2011 NCAA Indoors: Men's Recap
2011 NCAA Indoors: Men's Recap
NCAA MEN'S RECAP
by Ryan Craven
The 2011 Men’s NCAA Indoor track & field championships provided an astonishing number of great performances and even better competition as the finest athletes in the country all met this weekend at College Station, TX. Here’s a look at the best performances of the weekend.
5000m
Friday night’s 5000m run set the tone for the meet on the distance side as Iona junior Leonard Korir laid the hammer down to beat perennial favorite Sam Chelanga. Together they led a group of 9 men under the 13:40 mark. In fact, it took 13:37 just to score. It’s scary to think that being a 13:30’s guy indoors doesn’t even put you in the hunt anymore. What’s more impressive is that outside of Chelanga and 13th place finisher David Adams of Nebraska, the entire field was comprised of juniors and sophomores. Look for some incredible times from this group of athletes come outdoors.
200m
The 200m dash was an unfortunate victim of the NCAA indoor track & field format. What should have been a great moment of competition between Oklahoma’s Rakieem Salaam and Florida State’s Maurice Mitchell ending up being a head to head time trial that saw Salaam come out on top. Both athletes ran a stellar 20.41 which when broken down further separated the two competitors by a mere .002 of a second. One can’t help but wonder if the race could ever turn out the same way with both athletes battling it out side by side, struggling for every last inch as they watch their competitor from the corner of their eye. As it stands however, the 200m still showcased many great performances as six men dipped under the 21-second mark.
DMR
The Men’s DMR saw many surprises and upsets as BYU eventually took home the crown behind dominant performances from junior Mile Batty and company. Batty fought hard up front as two of the Big Ten’s finest milers ran stunning splits of 3:53.29 for Andy Bayer and 3:54.6 for Ben Blankenship as they attempted to reach the front. Behind them, the other anchors ran a string of sub 4 performances that proved futile in the face of the leaders. All three teams broke 9:30 on their way to all-American finishes. The Ducks, who were favored to win the event as they came in with the 2nd best collegiate relay of all time (9:26.78), struggled home to tenth place as Matt Centrowitz lost a shoe at the final exchange. BYU took advantage of the situation and really put this one away on their way to a third place finish in the final team standings.
Mile
One of the most highly anticipated events of the meet, the mile lived up to nothing short of its hype as 10 of the country’s finest took the line. This indoor season saw a stunning twenty two men break the elusive four minute barrier, many of who seemingly came out of nowhere in doing so. Yet even with a fierce field of competitors, the race lacked one key ingredient: a favorite. Collegiate record holder German Fernandez missed qualifying for the event and was forced to watch on as others scorched around the very same track where he solidified himself with a jaw dropping 3:55.02 just a few years ago. Many others had pursued a spot on the distance medley team, opting to avoid the volatile event all together. Even the king of conversion, sophomore Patrick Casey, had failed to advance to the final. The stage was set for someone to step up and become the next emerging star of track and field. That someone was Miles Batty. Hot off of his amazing DMR anchor leg, Batty spent the first lap of the race just off the shoulder of leader Erik Van Ingen who brought it through in a fair 60.7 seconds. From there, Tulsa’s Chris O’Hare took to the lead and kept the pace right on the edge of four minutes. Over the next 800 meters, Batty continued to wait patiently as Ryan Foster and SEC champion Dumisane Hlaselo positioned themselves for the final laps. With less than 400 to go, Foster made a powerful move to the front with O’Hare doing all he could to stay with him. Batty remained patient, waiting until the final straight to make his move and pull ahead for the victory. The stealthy junior has separated himself from a crowd of 22 and put himself on another level entirely. At the end of the day, forget about his impressive PRs…Miles Batty can straight up race.
400m
Texas A&M put on a show for hometown fans as Demetrius Pinder and Tabarie Henry each won their respective heats in the final of the men’s 400-meter dash. While Tabarie pulled off a respectable fourth place overall after getting tangled with an overzealous Kirani James, it was Demetrius Pinder that stunned the crowd with his brilliant run of 45.33 in the second heat. Coming out of the final turn, Torrin Lawrence of Georgia tossed back his head in surrender as Demetrius overtook him to run away with both a win and a new facility record. The senior was a real crowd pleaser for all of the hometown Aggie fans and a crucial part of the A&M’s runner up finish.
