University of Tennessee Athletics
University of Tennessee
NCAA Championships%
Volunteers Meet Adversity on Third Day at NCAA Outdoors
May 31, 2002 | Men's Track
May 31, 2002
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BATON ROUGE, La. -- Tennessee head coach Bill Webb has a theory that the storms of adversity must visit each track and field squad at least one day during any major championship. Sometimes you win after the storms clear -- see the 2001 NCAA Outdoor and 2002 SEC Outdoor meets -- and sometimes you don't -- see the 2002 SEC Indoor meet. Despite the adversity, Tennessee climbed to a tie for fourth with 18 points, as the Vols need to pull out one of the best day's in program history Saturday to catch leader LSU's 39-point total
Unfortunately for the orange-blooded in attendance Friday at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at LSU's Bernie Moore Track Stadium, the storms of adversity hung around longer than the real ones on a day slowed with a severe weather delay. Competition was delayed an hour because of a lightning display, a downpour and subsequent clean up of the track. However, the storm clouds continued to follow the Vols a good portion of the day.
Conversely, LSU extended its lead with a day that saw more ups than downs for the Bayou Bengals. While Tennessee didn't notch quite as many points in the 4x100M relay or 800M run as it wanted and senior sprinter Leonard Scott is questionable for tomorrow because of injury, there were some positive points for the Vols, as well. Rocky Danners pieced together a masterful start to the pole vault to finish third and notch All-America honors. The Vols qualified both Justin Gatlin and Scott for the 100M dash finals. Additionally, Kevin Thompson and Stephen Harris are in scoring position after the first day of the decathlon.
"We had kind of an up and down day," head coach Bill Webb said. "That's the way this meet is. We scored points in the pole vault, 4x100M relay and 800M run. We'll figure Leonard's situation out tomorrow. He has a big heart. I know he wants to run. We have two decathletes right in the thick of things with a solid first day. I see it coming down to the last event on the last day."
Of all the Vols, Danners did exactly what he was supposed to do. Danners cleared 16-10 3/4, 17-4 1/2 and 17-10 1/2 with only one miss. However, 17-10 1/2 would be his highest clearance. The junior tried three attempts at 18-2 1/2, with the first his closest to clearing, before bowing out of the competion. Danners placed third, matching his ranking entering the meet.
"I'm excited about my finish," Danners said. "I talked to Coach Chapman (his high school coach) on the phone before the meet, and that helped. Also, having (volunteer pole vault) Coach Bemiller here helped a lot. I always like having him here for big meets. We know every point is going to count."
Tennessee's 4x100M relay also came up third with a 38.83 All-America finish, just one hundredth of a second out of second place. Tennessee's familiar lineup of Sean Lambert, Gatlin, co-captain Hassaan Stamps and Scott passed the baton for Tennessee. While the time is still impressive, the relay mechanics weren't as precise as the Vol quartet would have liked. Thickening the plot for Saturday, LSU won the event after Tennessee came into the meet with the best time in the nation to swing the team-point standings.
Meanwhile, Marc Sylvester picked up three points with a sixth-place finish in the 800M run. Sylvester ran a 1:46.21, bettering his previous career best by more than half a second. Additionally, the time moves Sylvester to second on the Vol all-time 800M run list behind only the legendary Jose' Parrilla. However, as strong an effort as Sylvester put forth, the rookie came into the meet with the fourth-best qualifying time. Sylvester still picked up his second All-America certificate in his young Tennessee career.
"They were moving very fast," Sylvester said. "It just got to the point my legs wouldn't move any faster. I put it out there. I was just trying to fight and get anybody I could."
Tennessee got mixed news in qualifying efforts Friday. Gatlin and Scott reserved lanes in the 100M finals with strong semifinal times. Gatlin led all semifinalists in 10.05, a time that ties his career-best wind-legal time. Scott got in the finals with a 10.23. However, the race may have been costly to Tennessee. Scott pulled up limping after the race with a right hamstring injury. Meanwhile, Lambert barely missed out on qualifying for the finals with a 10th-place, 10.31 finish.
"I got out and felt good," Scott said. "With five to 10 meters left, I felt a pop in my right hamstring. We knew coming in we were going to have our ups and downs. It's going to be a fight to the finish."
Meanwhile, decathletes Stephen Harris and Kevin Thompson have moved into scoring position after the first five events of the decathlon. Harris currently stands fifth with 4,169 points. In three of his traditional strengths, Harris won the 400M dash to close the day in 48.35, took second to open the day with a career-best 100M dash time of 10.61 and took fourth in the high jump with a 6-9 leap. Thompson posted a career-best first-day score of 4,080 points. Thompson's third-place, 50-1 1/4 shot put effort stands as a personal best. Additionally, Thompson also finished sixth with a 49.38 to close the day in the 400M dash. Thompson posted decathlon career bests in the first three events -- 100M dash, long jump and shot put.
Meanwhile, hurdler Jabari Greer's successful first collegiate track season came to an end in the 110M hurdles semifinals. Greer finished 10th in 13.89, two-hundredths of a second away from the finals.
The only thing that seems to be a certainty is that there will be no dark horse sneaking into the team race this year. Two hard-charging freight trains, one burning orange and white and the other purple and gold, are steaming full speed ahead toward a smashing, track-rattling collision Saturday. The winner earns the title of best in the land. The other picks up the pieces and accepts a trophy that won't shine quite as bright in the trophy case.
Tennessee has a chance to score in the decathlon (Harris and Thompson), 400M dash (Gary Kikaya), 100M dash (Gatlin and Scott, pending his medical evaluation), 200M dash (Gatlin and Scott) and the 4x400M relay, the final event of the meet. Tennessee and LSU both have teams qualified for the final in the meet-capping event.
