
            "The men had two replacements in there, and I thought they did well," Ford said. "Overall, I thought it was a good meet. . . . It was a crazy Michael Johnson, especially with this being my first one with the alumni and everything."
            The returning alums included 2004 Olympic 400-meter gold medalist Jeremy Wariner, along with former All-Americans Tiffany Townsend and Brandon Couts.
            Baylor goes to the LSU Invitational next weekend in Baton Rouge, La, as the final tune-up for the Big 12 Outdoor Championships May 13-15 in Lubbock.

THE RUNDOWN
WACO, Texas – Baylor track and field closed the gates of the Clyde Hart Track and Field Stadium for the final time in 2022 with a bang, setting a top national mark and winning 11 collegiate championships in the process.

Chinecherem Prosper Nnamdi, who lost the national No. 1 spot to Virginia's Ethan Dabbs Friday night, came out looking for revenge and threw a 265-11 program and stadium record-setting mark, enough to take back that top spot by over two feet. According to USTFCCCA's all-time list, Prosper Nnamdi's 265-11 lands him as the No. 15 all-time thrower in Division I competition.

The men's 4x100-meter relay started things off nicely on the track, recording a collegiate first-place finish in the event. Laurenz Colbert, Isaiah Cunningham, Kamden Jackson and De'montray Callis finished their race in a quick 39.59 seconds, while Jayson Baldridge, Hasani Barr, Dillon Bedell and Matthew Moorer were right behind them in 39.68 seconds.

Mariah Ayers, Kavia Francis, Gontse Morake and Imaobong Uko put up the fifth-fastest mark in program history for the 4x400-meter relay, finishing in 3:30.21. The "B" squad of Demitra Carter, Jasmine Gryne, Cierra Wash and Briana Garcia finished in fifth.

Ackera Nugent found a familiar spot at the top of the hurdle standings, finishing her 100-meter hurdle competition in 12.79 seconds (w: 2.1). Alexis Duncan finished in fifth, and Kennedy Bailey followed in sixth.

Francis and Uko finished first and second, respectively, in the women's 400 meters. Francis' 52.54 is a new personal-best, while Uko's 52.89 is the fastest that she has ran in her time at Baylor.

Caira Pettway got a collegiate championship from her 11.11-second finish (w: 3.2) in the 100-meter dash. Pettway moved into the third spot all-time at Baylor in the event two weeks ago in Bryan-College Station, and this PR moves her just two-hundredths of a second away from being tied as the fastest sprinter in program history. Nugent, the current program record holder, finished in second after 11.13, and Sydney Washington was fourth in 11.32.

In the men's 100, Cunningham finished in a blistering 10.19 seconds (w: 1.9), just shy of his personal best, to secure the collegiate gold in the event. Colbert ran a 10.27 to match his previous PR ran two weeks ago to finish in fourth, while Callis finished in fifth.

Aaliyah Miller took the No. 1 collegiate spot in the women's 800 meters, only trailing 2020 Olympic gold medalist Athing Mu. Miller recorded a season-best 2:05.55 in the event, while Taylor Whitfield and Hayden Gold finished back-to-back in eighth and ninth place, respectively.

The men's 4x400 recorded a second-place finish, as Cunningham, Bedell, Nathaniel Ezekiel and Barr finished the race in 3:04.44.

The women's 4x100, comprised of Duncan, Pettway, Washington and Francis finished in 44.52 for a silver medal in the event.

Elijah Morris recorded a barely NCAA wind-legal (3.7) 13.65 mark in the 110-meter hurdles for a new personal-best, good enough to move to No. 5 on Baylor's all-time list. Johnny Brackins, moments after his sixth-place finish in the triple jump, finished the race in 13.78 seconds for the bronze medal.

Howard Fields III finished third among collegians in the 400 meters, putting up a 46.12 in the race. Bedell finished in fourth with 46.23 and Barr in fifth in 46.26 seconds.

In the field, Cole Hardan threw for a sixth-place 59-6 ¼ in the shot put, and Koi Johnson finished the triple jump in fourth place with a 42-2 ¼ jump.

For Baylor's complete results from the Michael Johnson Invitational, visit DeltaTiming's website.

Up next, the Bears head to Baton Rouge, La., for the LSU Invitational on April 30 to close the regular season.

For the latest news on the Baylor track and field team all season long, follow its official Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts: @BaylorTrack.

HIGHLIGHTS

Laurenz Colbert, Isaiah Cunningham, Kamden Jackson and De'montray Callis won gold in the men's 4x100-meter relay.
Kavia Francis and Imaobong Uko both recorded collegiate PRs in the 400 meters.
Caira Pettway improved her personal-best to 11.11 in the 100-meter dash to secure the collegiate gold.
Isaiah Cunningham smoked a 10.19 in the men's 100 meters to win the race.
Aaliyah Miller finished the 800 meters with a season-best 2:05.55.
Mariah Ayers, Kavia Francis, Gontse Morake and Imaobong Uko moved to No. 5 all-time at Baylor for their 3:30.21 finish in the 4x400.

STAT OF THE MEET
15 – All-time ranking of Chinecherem Prosper Nnamdi in Division I collegiate javelin competition.

TOP QUOTE
Michael Ford on the team's performance…
"Crazy Michael Johnson Invitational, especially with this being my first one with the alumni and everything else and trying to run it with Lucy (Reed). But I think overall, we had an awesome track meet. I think we still have to stay healthy because we got a couple people banged-up today. But, I think once we get back healthy and have one more track meet and get a week off before conference, I think we'll be ready to go."

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