Friday, April 19
Waco, Texas
Baylor
vs
Michael Johnson Invitational
T&F Hosts Michael Johnson Invitational
4/18/2024 1:38:00 PM | Track & Field
Bears welcome 22 schools to the Clyde Hart Track and Field Stadium
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
Three weeks away from hosting the Big 12 Outdoor Championship, Baylor will get "another tune-up" with the two-day Michael Johnson Invitational that begins Friday at Clyde Hart Track & Field Stadium.
Third-year head coach Michael Ford said "it's a little nerve-wracking at times," hosting 22 schools for a home meet, including Big 12 rivals TCU and Texas Tech.
"I love to see the good crowds. We always have a good crowd for (the Michael Johnson Invitational)," Ford said. "For us, it's just another tune-up, getting ready for Big 12. So, we'll try to run as much as we can for the locals to see a lot of our student-athletes. And then, it's almost like a sad time, too, because it's technically (the seniors) last home meet. It's always good to honor the senior group."
That group includes Kamden Jackson, who is part of a 4x100-meter relay that ranks eighth nationally with a time of 39.19 that it ran in the first home meet at last month's Clyde Hart Classic. Jackson and juniors Laurenz Colbert and De'montray Callis were part of the relay that placed fifth nationally two years ago with a time of 38.99.
"I feel like we have a good shot at winning or placing high at conference and even placing really high at nationals," Colbert said. "Since we're more developed and we have good chemistry . . . it just makes us a really good team and better than most because we have really good communication skills and we have a real friendship between each one of us."
Sophomore Riquan Graham is the fourth member of a relay that expects to end the season at the NCAA Outdoor Championship in Eugene, Ore.
"We've been running with the same relay teams (since our) freshman year," Colbert said. "And then, Quan makes us just as fast as (our) freshman year, but even faster since he's a part of our team. it just makes everybody do their part and makes us a really good team, to be honest."
Also ranked high, the women's 4x100 relay of Tiriah Kelly, Imaobong Uko, Alexis Brown and Michaela Francois won the Clyde Hart Classic with a season-best time of 43.93. A second-year transfer from Florida, Brown is third in the country in the long jump with a Baylor-record mark of 21 feet, 11 inches.
"On the ladies' side, it's pretty much a whole new group," Ford said, "but they've just meshed really well together. And we've been doing a little bit more handoffs work I practice."
A returning bronze medalist in the 400-meter hurdles and six-time All-American, Nathanel Ezekiel was also third at last week's Tom Jones Memorial Invitational in Florida that produced the top five times in the nation. But he is sitting out his race specialty this weekend and will only run in Saturday's 4x400 relay with Jackson, Colbert and Demar Francis.
"This year, we're kind of monitoring his races and (he's) not running the 400 hurdles as much, not running the 400 as much or the relay," Ford said. "We'll hopefully go back and run maybe a 400 hurdles (next week) at Arizona. We're just trying to mind his races. I think he's maturing, too. When he came here, he was only 18 years old. So, he's still pretty young. But if everything goes right, he'll have another long season."
The men's and women's 400 hurdles will be the first running events at 5:30 p.m. Friday, while the meet kicks off with the women's hammer throw at 11 a.m. and the men's pole vault at 12 noon. Live results can be found at Delta Timing.
WACO, Texas – Baylor track and field is back home on Friday and Saturday with the Michael Johnson Invitational at the Clyde Hart Track and Field Stadium on the banks of the Brazos River.
The women's hammer throw competition starts the meet on Friday morning at 11 a.m. in the throws area adjacent to Touchdown Alley, behind the Hart Stadium grandstands. Saturday begins at the same time with the women's javelin throw competition on the infield of the stadium.
The Michael Johnson Invitational is scheduled to end with the men's 4x400-meter relay around 4:40 p.m. CT on Saturday evening.
Head coach Michael Ford will honor the senior class on Saturday morning beginning at 10:30 a.m.
Live results will be provided online by Delta Timing.
