Completed Event: Track and Field at Battle on the Bayou on April 3, 2026 ,
Final
Track and Field
at Battle on the Bayou
University of Oklahoma Athletics
Nine All-Americans Added Friday
June 21, 2007 | Track and Field
June 8, 2007
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Nine Sooners earned All-America honors at the NCAA National Outdoor Track and Field Championships at the Alex G. Spanos Track and Field Complex Friday.
OU junior Chip Heuser placed third overall in the men's pole vault, representing the best individual effort by a Sooner thus far in the NCAA Championships.
"It was a fun day. A lot of great competition out there," Heuser said. "Everybody was jumping really, really well. It was a struggle to keep your head on straight with so many good vaulters in the 17-6.50 to 17-10 range.
"I'm proud of myself for sticking it out and doing well for Oklahoma."
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Heuser cleared a personal best of 17 feet, 10.50 inches (5.45 meters), matching UCLA's Mike Landers and Oregon's Tommy Skipper as the only athletes to clear that height.
Landers also bowed out at 17-10.50, but was awarded second place by having fewer attempts at lower heights.
Skipper won the national title after clearing 18-0.50 (5.50) on his first attempt of the competition.
For Heuser, it was his fourth consecutive All-America honor after finishing among the top eight Americans at the past two indoor and outdoor NCAA Championships. The Louisville, Ky., native matched Michael Westlund (2000-03) for the most All-America honors earned by a Sooner pole vaulter.
Heuser's third-place finish was the best result in the men's pole vault by a Sooner since Tim McMichael claimed the national title in 1989.
The Sooner men concluded day three of the NCAA Championships tied for 15th in the team standings with 12 points.
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Friday |
Men's Triple Jump Finalist Shardae Boutte Women's Triple Jump Finalist Toni Smith OU Jumps Coach Jeremy Fischer OU Sprints Coach Dana Boone All-America Pole Vaulter Chip Heuser
The OU men's 4x100-meter relay of Ronnie Pines, Marcus Pugh, Frankie Wright and Jacobi Mitchell finished fourth in a season best 39.43 seconds, the sixth best mark ever by a Sooner relay.
Title favorite Florida State ran away with the victory in 38.60 seconds. LSU (38.85) fought off Tennessee (38.86) at the stripe for second place.
The women's 4x100-meter relay of Leslie Cole, Yolanda Goff, Scottesha Miller and Larica Urbina placed fifth in 44.30.
It was the first time in OU history a women's 4x100 relay earned All-America honors.
"I was very, very pleased with both teams," OU sprints coach Dana Boone said. "It was wonderful to see the men go out there and finish fourth and run a seasonal best. They had a really good relay.
"The women had some technical problems with the handoffs, but we still finished the race -- and finished fifth. That's very respectable."
Texas A&M won the national title in 43.05. LSU (43.14) was second, Southern Cal (43.69) was third and TCU (43.84) was fourth.
Goff also earned All-America honors in the 100-meter dash with her 10th-place result Wednesday. Dermillo Wise was eighth in the men's long jump Thursday, giving OU a total of 11 All-Americans thus far at the NCAA Championships.
The only season OU left the NCAA Championships with more total All-Americans was in 1997 when 10 men and four women earned the honor.
OU triple jumper Shardae Boutte advanced to Saturday's final after placing 10th in the preliminaries with a best leap of 51-0.00 (15.54).
Boutte's mark came on his first attempt. He fouled his second and was poised for a mark near 53-feet on his final attempt but lost control at the final moments of his third leap.
"Stuck my foot out too much, trying to get that big jump," Boutte said of his final attempt. "Just ended up at an angle and blew it. But, it's all right.
"Everybody's good. There's four 52-footers and I know that I'm one of them. I've just got to get my stuff together."
The preliminary leader was Muhammed Halim of Cornell, who posted a mark of 52-7.25 (16.03).
The top 12 made the finals. The final qualifier was Texas' Samyr Laine, who jumped 50-10.00 (15.49).
OU's Tydree Lewis was 15th at 50-6.75 (15.41), missing the finals by just 3.25 inches.
Toni Smith tied for 11th in the women's triple jump qualifier to advance to the finals. Smith jumped 42-10.75 (13.07).
"I expect to do better," Smith said. "I expect to be an All-American. I'm just going to go in there (tomorrow) not anxious, just relax and bring it home for
Stanford's Erica McLain was the preliminary leader at 44-2.75 (44.28).
Saturday, Kevin Bookout (shot put), Shardae Boutte (men's triple jump), Jessica Eldridge (1500-meter run) and Toni Smith (women's triple jump) compete in their finals to conclude OU's participation in the NCAA Championships.
The NCAA Championships will be televised live on CBS Saturday beginning at 12 p.m. Central.
Saturday, June 13
Friday, June 12
Thursday, June 11
Wednesday, June 10
