After five years without representation at the NCAA Track and
Field Championship meet, one of UCLA’s relay teams is about
to make a long-awaited appearance. Qualifying for nationals in both
the 4×100-meter and 4×400-meter relays, the team elected to send
only its 4x400m team to Austin, Texas. The team will face some
fierce competitors who won’t make the task of getting through
the preliminary rounds to qualify for the finals very easy.
“We are going to have to run the time that got us to this
meet,” sprints coach Tony Veney said. “We’ll have
to run as close to our best time as possible to get through the
rounds.” With a qualifying mark of 3:03.79, the Bruin squad
is ranked seventh in the nation. But UCLA has not approached that
mark in recent weeks, making it imperative that they regain their
top form in time for Thursday’s preliminaries. “Just
because a team qualifies, doesn’t mean it won’t get
burned,” Veney said. “I want to make sure the Bruins
won’t be one of those teams.” By focusing all their
energy on the 4×400-meter relay, the team has a better chance of
keeping up with the competition. “There are three or four
schools ahead of us that are really dominant,” said junior
Mario Bassani, who will likely run in the prelims for the Bruins.
“Baylor, Florida, Arizona State and LSU are running really
well right now.” The UCLA quartet likely to run in the finals
will be freshman Brandon Johnson, sophomore Craig Everhart, and
juniors Denyé Versher and Jonathan Williams. That foursome may
not be ready to challenge the Baylors of the world, but the Bruins
are confident they can secure a top-eight finish, guaranteeing the
team points. UCLA already tasted the dominance of second-ranked
Arizona State at the regional championships two weekends ago. With
two of the top five nationally ranked 400m runners on their team,
the Sun Devils asserted their dominance, taking first place for the
second consecutive year. Even Arizona State could be hard-pressed
to match Baylor, who boasts both the No. 1 and 2 nationally ranked
400m runners. Its time of 3:01.26 ranks the Baylor squad as the No.
1 team heading into nationals. UCLA’s two most powerful relay
weapons come in the form of 400m runner Everhart and 400-meter
hurdler Johnson. Everhart outran both Arizona State runners in the
400m at the regionals meet, and has the seventh-fastest time in the
nation. “(Everhart) is destroying the competition right
now,” Bassani said. “He just keeps getting better and
better.” Johnson’s first year of collegiate competition
ranks among the best in UCLA’s recent history. He finds
himself ranked second among the 400m hurdle field going into the
championships. Rounding out the members of the relay team are
Bassani and senior Nick Thornton. Versher, Thornton and Williams
qualified for nationals in the 400-meter, 800-meter and 400-meter
hurdles, respectively. What remains to be seen is which combination
of runners will compete for the Bruins in the preliminaries. The
squad of Everhart, Johnson, Bassani and Versher posted the
squad’s season-best time, but not all may be available to
compete due to their individual races. Veney expects to have to
choose between running Johnson and Williams in the prelims.
“That’s the most touchy situation,” Veney said.
“Whoever comes out of their (preliminary) races most durable
will run.” Either way, the relay team has already
accomplished more than previous Bruin squads by just getting to
nationals. The last team to compete in the relay at the NCAAs was
the 1999 team. The team claimed the national title in the
4×400-meter relay, but was the last UCLA squad to make any waves.
“It’s good after all this time, with how much talent we
have, to get to showcase it,” Williams said.
LONG-TERM HOSTS: Myer Stadium, site of this
year’s meet, and Sacramento State’s Hornet Stadium are
the two finalists to host the next three NCAA Track and Field
Championship meets, the Austin American Statesman reported Sunday.
The 2004 season will mark the first year when one venue will host
the meet for three consecutive years, as opposed to a single year.
With a three-year rotation, the NCAA hopes to establish a spectator
base similar to that of the College World Series. UCLA, USC and
Long Beach all co-sponsored an unsuccessful bid for the Home Depot
Center in Carson.
AT-LARGE BIDS: UCLA sophomore Jake Knight
received an at-large bid to compete in the shot put at nationals.
Knight was admitted into the field of competitors with a qualifying
mark of 61 feet, 9.75 inches after another competitor pulled
out.