By Lindsay Cash
Reporter
Through only the second outdoor meet, Baylor’s track and field squad has claimed 13 events, broken two school records and had 19 performances in the top 15 in the NCAA. At the Bobby Lane Invitational at the University of Texas-Arlington last weekend, Baylor grabbed nine titles.
Now sitting atop the NCAA, freshman Tiffani McReynolds took full advantage of her time in Arlington.
McReynolds is a continual standout in the action; she landed the NCAA’s fastest time in the 100-meter hurdles. She broke her week-old record and holds the nationwide record, her time being 12.91. Week after week, coach Todd Harbour stands amazed at McReynolds’ athletic capability.
“She goes week in, week out. This weekend’s race was by far her most impressive performance. There are certain standards for race times – breaking 13 seconds in the hurdles is pretty amazing,” Harbour said.
McReynolds, who admits to putting too much pressure on herself during the indoor season, has tried a different approach during outdoor.
“I try not to think too much about it after realizing I put too much pressure on myself. I know that any day, anyone can have their best race, and anything can change,” McReynolds said.
Harbour recognizes her humility and what he said is stellar improvement.
“The sky is the limit for Tiffani. If she stays humble and hungry, she can do whatever she wants to,” Harbour said.
The women’s competitive drive as a whole paid off, as they took the team title by 61.5 points, totaling at 163.5. The women are now ranked 14th in the NCAA. The men placed second overall with 106 points, behind UT-Arlington.
“Our women are deep in the field events. When it’s a point scored meet, the ladies bring the depth, and that always helps,” Harbour said.
Season best performances came for seniors Tiffany Townsend and Marcus Boyd.
“Tiffany wants a national title, and she’s come so close. It’s difficult to achieve, and she’s really close – she knows that. This is a long season, January to June, and Tiff’s learned how to stay evenkill,” Harbour said.
Townsend finished first at 11.24 in the 100-meter, while Boyd won the 200-meter and reached his career best at 20.47. Townsend’s time reins fourth best in the NCAA. Due to a wind-aided mark of 4.9, Boyd’s time was unable to qualify.
Boyd was able to make a switch from running the 400 to the 200, and it benefitted him.
“I knew I could run free in this race, and run harder, longer,” Boyd said. “It was a great competition. I ran against some old high school friends. It felt good to be home in the Metroplex area.”
Townsend and McReynolds aided seniors Brittany Bruce and Diamond Richardson in their efforts to win the 4-x-100-meter relay, and the women finished at 44.25. The men lived up to their 4-x-400 reputation: Zwede Hewitt, James Gilreath, Whitney Prevost and Drew Seale were victorious at 3:06.92.
But Harbour is sure his women’s relay has more to offer.
“Our women’s relay was outstanding this weekend, and their time will drop,” Harbour said. “It’ll drop next weekend.”
For the upcoming weekend, the squad will participate in the Texas Relays in Austin. The Relays are a part of a prestigious event attracting athletes from all across the country.
