No record is safe
Senior Jazz Allen clears a hurdle on his way to a victory in the 60-meter hurdles at the MSSU Lions Invite on February 2, 2013. Allen had a final time of 8.33 which was .03 seconds faster than the second place runner. Jazz last competed in the 110-meter hurdles at the Gorilla Classic on April 11, 2015, where he finished fourth with a final time of 14.59.
The Missouri Southern men’s track and field team is recuperating at home after a fruitful weekend saw them compete in four meets. The Lions sent a small group to Lawrence, Kan., for the KU Relays while the throwers were in Warrensburg for the Mule Relays. Elsewhere, a trio of runners travelled to Walnut, Calif., for the Mt. SAC Relays, while others stayed closer to home for the Dewey Allgood Invitational in Rolla.
In Rolla, the 4×100 meter relay team of Jazz Allen, Erron Holley, Desmond Williams and Jeff Fraley broke their own school record from a week ago with a provisional time of 40.54 seconds, currently seventh fastest in the country.
“I hate to make it about records and I hate to get cocky, but I think we can do it again in front of our home crowd this weekend,” said Holley. “Our sticks were really bad this past weekend and we still broke it, so if we prepare this week and get clean sticks all around, who knows what we’ll run.”
Fraley also qualified first in the 100 meters with a provisional time of 10.41, ninth in the country. Williams finished third in the final of the event. Herculaneum High School graduate Jacob Coffman won the 3k with a personal record of 9:11.28, while sophomore Nathan Henry and senior Colton Wooldridge took the top two spots in the 3k steeple chase. Holley in the 200 meters, and freshman Thomas Hawkins in the 400 meters, both finished second in their races.
Senior Eric Schott finished eighth in the 10,000-meter run at Mt. SAC.
“The 10k really beats up your body,” said Schott. “I definitely would have liked to run a little faster, but I currently sit 12th in the nation, which I think will get me into the national meet in five weeks.”
In Warrensburg, sophomore Bryan Burns and junior Tyler Hovey both scored provisional marks in the shot put while Burns also landed provisional distances in the discus and hammer throw.
“Each week my technique gets better and better so hopefully it all comes together by conference time,” said Burns.
The Lions hope to draw some inspiration from their friends and family when they compete at home today in their final meet before the MIAA Outdoor Championships. The Bill Williams/Bob Laptad Invitational will be at Fred G. Hughes Stadium, with field events beginning at 11 a.m. followed by running at 3 p.m.
“We get to compete in front of our home fans in a comfortable environment that we train at every day,” said Hovey. “Fans that come out should see some excellent performances.”
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