Hawkeyes Sweep B1G 60 Hurdles and 4x400 Relays

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ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The University of Iowa track and field teams added four more championships on the second day of the 2019 Big Ten Indoor Championships in the 60-meter hurdles and the 1,600-meter relays.
 
Juniors Jenny Kimbro and Jaylan McConico earned the first wins of the day in the 60-meter hurdles. McConico won the men’s 60-meter hurdles in 7.79 seconds, and Kimbro won the women’s race in 8.29. Kimbro made history as the first Iowa female to win the 60-meter hurdles.
  
Kimbro continued her success as she led the Hawkeyes’ to their first indoor 1,600-meter relay title in Iowa history. Senior Tria Simmons ran the second leg, sophomore Aly Weum ran third, and senior Briana Guillory anchored, collectively running 3:37.58, tying Iowa’s eighth-fastest time all-time.

The women credited the men’s 1,600-meter relay for giving them the momentum after winning their championship in 3:07.46.
 
“We were sitting in the back room (before the race),” sophomore Aly Weum said. “We knew the men were out there, and we wanted to watch the race but knew the coaches would be mad. We would peek out every now and then. When the crowd got loud, we knew those were our Iowa Hawkeyes. We wanted to represent Iowa in the same way that they did, and we did it.”
 
Juniors Collin Hofacker, Antonio Woodard, and Chris Thompson ran the first three legs of the relay. When senior Mar’yea Harris received the baton, the Hawkeyes were in third place of their section. With 100 meters left in the race, Harris’ turbo kicked in and he passed Ohio State and Purdue to earn the title.
 
QUOTING HEAD COACH JOEY WOODY
“What can you say when you sweep both the men’s and women’s 4×400 relays? It’s a testament to our program. We always expect to have a great relay competing for championships and to be able to come out and win both is exciting. I can’t say enough about Jenny (Kimbro) and Tria (Simmons) this weekend. They came back after the pentathlon and were fantastic on the relay. Then there is Briana Guillory, who didn’t race a lot this year. She came back and ran four races before the relay. When called upon, she just crushed the final leg of the race. Aly Weum also had a spectacular weekend.
 
“On the men’s side with an athlete like Mar’yea, you’ve got a shot, even if it’s close. He had a lot of fire in his belly. He was able to help us defend our outdoor relay title from last year.
 
“Jaylan is a first-time Big Ten champion. He was struggling a little yesterday with his rhythm getting to the first hurdle. He came out on fire today. The hurdlers are a great crew. They came out and competed. They all support each other. Chris Douglas had a great day, it just wasn’t his day to win. Anthony Williams had the best finish he has ever had. He kept his composure and stayed focused all the way through the season.
 
“We always feel like we’re a much better outdoor program. We’re excited to finish up the indoor season, but when you’re top three or four indoors, it give you a lot of momentum going into outdoor.
 
“The shot put was an exciting competition. This is the best throws conference in the country. Laulauga (Tausaga’s) shot mark just blows your mind and Nia is a tremendous competitor. She has had an unbelievable last couple of years. They just fought for their team.”
 
B1G POINTS SCORED
The women finished third overall to tie the Hawkeyes’ best finish since 2004 before the conference expanded, in Big Ten Championship history with 80 points. They collected 10 medals, including gold medals by the 1,600-meter relay team, Kimbro in the 60-meter hurdles, Simmons in the pentathlon, and four silver medals by Kimbro in the pentathlon, Guillory in the 200 and 400 meters, and Tausaga in the shot put. Kimbro led the Hawkeyes over the weekend with the most points from an individual Hawkeyes, scoring 20.5 points. The following women scored points in their perspective events:
 
