Hawkeye Fan Shop — A Black & Gold Store | 24 Hawkeyes to Watch 2017-18 | Hawk Talk Monthly — February 2018 | Track & Field Notebook
THIS WEEK
The University of Iowa track and field team travels to the Iowa State Classic in Ames, Iowa, and Tyson Invitational, hosted by Arkansas this weekend. The Iowa State Classic begins Friday at 11 a.m. (CT) and resumes Saturday at 11 a.m. inside the Lied Recreation Center, while the Tyson Invite is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. on Friday and Saturday inside the Randal Tyson Track Center.
FOLLOW ALONG
Fans can follow the meet on the live results page at hawkeyesports.com/tracklive. Results will also be posted on the team’s official twitter account @iowaxc_tf.
HAWKEYES ARE NATIONALLY RANKED
The University of Iowa men’s and women’s track and field teams are ranked in the latest United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) National Rankings, released Feb. 5. The men are ranked 29th in the nation, while the women are ranked 27th.
Regionally, men are ranked second in the midwest region while the women are fifth.
GUILLORY NAMED B1G ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Junior Briana Guillory won the Big Ten Track Athlete of the Week for the second time this season after setting two personal bests at the Frank Sevigne Husker Invitational over the weekend. Guillory ran lifetime bests in the 200 meters (23.26) and 400 meters (52.57) on her way to sweeping the events and claiming the top spot in the conference. Guillory is the first women in program history to win multiple conference awards in a season.
Guillory is fifth in the nation in the 400 meters and 12th in the 200 meters. In addition, she improved to third in school history in the 400 meters and second in the 200 meters behind senior Brittany Brown.
BIG TEN LEADERS
The Hawkeyes lead the Big Ten in six events in 2018.
- Junior Briana Guillory: 400 Meters (52.95); 200 Meters (23.26)
- Junior Mar’yea Harris: 400 Meters (45.95)
- Junior Chris Douglas: 60 Meter Hurdles (7.76)
- Men’s 4×400 meter relay: 3:07.54
- Senior Jahisha Thomas: Triple Jump (13.11m; 43 feet, 1/4 inches)
NCAA LEADERS
Iowa has seven athletes represented in four events in the NCAA top 10, according to TFRRS.com.
- Junior Mar’yea Harris: 400 meters (3rd)
- Junior Briana Guillory: 400 meters (5th)
- Men’s 4×400 meter Relay (9th)
- Junior Chris Douglas: 60 meter hurdles (9th)
HAWKEYES LOADED AT 600M
The men’s 600 meter group has packed the program’s all-time top-10list following the Meyo Invitational. Five of the 10 athletes listed are currently on the roster. These athletes include Carter Lilly (2nd), Mar’yea Harris (3rd), Austin Lietz (4th), Noah Larrison (9th), and Ryan Dorman (10th).
In addition, nine of the top 10times have been recorded in the past eight years.
AVANT IN RARE COMPANY
Freshman Kyara Avant set another personal best at the Husker Invitational of Feb. 3. Avant ran a lifetime best and team-leading 7.48 in the 60-meters to move to fifth in school history. Avant is ranked seventh in the conference, is one of two freshmen in the conference’s top 10, and one of three underclassmen in the top 10.
THE THROW GOES ON
After breaking the shot put record two weeks in a row, sophomore Laulauga Tausaga broke the weight throw record at the Meyo Invitational. Tausaga tied her personal best of 19.15 meters two consecutive weeks and broke through with a throw of 19.93 meters (65 feet, 4 inches).
Tausaga now owns school records in the indoor shot put, discus, and weight throw. She ranks eighth in the Big Ten in the shot put and ninth in the weight throw.
MIDDLE DISTANCE MADNESS
The Hawkeyes accumulated 18 personal bests across the men’s and women’s 400 meters, 600 meters, and 800 meters at the Meyo and Husker Invites Feb. 2-3.
The women had personal bests from Briana Guillory (400 meters), Sheridan Champe (400 meters), Sommer Sharpe (400, 600 meters), Sarah Plock (400 meters), Kylie Welch (400 meters), Talia Buss (400 meters), Shelby West (400 meters), Antonise Christian (400 meters), Tria Simmons (800 meters), Jenny Kimbro (800 meters), Mallory King (600 meters), Tia Saunders (600 meters), and Addie Swanson (600 meters).
The men saw lifetime bests by Chris Thompson (400, 600 meters), Bradford Garron (400 meters), Raymonte Dow (400 meters), Mar’yea Harris (600 meters), and Matt Manternach (600 meters).
MELCHERT PASSES WIECZOREK
Senior Michael Melchert passed former Iowa track and field coach and athlete Larry Wieczorek on Iowa’s all-time mile list at No. 4 at the Meyo Invitational. Melchert ran 4:04.32 to pass Wieczorek’s 4:04.40 on his way to a sixth place finish in the event.
Melchert is behind Adam Jones, Ed DeLashmutt, and school-record holder Jeff Thode. Melchert ranks seventh in the conference.
ROSTER BREAKDOWN
Iowa has 107 athletes on its roster in 2018. There are 38 freshmen, 31 sophomores, 21 juniors, and 17 seniors. Of the 107 student-athletes, 40 are from Iowa followed by 19 from Illinois. The team also has seven international athletes.
COUNTING CURRENT ALL-TIME HAWKEYES
The men have 40 current athletes in Iowa’s indoor all-time top 10, led by school-record holders Mar’yea Harris, (400-meters, 1,600-meter relay), Carter Lilly (800-meters, Distance medley relay), Will Dougherty (heptathlon), DeJuan Frye (1,600-meter relay, Distance medley relay), Collin Hofacker (1,600-meter relay) and Matt Manternach (Distance medley relay).
The women have 35 athletes in the top-10 and five school record holders on the roster including Brittany Brown (200 meters), Jahisha Thomas (long jump, triple jump), Briana Guillory (1,600-meter relay), and Laulauga Tausaga (shot put, weight throw).
BROWN, HARRIS NAMED PRESEASON ALL-AMERICANS
Senior Brittany Brown (200 meters) and junior Mar’yea Harris (400 meters) were named 2018 Preseason All-Americans by FloTrack.
Brown, a native of Upland, California, owns the 200-meter school record indoor and outdoor and is tied for the 100-meter record. Brown won Big Ten titles in the 200 meters during the indoor and outdoor seasons and went on to finish fifth at the NCAA Indoor championships with a time of 22.92.
Harris, a native of Auburn, Washington, holds the indoor 400-meter school record and placed runner-up in the 400-meters at the Big Ten Indoor Championships. Harris was part of the 1,600-meter relay that broke the indoor and outdoor school records and placed fifth and third at the NCAA Indoor and Outdoor Championships, respectively.
Brown and Harris join Ohio State’s Nick Gray as the only male or female representatives of the Big Ten in the 200 or 400 meters.
NEXT ON THE BLOCK
The Hawkeyes head to their final tune-up before the Big Ten Indoor Championships with the Alex Wilson Invitational on Feb. 17.
