Five Huskers Win Events at Holiday Inn Invite

<?xml:namespace prefix="st1" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"?>LINCOLN?Nebraska kicked off the 110th season of Husker track and field Friday by hosting the annual Holiday Inn Invitational at the Bob Devaney Sports Center Indoor Track. The Huskers claimed five event titles during the first of two days of competition, including three victories in the long distance events.<?xml:namespace prefix="o" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"?>

Junior Peter van der Westhuizen concluded Friday’s action on the track with NU’s best performance, as he posted the fifth-best men’s 5,000-meter time in school history while winning with a personal-best clocking of 14:25.81. The mark was only a little more than eight seconds shy of former Husker David Iteffa’s school record set in 1995.

 

The South Africa native’s win made it a clean Husker sweep of the 5,000-meter events, as sophomore Joslyn Dalton dominated the women’s race to win with a career-best time of 17:55.06. Just like van der Westhuizen, Dalton lapped the field to earn a winning edge of 51 seconds. Sophomore Jennifer Pancoast added her first victory in a Nebraska uniform with a lifetime-best time of 10:13.04 in the women’s 3,000 meters, cutting about 14 seconds off her previous best mark.

 

The three winning performances topped off an outstanding day for NU’s distance corps. The men, who also received respective runner-up finishes by redshirt freshmen Kyle Custer (2:32.40) and Brian Parr (4:11.41) in the 1,000 meters and mile events, were a perfect 7-for-7 in recording career-best times, as sophomore Andrew Lind (1,000) and freshmen Mackenzie Jeffrey (1,000), Ethan Luebbe (mile) and Bryce Somer (3,000) also set new best marks.

 

In addition to Nebraska’s standouts on the track, two Huskers helped the squad sweep the men’s and women’s long jump events. Junior four-time All-American high jumper Dusty Jonas shattered his previous best in the long jump with a leap of 23-11 to outdistance sophomore teammate Robert Rands (23-6 ?) for the event crown. Sophomore Zarinah Suluki-Drakes also held off a teammate in the women’s section with a winning mark of 18-6 ?. Freshman Leandra McGruder earned second place (18-2 ?) in her first appearance as a Husker.

 

Several Huskers also posted notable performances in unseeded competitions, led by sophomore Kacie Sharp, who set a new career best in the women’s weight throw by nearly two full feet (50-2 ?). Freshman teammate Lindsey Maher won the women’s unseeded pole vault in her opening action for Nebraska.

 

Friday also featured preliminary action in the short sprint and hurdle events, as a host of Huskers qualified for Saturday’s semifinals. Youth was served for Nebraska, as the squad was led by freshmen in each of the four events.

 

NU’s men’s short sprinters led the way with five of the 16 qualifying spots in the 60-meter dash. Freshman Scott Wims paced the squad in his first race for Nebraska with the fourth-best time of 6.89. Another freshman, Sarah Lyons, also recorded the No. 4 time in the women’s prelims with a mark of 7.81. In the women’s 60-meter hurdles, freshman Nikita Eades won her heat with the second-best clocking of 8.81, while redshirt freshman Tyrell Ross did the same in the men’s competition in 8.18.

 

Senior Issar Yazhbin also posted an impressive performance Friday, setting a personal best while falling only two centimeters shy of an NCAA qualification in the men’s weight throw (second-place 63-11). The feat broke his own Israeli national record in the event, set during his junior season in 2004.

 

The Holiday Inn Invitational concludes Saturday at the Devaney Center Indoor Track. Running and field events each begin at Noon.