WOMEN (80 points, third place)
Jenny Kimbro, Tria Simmons, Aly Weum, Briana Guillory – 1,600-meter relay (3:37.58), 10 points
Jenny Kimbro – 60-meter hurdles (8.29), 10 points
Tria Simmons – pentathlon (4,135 points), 10 points
Jenny Kimbro – pentathlon (4,030 points), eight points
Briana Guillory – 200 meters (23.37), eight points
Briana Guillory – 400 meters (52.65), eight points
Laulauga Tausaga – shot put (17.79 meters, 58-4 1/2), eight points
Nia Britt – shot put (16.75 meters, 58-4 1/2), five points
Aubrianna Lantrip – high jump (1.73 meters, 5-8), five points
Hannah Schilb – triple jump (12.37 meters, 40-7), four points
Antonise Christian – 60 meters (7.59), two points
Aly Weum – 400 meters (55.82), one point
Amanda Carty – long jump (5.89 meters, 19-4), one point
 
The men’s team saw its best finish since 2011 with 70 points. The Hawkeyes collected nine medals, including Hofacker, Thompson, Woodard, and Harris’ 1,600-meter gold medals, McConico’s 60-meter hurdles gold medal, Karayme Bartley’s 200- and 400-meter silver medals, Chris Douglas’ 60-meter hurdles bronze medal, and Harris’ 400-meter bronze medal. The following is the complete list of men’s points scored.
 
MEN (70 points, tied for fourth)
Collin Hofacker, Antonio Woodard, Chris Thompson, Mar’yea Harris – 1,600-meter relay (3:07.46), 10 points
Jaylan McConico – 60-meter hurdles (7.79), 10 points
Karayme Bartley – 200 meters (20.67), eight points
Karayme Bartley – 400 meters (46.25), eight points
Chris Douglas – 60-meter hurdles (7.84), six  points
Mar’yea Harris – 400 meters (46.36), six points
Anthony Williams – 60-meter hurdles (7.88), five points
Antonio Woodard – 200 meters (20.98), five points
James Carter – triple jump (15.09 meters, 49-6 1/4), three points
Reno Tuufuli – shot put (18.28 meters, 59-11 3/4), three points
Austin Lietz – 600 meters (1:20.75), two points
Tysen VanDraska, Chris Thompson, Matt Manternach, Jeff Roberts – Distance Medley Relay (9:53.38), two points
Peyton Haack – heptathlon (5,201 points), one point
Wayne Lawrence Jr. – 400 meters (47.96), one point
 
ALL-TIME MOVEMENT
Three Hawkeyes improved their all-time record marks including juniors Tausaga, Nia Britt, and Karayme Bartley. Tausaga broke her shot put record by 1.09 meters, expanding her mark to 17.79 meters (58-feet, 4 ½-inches), Bartley shattered Justin Austin’s 200-meter record from 2011 (20.80) in 20.67.
 
Bartley and Britt improved their second-ranked marks in the 400 meters (46.25) and shot put, respectively. Britt’s new personal best broke Tausaga’s previous record of 16.70 meters (54-9 1/2) with a distance of 16.75 meters (54-11 1/2) with her second throw. Tausaga answered on her fourth throw.
 
PERSONAL RECORDS
Anthony Williams and Peyton Haack ran their personal-best times in the 60-meter hurdles (7.88) and 1,000 meters (2:42.50), respectively.
 
UP NEXT FOR THE HAWKEYES
The Hawkeyes next stop is Birmingham, Alabama, from March 8-9 for the NCAA Indoor Championships. The final NCAA qualifiers list will be posted on NCAA.org by Tuesday, February 26 at 9 p.m. (CT).
 
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFICATIONS
Qualification to the championships is based on the descending-order list for the season and adhering to the qualifying regulations/criteria published on www.NCAA.org. For each men’s individual event contested, including the heptathlon, the top 16 declared student-athletes will be accepted into the competition. For each women’s individual event contested, including the pentathlon, the top 16 declared student-athletes will be accepted into the competition. For each relay event contested, the top 12 declared relay teams will be accepted into the competition. The stated maximums are absolute and will not be extended as a result of ties.