Since the NCAA regional meets two weeks ago, the Texas Tech track and field men’s and women’s teams dropped several spots apiece in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association rankings index.
Both, however, are in position to earn top-10 team finishes and bring home an individual title from the NCAA outdoor championships this week in Eugene, Oregon. The four-day meet at Hayward Field unfolds with men’s competition on Wednesday, June 10, and Friday, June 12, and women’s events on Thursday, June 11, and Saturday, June 13.
Both Tech teams are ranked No. 9, the men’s team down from No. 5 two weeks ago and the women’s team down from No. 6. However, men’s triple jumper Jonathan Seremes and women’s high jumper Temitope Adeshina both have No. 1 rankings individually and won the NCAA titles in their events at the indoor championships in March.
“This week’s what we’ve been working for all year long,” said Tech coach Wes Kittley, who has 15 women and 12 men qualifiers. “It’s a really big group and a large group to go and have some opportunities to score. We’ve got to be on. It’s a really tough meet, but I’m looking forward to it.”
The Tech men have finished in the top 10 six times since 2011, winning the program’s first NCAA championship in 2019 in Austin. The Red Raiders were 17th last year in Eugene.
The Tech women have finished in the top 10 four times, the best showing being fifth place in 2008 at Des Moines, Iowa, and seventh-place finishes in 2022 and 2024 at Eugene. The Tech women were 12th last year.
This week, Tech projects to score 23 points on the men’s side and 21 on the women’s. That’s if every athlete finished in the same spot as his or her pre-meet ranking. Only the top eight finishers in final events score.
Tech men ranked in the top eight are Seremes in the triple jump, Malachi Snow, No. 4 in the 110-meter hurdles; Titus Kimaru, No. 4 in the 3,000-meter steeplechase; and Zaid Latif, No. 6 in the long jump.
Among those trying to crack the top eight are B.J. Jennings, No. 9 in the high jump; John Sherman, No. 10 in the 100 meters; the Red Raiders’ 400-meter relay, slotted No. 11; and the 1,600-meter relay, sitting No. 12.
Tech women ranked in the top eight are Adeshina in the high jump; Tonie-Ann Forbes, No. 5 in the 100-meter hurdles; Evelyn Lavielle, No. 5 in the high jump; and Tamiah Washington, No. 6 in the triple jump. Looking to make the finals and score are the ninth-ranked 400-meter relay; Vanessa Balde, No. 11 in the 400-meter hurdles; Symoria Adkins, No. 12 in the 100-meter hurdles; and the 12th-ranked 1,600-meter relay.
“We have a lot of bullets in the women’s,” Kittley said. “We’ve just got to be ready to go.”
How to watch Texas Tech track and field at NCAA championships
∎ TV: 7 p.m. CDT each day, Wednesday, June 10 on ESPN and ESPN2, Thursday, June 11 through Saturday, June 13, on ESPN2.
Texas Tech track and field teams in the national rankings
∎ Men: No. 9 in US Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association ratings index.
∎ Women: No. 9 in US Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association ratings index.
Men’s schedule
∎ Wednesday and Friday (all times CDT): Field event start times range from 4:30 p.m. to 9:10 p.m. Wednesday and from 4:15 p.m. to 7:10 p.m. Friday. Running event start times are from 7:05 p.m. to 10:36 p.m. Wednesday and from 6:50 p.m. to 9:21 p.m. Friday.
Women’s schedule
∎ Thursday and Saturday (all times CDT): Field event start times range from 4:30 p.m. to 9:10 p.m. Thursday and from 1:30 p.m. to 7:10 p.m. Saturday. Running event start times are from 7:05 p.m. to 10:36 p.m. Thursday and from 6:50 p.m. to 9:21 p.m. Saturday.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Texas Tech track and field teams aim for top-10 finishes at NCAA meet
Reporting by Don Williams, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal / Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Don Williams, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal | USA TODAY Network
