Track hurdles into contention
Senior jumper Rhonda Watkins will compete in long jump at the NCAA Outdoor Championships after qualifying in the event during the West Regionals this weekend in Eugene, Ore. She does not qualify for an at-large berth in the high jump.
By Johnny Rath
May 31, 2009 10:42 p.m.
The goal was to extend the season and qualify for nationals. Over the weekend, six more athletes and the 4×400-meter relay team qualified for the NCAA Championships after a successful showing at the West Regionals.
Led by the all-star senior duo of Nicole Leach and Rhonda Watkins, the UCLA women’s track and field team is anxious to bring its talent to Fayetteville, Ark., in two weeks to face the national competition.
“I think we have a very strong team going to nationals,” coach Jeanette Bolden said. “Everyone is healthy, unlike last year.”
Leach became a four-time regional winner by taking the 400m hurdles by more than a second. She ran a season-best time of 56.29 and will head into the NCAAs with one of the best times in the nation.
Watkins bounced back from not scoring in the Pac-10 Championships to win the long jump and her third regional title.
“Rhonda worked out her technical difficulties from Pac-10s,” Bolden said. “She is a great jumper. Great athletes find their way, and she found her way this weekend.”
Watkins jumped a season best of 21 feet, 10.25 inches, which ranks No. 2 in the NCAA.
“I’m happy that I finally put it together,” Watkins said. “I’m definitely more confident heading into NCs.”
The 4x400m relay team continued its winning ways as UCLA won the event for the third-straight year at regionals.
“The more we run it, the better our handoffs get,” Bolden said.
The team of Ashlea McLaughlin, Krystin Lacy, Camilla Dencer and Leach clocked in the fourth-best time in the collegiate ranks at 3:33.34.
Lacy also earned her first individual trip to nationals in the 400m. The senior from Dallas took third with a time of 53.49.
Another Bruin joined Watkins as an automatic qualifier in the long jump. Junior Danielle Watson returned from a hamstring injury suffered at the UCLA/USC Dual Meet to claim fifth place at a distance of 20-8. This also will be her first NCAA Championship appearance.
In the 800m, junior Krishna Curry earned a trip to Arkansas with a third-place run of 2:06.97. Freshman Yasmin Woodruff ran a lifetime-best time to finish fourth in the 200m ““ good enough to make it to nationals in her first attempt.
“Age doesn’t really mean a whole lot to me,” Woodruff said. “After not qualifying (in the 100m), I knew I had to make it in the 200.”
For those who did not finish in the top five in their event to earn an automatic berth, at-large bids are available based on the descending order list.
Junior Katy Viuf was seventh in the pole vault at regionals, but has a top 10 rank. She has a good chance to qualify for the NCAA Championships, but she will have to wait until the final list is released.
A few athletes were edged out of the top five, resulting in heartbreak and an end to their season.
Lindsay Rowe came in sixth in the 100m hurdles by six thousandths of a second, and Ke’Nyia Richardson missed out on nationals in the triple jump.
“They just came up short,” Bolden said. “The hardest place to be is sixth-best.”
Ryann Krais was second in her heat in the 100m hurdles by a photo finish and was sixth in the 400m hurdles. The freshman will focus on the heptathlon because she earned her NCAA mark at the Pac-10 Championships.
In the 3,000m steeplechase, Ciara Viehweg came in 12th and ended her career as a Bruin. She will forfeit her senior season of eligibility to study abroad but will remain in the record books. Viehweg holds the best mark for UCLA in that event at 10:20.66.
In the next two weeks, the qualifiers will prepare for the NCAA Championships with more top finishes in sight.
“The group is looking really good,” Leach said. “We are taking more people than last year, and we have quality athletes.”
