Track And Field Teams Head To Big Apple – Ohio State Buckeyes
2/7/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Track & Field
Feb. 7, 2002
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COLUMBUS, Ohio-The Ohio State track and field teams return to action Saturday at the Armory in New York City for the New York Invitational. The Buckeye men will compete against Army, Georgetown, LSU, Princeton, Purdue, Seton Hall, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Villanova. The women’s team also will compete against ten teams: Arkansas, Gardner-Webb, Georgetown, LSU, Maryland, Miami (Fla.), Purdue, Rice, Seton Hall and South Carolina.
Craig Breaks Her Own Record
Co-captain Katy Craig set Ohio State indoor and French Field House records in the weight throw at the Feb. 2 OSU Invitational. She threw for a distance of 68-06. This distance was good enough for third on the NCAA list and a Big Ten best this season. Her previous best was 68-03.75 set earlier this season at the OSU Collegiate Duals (Jan. 12).
Taylor Tops Big Ten in Shot Put
Dan Taylor guided the men’s team with a first-place finish in the shot put at the OSU Invitational with a distance of 65-07 3/4. This distance ranks fourth on the NCAA list and is a Big Ten best this season.
Myers on a Roll
Rob Myers (Jr., Rushville, Ohio/Fairfield Union) has been on a roll lately in the one-mile run. In the past three meets, he has placed first, including a meet record at the Minnesota Gold Country Classic with a time of 4:03.70. His time at Minnesota is a career best and is second all-time in Ohio State history. No One Can Beat Smith
Defending Big Ten high jump champion Tami Smith has continued to dominate the competition this year. She has placed first in all four high jump events this season, including a season best 5-10 at the Minnesota Gold Country Classic.
Men Set Two Meet Records
Along with Rob Myers’ meet record at the Minnesota Gold Country Classic, junior Joel Brown set a meet record in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.02 seconds. That time beats his previous career high, which he set last season by one-hundredth of a second (8.03).
Owens and Hightower Named to The All-Century Team
Track legend Jesse Owens was named the Ohio State male athlete of the century by the Columbus Touchdown Club. Owens’ legend at Ohio State blossomed, thanks to such feats as setting three world records – in the long jump, 220-yard dash and 220-yard hurdles – within a 70-minute span at the 1935 Big Ten track championships. But he became a household name at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin, where he won four gold medals. Stephanie Hightower was named women’s track and field athlete of the century. She was a three-time (1978-80) All-American in the hurdles.
Last Week-OSU Invitational
The Ohio State men’s and women’s track and field teams fared well at the Ohio State Invitational, with the women’s team capturing first place in seven events while the men’s squad won four events.
Katy Craig paced the women’s team in the weight throw, reaching a distance of 68-06. The new mark breaks Craig’s own Ohio State and French Field House records she set Jan. 12 at the OSU Collegiate Duals (68.03 3/4). Dalanda Jackson won the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.80 while teammate Molly Logan won the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.45. Stephanie Ray also won the 1,000-meter run in a time of 3:02.94. Tami Smith finished first in the high jump and Alexis McCall earned a first-place finish in the shot put (51-8 1/2).
Dan Taylor guided the men’s team with a first-place finish in the shot put (65-07 3/4) while Rob Myers added a first-place finish in the 600-meter run (1:20.35). Joel Brown also set a career best by topping the field in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 7.90 seconds. John Morris was first in the 400-meter dash for the Buckeyes with a time of 49.37.
Newcomers Add Depth
Ohio State added 12 key freshman to the roster this season. Robin Detty, Aaron Fisher, Daniel Glaz (Palos Hills, Ill., A.A. Stagg), Rosalind Godwin, Zakiya Harris, Alicia Kuhn, Jacob McCauley, Shayla Moore, Greg Norman , Brian Olinger, Matt Penza and Stephanie Ray will add depth to the team.
Meet Coach Rogers
In his 14 years at Ohio State, Russ Rogers has produced more than 100 Big Ten indoor and outdoor track and field champions, 10 NCAA indoor and outdoor champions and 69 All-Americans. His 1993 teams alone produced 16 All-Americans and 12 Big Ten champions in both indoor and outdoor events. Rogers has more than 30 years of head coaching experience in national and international track and field. His most recent experience was with the U.S. team at the 1994 Goodwill Games in St. Petersburg, Russia. He was also the 1988 sprint coach for the U.S. Olympic Team which competed in Seoul, Korea, the 1987 coach of the World University Games team, the 1985-86 head coach of the U.S. track team and has numerous other coaching credentials. Rogers came to Ohio State from Fairleigh Dickinson University, located in Teaneck, N.J., where he was the head coach for both the men’s and women’s track and field and cross country teams for 10 years.
Up Next
The Buckeyes will return to Columbus to play host to the Scarlet and Gray Invitational at 10 a.m. Feb. 16 at French Field House.
