OU's Blackwood Registers World's Best Time

May 21, 2000

COLUMBIA, Mo. - It had been billed as the race of the meet and Michael Blackwood didn't disappoint the crowd on the final day of the Big 12 Outdoor Track Championship.

Blackwood entered the final with the fastest qualifying time, beating the defending champion, Brandon Couts of Baylor, for that mark. When the race ended, Blackwood had a Big 12 title and the world's fastest 400-meter time to date.

Blackwood took a quick lead before Couts took the lead on the back stretch. Coming around the final curve, the duo were running step for step. Blackwood, who was running with ease, slipped past Couts and won the race by .03 seconds. Blackwood's time of 44.69 beat the NCAA automatic qualifying mark by .71 seconds and set a Big 12 and stadium record.

"I knew I had started well out of the blocks and I thought I had the race when we went around the final curve," Blackwood said. "This gives me a lot of confidence heading into the NCAA Championships and the qualifying for the Olympic Games. I have to thank my teammates and coaches for helping me reach this goal."

Blackwood won the 1999 Big 12 Indoor title in the 400 but battled with injuries last spring that hindered his performances in the 400 and on the relay.

Couts and Blackwood battled again later in the meet as the anchor legs of the 1600-meter relay. Couts got Baylor ahead at the final exhange but Blackwood made the race close, cutting the gap to .11 seconds. Both teams posted NCAA automatic qualifying marks in the relay. OU's 3:03.58 was a season low by more than two seconds.

Nebraska swept the team titles, winning the men's title with 134 points to Texas' 127. On the women's side, the Huskers scored 169 points to beat Texas and its 146 points. The 2000 women's title by Nebraska marks the first time a team other than Texas had won the Big 12 Outdoor Championship. It was Nebraska's third men's title, spoiling the Longhorns' attempt to repeat.

OU had a number of fine performances in addition to Blackwood's heroics. For the women who finished sixth with 57 points, Alesha Peel finished fifth in the 100-meter hurdles with a season-best 13.65, Staneshia Bell finished fourth in the 100-meter dash with a season-best 11.60 and took sixth in the 200, Jennifer Fontentot was fifth in the women's 400 with a season-best and NCAA provisional qualifying mark of 53.10, Bambi Carson added a third-place shot put finish (with a season best) to her discus title and Jessica Longfors was sixth in the shot, Aisha Stringer was seventh in the 800-meter run, the women's 400-meter relay finished third, and the women's 1600-meter relay finished fourth with a season-best and NCAA provisional qualifying time of 3:34.93. It was OU's best finish ever in the women's Big 12 outdoor meet and marked the highest number of points the Sooners have scored.

For the men who finished seventh with 59.50 points, Raoul Harvey finished sixth in the men's 400 with a season-best 46.59, Jonas Lusk was fifth and Joey Scott (with a season best) was sixth in the 110-meter high hurdles, Michael Westlund was second (with a season best and NCAA provisional mark of 17-11.25) and Michael McNamara was fourth in the pole vault, LaBoris Bean was fifth and Joey Scott was sixth (with a season best) in the 400-meter intermediate hurdles, Ernest Lewis was sixth in the 200-meter dash, and the men's 400-meter relay finished third with a season-best 40.16. For the men, the seventh place finish was a two-spot improvement over last year and the final point total was 15.50 points better.

The Sooners will find out Tuesday who will earn a trip to the NCAA in addition to OU's automatic qualifers. McNamara in the pole vault, Blackwood in the 400 and the men's 1600-meter relay team, composed of Harvey, Michael Jackson, Bean and Blackwood. Several of OU's provisional qualifiers improved their standings this weekend. Fontenot, the women's 1600-meter relay team and Michael Westlund all improved their provisional times during the conference meet. Bean, in the 400-meter intermediate hurdles, was ranked 11th heading into the weekend and the women's 400-meter relay was 11th. Final qualifiers for the NCAA, which will be in Durham, N.C., May 31-June 3, will be announced Tuesday.