LAST TIME OUT
The Bears competed at the Tom Jones Memorial Invitational in Gainesville, Florida in a meet that saw one event win for the Bears. Molly Haywood vaulted to a new personal-best outdoor mark of 14-4 ¾ to collect the first win of her college career. Nathaniel Ezekiel took third in the men's 400-meter hurdles, but not before breaking the program record. A small distance crew also made the trek to the Bryan Clay Invitational in Azusa, Calif., where Ryan Hodge became the third-best Bear to ever run the 10,000 meters at 30:02.
OH, HOW THEY'VE FALLEN
The Bears have toppled three program records in the first four weeks of the outdoor season. Alexis Brown tabbed a 21-11 at the Clyde Hart Classic to take the long jump record, Chinecherem Prosper Nnamdi threw for 271-8 at the African Games to win the javelin title with the record and Nathaniel Ezekiel improved his nearly two-year-old mark in the 400-meter hurdles to a 48.29 at the Tom Jones Memorial Invitational in Florida.
WELCOME TO WACOTOWN
BU will be one of 23 total teams competing at the Clyde Hart Track and Field Stadium over the two-day meet. Three top 25 squads will compete on the men's side in Texas Tech at No. 5, Oklahoma State at No. 11 and Baylor at No. 20, while the women's competition will feature four ranked teams of Texas Tech at No. 9, Nebraska at No. 12, Oklahoma State at No. 14 and Baylor at No. 25.
OUR NEWEST FIXER UPPER
Debuting the newly renovated Beynon Hobart BSS 2000 track surface, the Clyde Hart Track and Field Stadium will host two regular season meets across March and April before hosting the 2024 Big 12 Outdoor Track and Field Championship meet on May 9-11. The stadium is in its 10th season and holds 5,000 spectators and participants with grandstands on both sides of the track.
UP IN THE RANKINGS
The USTFCCCA Ratings Index featured both men's and women's track and field squads in the top 25 for the first time in 2024 on Tuesday, with the men rising 14 spots to No. 20 and the women at No. 25. Among Big 12 track programs, Baylor is one of five schools with both squads in the top 25. Moving over to mark rankings, 33 Baylor entries are top 48 individually in the west or top 24 in the relays and currently boast qualified marks to the NCAA West Preliminary Rounds in Fayetteville, Ark. From there, the top 12 finishers will have a spot at the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Ore.
To stay up to date throughout the year on all things Baylor track and field, follow the team on Facebook, X and Instagram: @BaylorTrack.
Baylor Bear Insider
Three weeks away from hosting the Big 12 Outdoor Championship, Baylor will get "another tune-up" with the two-day Michael Johnson Invitational that begins Friday at Clyde Hart Track & Field Stadium.
Third-year head coach Michael Ford said "it's a little nerve-wracking at times," hosting 22 schools for a home meet, including Big 12 rivals TCU and Texas Tech.
"I love to see the good crowds. We always have a good crowd for (the Michael Johnson Invitational)," Ford said. "For us, it's just another tune-up, getting ready for Big 12. So, we'll try to run as much as we can for the locals to see a lot of our student-athletes. And then, it's almost like a sad time, too, because it's technically (the seniors) last home meet. It's always good to honor the senior group."
That group includes Kamden Jackson, who is part of a 4x100-meter relay that ranks eighth nationally with a time of 39.19 that it ran in the first home meet at last month's Clyde Hart Classic. Jackson and juniors Laurenz Colbert and De'montray Callis were part of the relay that placed fifth nationally two years ago with a time of 38.99.
"I feel like we have a good shot at winning or placing high at conference and even placing really high at nationals," Colbert said. "Since we're more developed and we have good chemistry . . . it just makes us a really good team and better than most because we have really good communication skills and we have a real friendship between each one of us."
Sophomore Riquan Graham is the fourth member of a relay that expects to end the season at the NCAA Outdoor Championship in Eugene, Ore.
"We've been running with the same relay teams (since our) freshman year," Colbert said. "And then, Quan makes us just as fast as (our) freshman year, but even faster since he's a part of our team. it just makes everybody do their part and makes us a really good team, to be honest."
Also ranked high, the women's 4x100 relay of Tiriah Kelly, Imaobong Uko, Alexis Brown and Michaela Francois won the Clyde Hart Classic with a season-best time of 43.93. A second-year transfer from Florida, Brown is third in the country in the long jump with a Baylor-record mark of 21 feet, 11 inches.
