By Tyler White | Sports Writer
Baylor’s track and field women’s and men’s teams took fifth and 10th respectively in the Big 12 Indoor Championships at Texas Tech this weekend. The bears totaled 19 All-Conference performances across the two-day meet.
Coach Michael Ford said he was very proud of the teams and their accomplishments in the championship. He said he is looking forward to nationals and what comes next for the team.
“I am looking forward to the outdoor season with both teams, which starts this upcoming weekend, and I am excited for the NCAA indoor selections this week,” Ford said.
During day one, the field athletes shined in their performances. Freshman Alencia Lentz won her first Big 12 pole vault title and broke the meet record and tied the program record, previously held by Tuesdi Tidwell, with a 14-9. Freshman Molly Haywood took third in the pole vault at a jump of 14-5 ¼.
Senior Alexis Brown finished second in the long jump with a 21-2. This score fits at second-best in the program, sitting just behind Brown’s previous record from their last meet at Clemson’s Tiger Paw Invitational. Along with the long jump, Alexis Brown finished fourth in the 60-meter dash on day two with a 7.29 time.
In the throws events, senior Victoria Adu made it onto the podium for the first time in her Baylor career, finishing sixth with a throw of 60-0 ½. On the men’s side, sophomore Gary Moore Jr. broke his previous program record, placing seventh with a 68-9 ¾.
“You definitely have to shout out the field events for their performances on the first day of Big 12s,” Ford said. “They did an awesome job today.”
On day two, the Bears had strong finishes on the track side. In the 400 final, men’s junior Nathaniel Ezekiel took the bronze medal with a 45.73 time, while junior Imaobong Uko finished on the podium in eighth with a time of 53.27 for the women’s team.
In the 200 meters, women’s sophomore Tiriah Kelley took sixth place with a new personal-best of 23.23, while Mariah Ayers took eight in the event. For the men’s, senior Demar Francis achieved a bronze medal with a 20.60 finish and junior Laurenz Colbert finished fifth with a 20.87.
In the shot put event, junior Makayla Long finished with All-Conference honors with a 51-0 ¾ throw. Alongside his strong throws performance from day one, Gary Moore Jr. added a sixth place finish for the men’s team with a personal best 59-9.
To close the meet, both teams had All-Conference finishes in the 4×400-meter relays. The women’s squad of Uko, Kelley, Gontse Morake and Ayers finished fourth after a time of 3:37.97, while Francis, Ezekiel, Kamden Jackson and De’montray Callis managed a new season-best time of 3:07.26 for sixth.
The Bears will host the outdoor Baylor Invitational on March 2, while the indoor athletes set their sights on closing out the indoor season with the NCAA Indoor Championships on March 8.