60m
Florida Sophomore Jeff Demps erased any doubt left after his shaky prelim with a bold performance in Saturday’s final. Michael Granger was hot off the line, but Demps reeled him in with every step until eventually out-leaning the Ole Miss sophomore. With his victory, Demps furthered the Gators chances of winning it all.
800m
The 800 proved to be an exciting affair as the nation’s fastest tacticians went to work. Potential title threats Cas Loxsom, Cory Primm, Zach Mellon and Elijah Greer had all missed qualifying for the final, leaving opportunity to for a fresh face to break into the spotlight. At the break, it was Michael Preble hoping for some of the same hometown magic that had helped his fellow Aggies on to victory. He brought the race through in a solid 53.6 as Samoei sat on the rail behind him with Harun Abda and Zach Beth both riding on the outside of lane one. Just after 400 meters, Michael Rutt of Connecticut nearly got tangled while sitting mid pack. After the scuffle, Rutt had clearly had enough of the jostling and wasted no time making his way to the front. He held his lead with no regard for the runners behind him content to kick. Erik Sowinski of Iowa briefly claimed the lead but Rutt refused to relinquish it. All of his effort was wasted however as the crafty veteran Fred Samoei patiently passed on the inside to take Rutt to the line. Both athletes ran incredible efforts and put on a great show for the crowd.
3000m
Similar to the men’s mile, the 3k was essentially anyone’s race to win. Unlike the mile however, this race was stacked with favorite after favorite in what became one of the most memorable races of the meet. Diego Estrada of Northern Arizona took on the early pacing duties as Centrowitz and Bayer follow closely behind. Not even 2 minutes into the race, the always-intriguing German Fernandez dropped out of the race with a loose shoe. Fernandez cheered on teammate Tom Farrell before stepping off of the track. Not even a quarter of the way in, one of the races biggest question marks had been answered, but several others still remaining. Heading into the mile, Chelanga began to move his way up through the crowd that spilled out into lane three. Not far behind him was Iona’s Leonard Korir fresh off of his surprise victory from the night before in the 5k. Right as the athletes hit the mile, Korir burst into the lead. This began a series of lead changes and shuffling through the pack that must have been simply unnerving to everyone in the field. Shortly after Korir made his move, the ever-bold Blankenship staked his claim at the lead. Soon there after, Matt Centrowitz took his stab at the group. Korir who had slid way back after his brief stay in the lead summoned another massive effort to get towards the front. Then Andrew Bayer moved up confidently, ready to show the world his newly acquired 3:53 caliber closing speed. One after another they flew into the lead only to be swallowed back up by the chase pack. With three laps to go, virtually the entire field was still in the race. The competitors still spilled out into lanes two and three, constantly trying to find their place in a sea of flying elbows and unforgiving spike gashes. Suddenly Blankenship flies back into the lead. By the bell, he looks ready to roll as he tows along NC State’s Ryan Hill. The pack has started falling off one by one with several still licking their chomps waiting to see what happens next when suddenly Elliott Heath springs to life. Showing off the incredible surge of speed that was absent in Friday night’s 5k, Heath slammed the gate and never looked back as he powered away from the field. Blankenship maintained his blistering kick to hold off Bayer and a fast closing Centrowitz. Korir somehow managed to hang on for 6th after all of his gutsy moves. Sam Chelanga meanwhile placed in the double digits for the first time in years. It seems that everyone coming across the line was locked into an epic battle with those around them that on any other day might as well have been a race for the title. All together, this race was host to numerous spectacular performances that could have played out any number of ways. On this day though, the title belonged to Elliott Heath, who after a disappointing 5k, finally has the title of national champion added to his resume.
4x400
The men’s 1600m relay closed out the meet in exciting fashion as Texas A&M again reaped the benefits of their home crowd. The first exchange was tight in the final heat of the race, but even then it was down to just three teams. As the baton was passed to Demetrius Pinder however, A&M soon found themselves in a race of their own. After waiting patiently for Horatio Williams of LSU and Marek Niit of Arkansas to wear each other out, Pinder took off after 200m as his competitors faded hard. The senior split a remarkable 44.94 to separate the Aggies from the rest of the field. The team never looked back as Bryan Miller and Tabarie Henry controlled a gap that reach 20-30 meters at some points to win by over 1 second. The performance was inspired and the fans celebrated as it launched the Aggies into second place.
by Ryan Craven
The 2011 Men’s NCAA Indoor track & field championships provided an astonishing number of great performances and even better competition as the finest athletes in the country all met this weekend at College Station, TX. Here’s a look at the best performances of the weekend.
