 "Photo: Errol Anderson")
 "Photo: Errol Anderson")
Texas A&M men's and women's track and field teams won NCAA Outdoor Championships at John McDonnell Field Saturday afternoon. The men's victory was thanks to a second place finish in the men's final race where the Aggies edged Oregon, Florida and Florida State by only two points.
Senior environmental studies major Justin Oliver anchored the men's 4 x 400 relay to eight points, which gave A&M 48 total team points and its first national title.
"We're the national champions," Oliver said. "Texas A&M, no one else. That's all I could say when I finished the race. We did it! We did it!"
A&M fought off Oregon who had already claimed the indoor and cross-country titles earlier this year. Florida placed fourth, earning them five points to tie them at 46 with Oregon and Florida State.
"You don't run for third place, you run for the victory," Oliver said. "The position the rest of the relay put me in, I was second and I wanted to maintain that position.
Florida State was expected to and did win the 4x400 with a time of 2:59.99 to also tie them at 46. The Aggies were projected for a third-place win, but Oliver ran a split of 44.20 as the anchor leg, moving them ahead of Baylor, who had previously won 42 consecutive finals in that event, including the last two national titles.
"When it got to the 300 mark and I saw that I'm still in second place, I see the finish line and I can see the trophy waiting on me. Drive, that's all I thought, just drive. Put them up and put them down, and pump my arms," Oliver said. "When I finally crossed the line a million tons came off my back from all the hard work I've been putting in over the years."
The Aggie women did their damage by racking up 50 points, 13 of which came in the final day, putting them ahead of second-place Oregon with 43 points, and Arizona State just behind Oregon, with 41 points. Florida State finished fourth with 40 points and Texas fifth with 39.
Junior Porscha Lucas won the 200 (22.81) and sophomore Jessica Beard took second in the 400 with a school record of 50.56. Senior Yasmine Regis earned second-place in the triple jump (45-4.25/13.82) along with a four place finish in the 100 meter hurdles (13.21). "I knew I was the last event to go on," Regis said, who was in sixth place going into the final three rounds. "I was trying to rack up the most points I could for my teammates. It started off pretty rocky, but I dug deep and I pulled out what I needed to do."
"I placed the highest I've ever placed in my senior year. I'm grateful and thankful. Our team won the national championship. We're very happy. It's an amazing feeling." Earlier in the day, four Aggie men scored in the triple jump out of a total 12 jumpers. Sophomore Julian Reid took second place just short of Oklahoma's Will Clay as well as Florida's Christian Taylor, the indoor winner, who placed third. Aggie junior Zuheir Sharif placed fourth with sophomore Tyron Stewart claiming sixth, and sophomore Melvin Echard placing seventh.
"We had our team meeting this morning with Coach Henry and I've never heard such consistency and confidence in his voice when he told us both teams could win," Sharif said. "I think with that it just set the momentum in order for us to know that no matter the circumstances we had to be in that triple jump final.
"When we got into that final, from that point on it was just maintaining and building the momentum we had. It's all about the endurance. But it was nerve-wracking watching the outcome of the 4 x 400. I'm at a loss for words, I can't believe what we jumped today, I can't believe we are national champions."
The Aggies captured 18 points with the second, fourth, sixth and seventh places after none of the same four Aggie triple jumpers reached the final round the previous year. Texas A&M is the first school to win the men's and women's title in the same year since LSU in 1990, who had previously achieved that feat with current A&M head coach Pat Henry. This is the 13th women's outdoor NCAA championship for Henry, who claimed the previous 12 at LSU along with his fourth men's NCAA outdoor championship, 3 of which also came at LSU."
"This is a special championship for us," noted Aggie head coach Pat Henry, who is in his fifth season at Texas A&M. "This is our first graduating class. We're extremely pleased, my staff worked very hard and this is a very gratifying pair of championships for this team."
Henry capped his 28th and 29th national championships on the Division level while helping Texas A&M earn its first two. A&M is the second Big 12 team to ever win the men's title since Kansas in 1959, 1960 and 1970.
This marks the second and third NCAA championship for A&M this year, with the Aggie golf team claiming a title earlier this year. This is the fourth overall sports championship for A&M, with the Aggie equestrian team also winning a title; however, they are not recognized in the NCAA.
Finalists 20 Aggies participated in finals for their respected events.
Men Gerald Phiri 100M - #3 - 10.18 200M - #4 - 20.83 4x100 - DQ - N/A Chris Dykes 200M - #6 - 21.05 4x100 - DQ - N/A Bryan Miller 400M - #8 - 45.91 4x400 - #2 - 3:00:91 Tran Howell 4x100 - DQ - N/A 4x400 - #2 - 3:00:91 Justin Oliver 4x100 - DQ - N/A 4x400 - #2 - 3:00:91 Kyle Dykhuizen 4x400 - #2 - 3:00:91 Tyron Stewart L. Jump - #10 - 7.71m T. Jump - #6 - 16.27m Julian Reid L. Jump - #4 - 7.96m T. Jump - #2 - 17.10m Zuheir Sharif T. Jump - #4 - 16.76m Melvin Echard T. Jump - #7 - 16.07m Trinity Otto Decathalon - #7
Women Gabby Mayo 100M - #5 - 11.35 100H - #4 - 13.26 4x100 - #1 - 42.36 Porscha Lucas 100M - #4 - 11.31 200M - #1 - 22.81 4x100 - #1 - 42.36 Jessica Beard 400M - #2 - 50.56 Christina Munoz 10,000M - #19 - 35:33:39 Vashti Thomas 100H - DNF Khrystal Carter 4x100 - #1 - 42.36 Dominique Duncan 4x100 - #1 - 42.36 Yasmine Regis T. Jump - #2 - 13.82m Laura Asimakis Javelin - #12 - 48.16m
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