One week before leaving for the NCAA Indoor Championships,
UCLA’s Dawn Harper pledged to come home with a national
title. Though she eclipsed her lifetime-best time in the finals of
60-meter hurdles, the junior could not deliver on that promise.
Harper, fourth in this event last March, improved on that finish
but fell short of her goal, crossing the finish line third in a
speedy 8.05 seconds on Friday night in Fayetteville, Ark.
USC’s Virginia Powell, the only hurdler to break the
eight-second mark in the prelims, did it again in the finals,
capturing her first individual national championship in 7.97
seconds. That was good enough to hold off Harper and premeet
favorite Nebraska’s Priscilla Lopes, who took second place.
The sting of finishing third should subside quickly for Harper, who
is brimming with confidence after lowering her personal best in the
60m hurdles twice during the indoor season. And Harper will likely
have multiple chances during the outdoor season to avenge her loss
to Powell. Expected to be among the top contenders in the 100mH,
the two could compete with each other again at the USC-UCLA dual
meet, the Pac-10 Championships, the West Regional Championships and
perhaps even Outdoor Nationals.
SHE DID IT AGAIN: UCLA’s Candice Baucham, who took third
place in the triple jump last season at the NCAA Indoor
Championships, duplicated the performance on Saturday with an
indoor lifetime-best mark of 44 feet, 4 inches. Ranked sixth in the
event before the meet, Baucham, a senior, ensured she would contend
for the title by unleashing her best jump of the day on her second
attempt. But it was not enough. Clemson’s Gisele Oliviera
(45-01.75) and Stanford’s Erica McLain (44-08.25) bested
Baucham and finished first and second, respectively.
“I’m very pleased with how Candice competed
today,” UCLA jumps coach Robert Johnson said.
“Technically, she did what she was supposed to do. You
can’t ever be disappointed when an athlete goes out and
competes to their best ability, and today Candice did that,”
Johnson said.
SHORT SPRINTS: The Bruins, who only sent two competitors to
Fayetteville, finished 20th in the team scoring. Top-ranked
Tennessee clinched the team title with a second-place finish in the
4x400m relay. … Florida’s Candice Scott broke her own
collegiate record in the weight throw, taking first place with a
heave of 79 feet, 3.75 inches. Former Bruin Sheena Gordon, who
transferred to North Carolina after last season, took fourth place
in the high jump, clearing the bar at 6 feet, 1.25 inches.