5000m
Friday night’s 5000m run set the tone for the meet on the distance side as Iona junior Leonard Korir laid the hammer down to beat perennial favorite Sam Chelanga. Together they led a group of 9 men under the 13:40 mark. In fact, it took 13:37 just to score. It’s scary to think that being a 13:30’s guy indoors doesn’t even put you in the hunt anymore. What’s more impressive is that outside of Chelanga and 13th place finisher David Adams of Nebraska, the entire field was comprised of juniors and sophomores. Look for some incredible times from this group of athletes come outdoors.
200m
The 200m dash was an unfortunate victim of the NCAA indoor track & field format. What should have been a great moment of competition between Oklahoma’s Rakieem Salaam and Florida State’s Maurice Mitchell ending up being a head to head time trial that saw Salaam come out on top. Both athletes ran a stellar 20.41 which when broken down further separated the two competitors by a mere .002 of a second. One can’t help but wonder if the race could ever turn out the same way with both athletes battling it out side by side, struggling for every last inch as they watch their competitor from the corner of their eye. As it stands however, the 200m still showcased many great performances as six men dipped under the 21-second mark.
DMR
The Men’s DMR saw many surprises and upsets as BYU eventually took home the crown behind dominant performances from junior Mile Batty and company. Batty fought hard up front as two of the Big Ten’s finest milers ran stunning splits of 3:53.29 for Andy Bayer and 3:54.6 for Ben Blankenship as they attempted to reach the front. Behind them, the other anchors ran a string of sub 4 performances that proved futile in the face of the leaders. All three teams broke 9:30 on their way to all-American finishes. The Ducks, who were favored to win the event as they came in with the 2nd best collegiate relay of all time (9:26.78), struggled home to tenth place as Matt Centrowitz lost a shoe at the final exchange. BYU took advantage of the situation and really put this one away on their way to a third place finish in the final team standings.
Mile
One of the most highly anticipated events of the meet, the mile lived up to nothing short of its hype as 10 of the country’s finest took the line. This indoor season saw a stunning twenty two men break the elusive four minute barrier, many of who seemingly came out of nowhere in doing so. Yet even with a fierce field of competitors, the race lacked one key ingredient: a favorite. Collegiate record holder German Fernandez missed qualifying for the event and was forced to watch on as others scorched around the very same track where he solidified himself with a jaw dropping 3:55.02 just a few years ago. Many others had pursued a spot on the distance medley team, opting to avoid the volatile event all together. Even the king of conversion, sophomore Patrick Casey, had failed to advance to the final. The stage was set for someone to step up and become the next emerging star of track and field. That someone was Miles Batty. Hot off of his amazing DMR anchor leg, Batty spent the first lap of the race just off the shoulder of leader Erik Van Ingen who brought it through in a fair 60.7 seconds. From there, Tulsa’s Chris O’Hare took to the lead and kept the pace right on the edge of four minutes. Over the next 800 meters, Batty continued to wait patiently as Ryan Foster and SEC champion Dumisane Hlaselo positioned themselves for the final laps. With less than 400 to go, Foster made a powerful move to the front with O’Hare doing all he could to stay with him. Batty remained patient, waiting until the final straight to make his move and pull ahead for the victory. The stealthy junior has separated himself from a crowd of 22 and put himself on another level entirely. At the end of the day, forget about his impressive PRs…Miles Batty can straight up race.
400m
Texas A&M put on a show for hometown fans as Demetrius Pinder and Tabarie Henry each won their respective heats in the final of the men’s 400-meter dash. While Tabarie pulled off a respectable fourth place overall after getting tangled with an overzealous Kirani James, it was Demetrius Pinder that stunned the crowd with his brilliant run of 45.33 in the second heat. Coming out of the final turn, Torrin Lawrence of Georgia tossed back his head in surrender as Demetrius overtook him to run away with both a win and a new facility record. The senior was a real crowd pleaser for all of the hometown Aggie fans and a crucial part of the A&M’s runner up finish.
