Completed Event: Track and Field at Battle on the Bayou on April 3, 2026 ,
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Track and Field
at Battle on the Bayou
University of Oklahoma Athletics
Sooner Track & Field Heads South To Open Outdoor Season
March 14, 2002 | Track and Field
March 14, 2002
NORMAN, Okla. - Just a week after closing the indoor season at the NCAA Championships, the Sooner track and field teams have switched their attention to the outdoor season. The opening weekend finds one Sooner at Texas A&M for the College Station Multis Festival and more than 40 other Sooners heading to Miami, Fla., for the Hurricane Invitational on Saturday.
At the College Station Multis Festival
Junior Taylor Cates and co-head coach Jill Lancaster left Wednesday for the College Station Multis Festival. Cates will be one of 16 competing the Heptathlon Gold Division of the Festival. Action begins this afternoon at 4 p.m. and will conclude Friday. The first day's schedule includes the 100 hurdles at 4 p.m., the high jump at 4:40 p.m., the shot put at 6:30 p.m. and the 200 meter at 8 p.m. The second day's schedule begins at 1 p.m. with the long jump, followed by the javelin at 1:35 p.m. and the 800 meter at 3:05 p.m.
Austra Skuyte of Kansas State headlines the field in the gold heptathlon. Skuyte won the 2002 Big 12 title in the pentathlon. Cates, who competed in the bronze division last year as an unattached athlete while sitting out a transfer year, sprained her ankle this week in practice and may be limited in the events she is able to enter.
Following completion of the Festival, Lancaster and Cates will fly to Miami for a week of training over spring break before the OU teams compete in the Golden Panther Invitational, hosted by Florida International, March 22-23.
At The Hurricane Invitational
Three different groups of Sooners will head out during the day Friday for Miami as staff and student-athletes head south for the Hurricane Invitational on Saturday. The group will stay in Miami through spring break to train, then will compete in the Golden Panther Invitational March 22-23.
Action in the Hurricane Invitational begins with field events at 9 a.m. Saturday. The events on the track begin at 1 p.m. and continue through the 5000-meter run which is scheduled for 5 p.m. Eight Division I track and field teams are in Miami for the meet.
The Last Time Out
The Sooners sent eight individuals to the 2002 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships and returned to Norman with five All-Americans. Junior Michael Westlund finished fourth in the pole vault to become a three-time All-American for OU. The men's 1600-meter relay, composed of Raoul Harvey, Ernest Lewis, Moses Washington and Aldwynn Sappleton, finished sixth and earned All-America honors. Leslie Dunlap finished 14th in the women's pole vault and senior Michael McNamara was 15th in the men's pole vault. Sappleton finished 13th in the prelims of the 800-meter run and Jason Stanley false started in the prelims of the 60-meter hurdles and was disqualified. The OU men finished tied for 23rd, an improvement of 15 places over the 2001 meet. The total of five All-Americans was also an improvement over last year's three.
Going Home
The trip to Florida marks a trip home for several Sooners. Senior Moses Washington and junior Aisha Stringer came to OU from Miami while freshman Jason Stanley hails from Fort Lauderdale. Sooner co-head coach Rodney Price also served as the head men's track and field coach at Miami for seven years, coaching 1996 Olympic bronze medalist Davian Clarke. Clarke won Miami's first NCAA championship while training with Price.
Next Up
OU will remain in the Sunshine State to train over spring break and then will compete in the Golden Panther Invitational March 22-23. The first of two home meets, the John Jacobs Invitational, is scheduled for April 13.
Saturday, June 13
Friday, June 12
Thursday, June 11
Wednesday, June 10