"On the ladies' side, it's pretty much a whole new group," Ford said, "but they've just meshed really well together. And we've been doing a little bit more handoffs work I practice."
A returning bronze medalist in the 400-meter hurdles and six-time All-American, Nathanel Ezekiel was also third at last week's Tom Jones Memorial Invitational in Florida that produced the top five times in the nation. But he is sitting out his race specialty this weekend and will only run in Saturday's 4x400 relay with Jackson, Colbert and Demar Francis.
"This year, we're kind of monitoring his races and (he's) not running the 400 hurdles as much, not running the 400 as much or the relay," Ford said. "We'll hopefully go back and run maybe a 400 hurdles (next week) at Arizona. We're just trying to mind his races. I think he's maturing, too. When he came here, he was only 18 years old. So, he's still pretty young. But if everything goes right, he'll have another long season."
The men's and women's 400 hurdles will be the first running events at 5:30 p.m. Friday, while the meet kicks off with the women's hammer throw at 11 a.m. and the men's pole vault at 12 noon. Live results can be found at Delta Timing.
WACO, Texas – Baylor track and field is back home on Friday and Saturday with the Michael Johnson Invitational at the Clyde Hart Track and Field Stadium on the banks of the Brazos River.
The women's hammer throw competition starts the meet on Friday morning at 11 a.m. in the throws area adjacent to Touchdown Alley, behind the Hart Stadium grandstands. Saturday begins at the same time with the women's javelin throw competition on the infield of the stadium.
The Michael Johnson Invitational is scheduled to end with the men's 4x400-meter relay around 4:40 p.m. CT on Saturday evening.
Head coach Michael Ford will honor the senior class on Saturday morning beginning at 10:30 a.m.
Live results will be provided online by Delta Timing.
LAST TIME OUT
The Bears competed at the Tom Jones Memorial Invitational in Gainesville, Florida in a meet that saw one event win for the Bears. Molly Haywood vaulted to a new personal-best outdoor mark of 14-4 ¾ to collect the first win of her college career. Nathaniel Ezekiel took third in the men's 400-meter hurdles, but not before breaking the program record. A small distance crew also made the trek to the Bryan Clay Invitational in Azusa, Calif., where Ryan Hodge became the third-best Bear to ever run the 10,000 meters at 30:02.
OH, HOW THEY'VE FALLEN
The Bears have toppled three program records in the first four weeks of the outdoor season. Alexis Brown tabbed a 21-11 at the Clyde Hart Classic to take the long jump record, Chinecherem Prosper Nnamdi threw for 271-8 at the African Games to win the javelin title with the record and Nathaniel Ezekiel improved his nearly two-year-old mark in the 400-meter hurdles to a 48.29 at the Tom Jones Memorial Invitational in Florida.
WELCOME TO WACOTOWN
BU will be one of 23 total teams competing at the Clyde Hart Track and Field Stadium over the two-day meet. Three top 25 squads will compete on the men's side in Texas Tech at No. 5, Oklahoma State at No. 11 and Baylor at No. 20, while the women's competition will feature four ranked teams of Texas Tech at No. 9, Nebraska at No. 12, Oklahoma State at No. 14 and Baylor at No. 25.
OUR NEWEST FIXER UPPER
Debuting the newly renovated Beynon Hobart BSS 2000 track surface, the Clyde Hart Track and Field Stadium will host two regular season meets across March and April before hosting the 2024 Big 12 Outdoor Track and Field Championship meet on May 9-11. The stadium is in its 10th season and holds 5,000 spectators and participants with grandstands on both sides of the track.
UP IN THE RANKINGS
The USTFCCCA Ratings Index featured both men's and women's track and field squads in the top 25 for the first time in 2024 on Tuesday, with the men rising 14 spots to No. 20 and the women at No. 25. Among Big 12 track programs, Baylor is one of five schools with both squads in the top 25. Moving over to mark rankings, 33 Baylor entries are top 48 individually in the west or top 24 in the relays and currently boast qualified marks to the NCAA West Preliminary Rounds in Fayetteville, Ark. From there, the top 12 finishers will have a spot at the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Ore.
To stay up to date throughout the year on all things Baylor track and field, follow the team on Facebook, X and Instagram: @BaylorTrack.
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