60m
Florida Sophomore Jeff Demps erased any doubt left after his shaky prelim with a bold performance in Saturday’s final. Michael Granger was hot off the line, but Demps reeled him in with every step until eventually out-leaning the Ole Miss sophomore. With his victory, Demps furthered the Gators chances of winning it all.
800m
The 800 proved to be an exciting affair as the nation’s fastest tacticians went to work. Potential title threats Cas Loxsom, Cory Primm, Zach Mellon and Elijah Greer had all missed qualifying for the final, leaving opportunity to for a fresh face to break into the spotlight. At the break, it was Michael Preble hoping for some of the same hometown magic that had helped his fellow Aggies on to victory. He brought the race through in a solid 53.6 as Samoei sat on the rail behind him with Harun Abda and Zach Beth both riding on the outside of lane one. Just after 400 meters, Michael Rutt of Connecticut nearly got tangled while sitting mid pack. After the scuffle, Rutt had clearly had enough of the jostling and wasted no time making his way to the front. He held his lead with no regard for the runners behind him content to kick. Erik Sowinski of Iowa briefly claimed the lead but Rutt refused to relinquish it. All of his effort was wasted however as the crafty veteran Fred Samoei patiently passed on the inside to take Rutt to the line. Both athletes ran incredible efforts and put on a great show for the crowd.
3000m
Similar to the men’s mile, the 3k was essentially anyone’s race to win. Unlike the mile however, this race was stacked with favorite after favorite in what became one of the most memorable races of the meet. Diego Estrada of Northern Arizona took on the early pacing duties as Centrowitz and Bayer follow closely behind. Not even 2 minutes into the race, the always-intriguing German Fernandez dropped out of the race with a loose shoe. Fernandez cheered on teammate Tom Farrell before stepping off of the track. Not even a quarter of the way in, one of the races biggest question marks had been answered, but several others still remaining. Heading into the mile, Chelanga began to move his way up through the crowd that spilled out into lane three. Not far behind him was Iona’s Leonard Korir fresh off of his surprise victory from the night before in the 5k. Right as the athletes hit the mile, Korir burst into the lead. This began a series of lead changes and shuffling through the pack that must have been simply unnerving to everyone in the field. Shortly after Korir made his move, the ever-bold Blankenship staked his claim at the lead. Soon there after, Matt Centrowitz took his stab at the group. Korir who had slid way back after his brief stay in the lead summoned another massive effort to get towards the front. Then Andrew Bayer moved up confidently, ready to show the world his newly acquired 3:53 caliber closing speed. One after another they flew into the lead only to be swallowed back up by the chase pack. With three laps to go, virtually the entire field was still in the race. The competitors still spilled out into lanes two and three, constantly trying to find their place in a sea of flying elbows and unforgiving spike gashes. Suddenly Blankenship flies back into the lead. By the bell, he looks ready to roll as he tows along NC State’s Ryan Hill. The pack has started falling off one by one with several still licking their chomps waiting to see what happens next when suddenly Elliott Heath springs to life. Showing off the incredible surge of speed that was absent in Friday night’s 5k, Heath slammed the gate and never looked back as he powered away from the field. Blankenship maintained his blistering kick to hold off Bayer and a fast closing Centrowitz. Korir somehow managed to hang on for 6th after all of his gutsy moves. Sam Chelanga meanwhile placed in the double digits for the first time in years. It seems that everyone coming across the line was locked into an epic battle with those around them that on any other day might as well have been a race for the title. All together, this race was host to numerous spectacular performances that could have played out any number of ways. On this day though, the title belonged to Elliott Heath, who after a disappointing 5k, finally has the title of national champion added to his resume.
4x400
The men’s 1600m relay closed out the meet in exciting fashion as Texas A&M again reaped the benefits of their home crowd. The first exchange was tight in the final heat of the race, but even then it was down to just three teams. As the baton was passed to Demetrius Pinder however, A&M soon found themselves in a race of their own. After waiting patiently for Horatio Williams of LSU and Marek Niit of Arkansas to wear each other out, Pinder took off after 200m as his competitors faded hard. The senior split a remarkable 44.94 to separate the Aggies from the rest of the field. The team never looked back as Bryan Miller and Tabarie Henry controlled a gap that reach 20-30 meters at some points to win by over 1 second. The performance was inspired and the fans celebrated as it launched the Aggies into second place.