Coleman achieves sprinting supremacy

Tennessee star is first since Gatlin in 2002 to sweep 60- and 200-meter indoor titles, achieves world lead in both events to join Texas A&M's Fred Kerley, Colorado's Dani Jones and Oregon's Edward Cheserek in winning multiple championships

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

A bid by Christian Coleman to sweep NCAA Division 1 Indoor Championships in the 60- and 200-meter races was upstaged last year by Ronnie Baker.

So, it was only fitting that the Tennessee junior standout would find himself linked again with Baker following one of the most impressive sprint doubles in championship history Saturday in College Station, Texas.

Coleman equaled Baker, a two-time NCAA champion at TCU, for the world lead in the 60 by running 6.45 seconds and produced a world-best 20.11 in the 200 to become the first sprinter to win both titles since former Tennessee star Justin Gatlin in 2002.

"I mean, it feels pretty good, just because the last one to do it was Justin Gaitlin. It wasn’t a slow heat, you know there were some fast guys in there, so I had somebody to work off of, because you know the second heat was moving pretty fast too," said Coleman, who became the first male athlete to repeat in the 200 since Texas A&M's Ameer Webb in 2012-13.

"I wasn’t really shooting for times, just go out and execute. I was excited, I was mind blown, because you know that’s a fast time, I wasn’t expecting that myself."

Coleman equaled the 1999 collegiate record of BYU's Leonard Myles-Mills in the 60 and just missed matching the 2005 standard of 20.10 in the 200 set by Arkansas' Wallace Spearmon.

Another collegiate record came from USC in the women's 4x400 relay, with Cameron Pettigrew, Amalie Iuel, Deanna Hill and Kendall Ellis holding off Oregon's Makenzie Dunmore, Deajah Stevens, Elexis Guster and Raevyn Rogers by a 3:27.03 to 3:27.07 margin.

Only national teams from Russia, Jamaica, Australia and the United States have produced faster indoor 4x400 times than USC and Oregon, who both ran faster than the Ducks' 2014 standard of 3:27.40.

The victory helped Ellis rebound from a narrow loss in the 400 final, with Miami (Florida) senior Shakima Wimbley edging the USC junior by a 51.061 to 51.068 margin.

Although Oregon won its seventh women's team title in eight years and Texas A&M captured its first men's indoor team championship, it was a significant meet for multiple reasons for  Georgia, which placed second in the women's competition and fourth in the men's team race.

After Kendell Williams became the first female athlete to win the same event all four years with her pentathlon victory Friday, older brother Devon Williams overcame a 224-point deficit entering the final event of the heptathlon, the 1,000-meter run, to prevail by a 6,177 to 6,165 margin over Kentucky's Tim Duckworth.

Devon Williams ran 2:41.26 to Duckworth's 3:04.24 to help Georgia become the first program to have siblings win multi-event championships.

“To be honest the whole time I was thinking it was only five laps on a 200-meter track, so the whole time I was telling myself, ‘It’s easy. It wasn’t easy at all, but I was trying to train my mind that it was easy,” Devon Williams said. “It’s always inspirational to watch Kendell race. She always does great things. She’s won four indoor titles and this is my first. But to win as a family is very special.”

Keturah Orji repeated as women's triple jump champion for the Bulldogs with a leap of 46-3.50 (14.11m), the third individual title for Georgia, along with Madeline Fagan in the high jump and Kendell Williams in the pentathlon to set a program record with 51 points.

“I think I've progressed way faster as a collegiate triple jumper than I thought I would. As long as I continue to get better, eventually I'll get to where I want to get. As long as I'm improving, I'm happy,” said Orji, who won her fourth career NCAA title, including outdoors.

“I'm really excited I was able to do this and I'm very proud of my other teammates.”

Following her exceptional anchor leg to rally Colorado to its first distance medley relay title Friday, sophomore Dani Jones covered the final lap in 30.81 seconds to win the women's 3,000 in 9:09.20, ahead of national 5,000 and cross country champion Karissa Schweizer of Missouri (9:09.33) and NCAA cross country and indoor track and field team winner Katie Rainsberger of Oregon (9:09.87).

Jones' championship was the third in the 3,000 for the Buffaloes, following Renee Metivier in 2005 and Jenny Simpson in 2009, and helped her become the first Colorado athlete to win multiple indoor titles in the same year.

“It was something I really wanted, but just kind of one of those things, I don’t know, I didn’t think it was going to happen,” Jones said. “I just saw an opportunity to go and just kept going with the group, so. I was a little more nervous going into today. I don’t think anyone was really looking at me until (Friday) night, no one predicted me to win until last night. It definitely gave good momentum and was such a fun experience that got me excited for (Saturday).”

Oregon received victories from Hannah Cunliffe in the 60-meter dash in 7.14, Ariana Washington in the 200 in 22.42, Rogers in the 800 in 2:01.09 and Sasha Wallace in the 60 hurdles in 7.90 to contribute to its all-time scoring record with 84 points.

Edward Cheserek secured his second title of the meet, ninth indoors in his career and 17th overall for the Ducks by winning the 3,000 in 7:55.91.

Texas A&M received a pair of victories from Fred Kerley, first in the 400 in 44.85 and then leading off the 4x400 relay, with younger brother Mylik Kerley anchoring the Aggies to the title in 3:02.80 to edge Florida by a 46 to 45.5 margin.

Arkansas senior Clive Pullen defended his triple jump title with a leap of 55-3.75 (16.86m), the first winner of back-to-back championships since Florida's Christian Taylor in 2010-11.

Texas Tech junior Trey Culver repeated as men's high jump champion with a clearance of 7-5 (2.26m), prevailing over Kyle Landon of Southern Illinois on fewer misses. Culver became the first male high jumper to repeat since Indiana's Derek Drouin in 2010-11.

Freshmen Grant Holloway of Florida and Emmanuel Korir of UTEP also captured championships. Holloway won the men's 60 hurdles in 7.58 and Korir prevailed in the men's 800 in 1:47.48.

Samford's Karisa Nelson won the women's mile in 4:31.24, with New Mexico's Josh Kerr prevailing in the men's mile in 4:03.22.

LSU senior Johnnie Jackson won the weight throw title with a mark of 75-0.75 (22.88m), following two-time champion Walter Henning (2010-11) for the Tigers.

Annette Echikunwoke became Cincinnati's first indoor champion by winning the women's weight throw with a mark of 73-6.75 (22.42m).

In one of the meet's biggest surprises, Alabama senior Lakan Taylor won the women's pole vault with a clearance of 14-7.25 (4.45m), edging Baylor senior Annie Rhodes on fewer misses.

Arkansas sophomore twins Tori Weeks and Lexi Weeks, two of the six collegiate vaulters to clear 15 feet, finished fifth and seventh, with Razorbacks teammate Desiree Freier in sixth.