Gasping for air after her victory in the 800 meter run on
Saturday, UCLA’s Tiffany Burgess was already looking
ahead.
Although she had just secured the nation’s fastest mark
(2:04.54) in the 800m this year during Saturday’s Rafer
Johnson/Jackie Joyner-Kersee Invitational at Drake Stadium, all
Burgess could talk about was getting faster.
“It was a nice way to open the season, but I haven’t
peaked yet,” she said. “It’s definitely not all I
have in these legs.”
Whether she improves that time or not, Burgess has established
herself as one of the nation’s elite middle distance runners
and a contender for an individual championship at the NCAA meet in
June.
Her mark Saturday was the third fastest of her career and an
NCAA regional qualifier, but according to UCLA distance coach Eric
Peterson, it only hints at what she is capable of.
“I’d be shocked if she didn’t get
faster,” Peterson said. “She ran 2:03.73 last year
(against USC on May 4) ““ that’s her lifetime best. With
her training, the way that she is competing and most importantly
her hunger to prove that she can compete against the elite athletes
in the country, I think that she can run very fast.”
Burgess led wire-to-wire on Saturday, and was never really
challenged. She finished more than four seconds ahead of
second-place Sandra Moya of the Santa Barbara Track Club and only a
sluggish last quarter prevented her from challenging teammate Lena
Nilsson’s school record of 2:02.26.
While Burgess is pleased with her early success, her focus
centers on what lies ahead. She knows her time will likely be
surpassed in the ensuing months and that she too will have to
improve in order to make an impact at the NCAA Championships.
“When you put a number out there, everyone is going to hit
it and pass it,” Burgess said. “It makes me confident
that I can perform at an elite level, but it’s definitely not
something to get too overwhelmed about. The most important thing is
to stay driven and hungry, and get ready for the new competition
that’s out there.”
Ңbull;Ӣbull;Ӣbull;
Burgess was not the only Bruin to have success over the weekend.
Eight of the UCLA women posted NCAA Regional qualifying scores
including sophomore Monique Henderson (first place, 400 meters,
53.07), junior Cari Soong (first place, hammer throw, 202 feet, 7
inches), and freshman Sheena Gordon (third place, high jump,
5-8.75).
Gordon’s performance was particularly noteworthy as it
came in her return from a knee injury sustained earlier this
season. The nation’s top prep high jumper in 2002, Gordon had
arthroscopic surgery in February and has been rehabbing for up to
three hours per day since then.
“To come out and jump high this early after an injury was
great,” said Gordon, who jumped as high as six feet in high
school. “I haven’t really had that much high jump
practice at all, and (jumps coach Bob Kersee) just wanted to get my
running down and get my confidence back.”