MEN'S RESULTS
Team Standings
1.Nebraska 138
2. Texas 127
3. Texas A&M 107.50
4. Missouri 90
5. Baylor 81.50
6. Kansas 75
7. Oklahoma 59,50
8. Iowa State 43.50
9. Kansas State 29
10. Texas Tech 28
11. Colorado 28
12. Oklahoma State 11

100-Meter Dash - 1. Lawrence Armstrong, Texas, 10.21

200-Meter Dash - 1. Brandon Couts, Baylor, 20.48, 6. Ernest Lewis, OU, 21.48

400-Meter Dash - 1. Michael Blackwood, OU, 44.69, 6. Raoul Harvey, OU, 46.59

800-Meter Run - 1. Derrick Peterson, Missouri, 1:48.42

1500-Meter Run - 1. Charlie Gruber, Kansas, 3:46.33

5000-Meter Run - 1. Mark Menefee, Kansas, 14:20.30

3000-Meter Steeplechase - 1. Chuck Sloan, OSU, 8:32.59

110-Meter High Hurdles - 1. Bashir Ramzy, Texas A&M, 13.67, 4. Jonas Lusk, OU, 14.17, 5. Joey Scott, OU, 14.18

400-Meter Intermediate Hurdles - 1.Bayano Kamani, Baylor, 49.47, 5. LaBoris Bean, OU, 51.16, 6. Joey Scott, OU, 51.29

400-Meter Relay - 1. Texas, 39.10, 3. OU (Bean, Jackson, L'eron George, Lewis), 40.16

1600-Meter Relay - 1. Baylor 3:03.47, 2. Oklahoma (Harvey, Jackson, Bean, Blackwood) 3:03.58

Triple Jump - 1. Bashir Ramzy, Texas A&M, 52-6.75

Javelin - 1. Scott Russell, Kansas, 240-3

Pole Vault - 1. Eric Eshbach, Nebraska, 18-2.5, 2. Michael Westlund, OU, 17-11.25, 4. Michael McNamara, OU, 17-7.25

WOMEN'S RESULTS

Team Standings 1. Nebraska 169
2. Texas 146
3. Kansas State 103.50
4. Texas A&M, 70.50
5. Missouri 58
6. Oklahoma 57
7. Baylor 53
8. Iowa State 45
9. Colorado 39
10. Oklahoma State 29
11. Kansas 26
12. Texas Tech 22

100-Meter Dash - 1. Aleah Williams, Texas, 11.40, 4. Staneshia Bell, OU, 11.60

200-Meter Dash - 1. Aleah Williams, Texas, 23.25, 6. Bell, OU, 23.83

400-Meter Dash - 1. Barbara Petrahn, Baylor, 52.32, 5. Jennifer Fontenot, OU, 53.10

800-Meter Run - 1. Ashley Wysong, Missouri, 2:03.60, 7. Aisha Stringer, OU, 2:12.06

1500-Meter Run - 1. Kara Wheeler, Colorado, 4:12.15

5000-Meter Run - 1. Amy Mortimer, KSU, 16:26.09

100-Meter Hurdles - 1. Christina Ohaeri, Texas A&M, 12.36, 5. Alesha Peel, OU, 13.65

400-Meter Intermediate Hurdles - 1.Tanya Jarrett, Texas, 56.00

400-Meter Relay - 1. Texas, 44.13, 3. OU (Janel Hayes, LaToyia Hinds, Jimyria Hicks, Bell), 44.72

1600-Meter Relay - 1.Texas, 3:32.60, 4. Oklahoma (Bell, Alicia Emanuel, LaKisha Robinson, Fontentot), 3:34.93

Javelin - 1. Katy Doyle, Texas A&M, 174-6

High Jump - 1. Erin Aldrich, Texas, 5-11.50

Shot Put - 1. Leann Boerma, Nebraska, 51-1.75, 3. Bambi Carson, OU, 49-8.25, 6. Jessica Longfors, OU, 45-10.75

University of Oklahoma Athletics

OU's Blackwood Registers World's Best Time

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