Sun Devils secure more bids

 by Sarah McLellan
 published on Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Each weekend of action for the ASU track and field program during the indoor season has produced the same results.

Automatic bids to the national meet have been secured, events have been won and school records have been rewritten.

The program's success was acknowledged last week with a bump in the national rankings, and both the men's and women's sides proved those assessments were accurate. ASU won five events and earned four automatic berths in this past weekend's action that had the team competing in three meets.

"Overall, it was a strong weekend for the team," coach Greg Kraft said.

The team, however, did not escape the weekend's action completely healthy.

Sophomore Jason Lewis injured his ankle in the weight throw and will be re-evaluated by doctors this week. Kraft said he's unsure how much time Lewis will miss, but that he expects Lewis back for the national championships in mid-March.

Despite the injury, other ASU athletes continued their push to the national championship meet as opportunities to earn bids diminish.

Senior April Kubishta started the weekend off for the Sun Devils by winning the women's pole vault in the championship division at the Tyson Invitational in Fayetteville, Ark. She cleared the qualifying mark of 4.20 meters.

"She's always been talented," Kraft said, explaining that she has a "blend of experience, talent and confidence.

"The pole vault is such a complex event. It's one of those things that you've got to be able to control a lot of different variables."

Kubishta's success was matched by ASU athletes competing at the Iowa State Classic in Ames, Iowa.

Senior Matt Turner won the long jump with a distance of 7.8 meters and established himself as a contender in the event at the national championships.

"He'll be one of the favorites," Kraft said. "He's got a great track IQ. I think he's eager to get there and show what he's made of."

Junior Sarah Stevens finished second in the weight throw with a toss of 20.79 meters. She won the shot put with a throw of 17.78 meters, which also took the national lead in the event.

Senior Jessica Pressley's throw of 17.12 meters in the shot put placed her third and also earned her an automatic berth to the national championships. Pressley finished fourth in the weight throw with a distance of 20.40 meters.

On the men's side, sophomore Ryan Whiting crushed ASU's record and re-established the national mark by winning the shot put with a toss of 20.75 meters. His throw was over 1 1/2 feet longer than his toss from last week.

"Ryan Whiting obviously set the standard for the weekend," Kraft said, adding that Whiting "stamps himself as a pretty big favorite for the national title" in the event.

The women's 4x400 meter relay placed first with a time of 3:38.65, edging out Florida in the event. In the men's event, ASU finished second with a time of 3:06.58, losing to Florida who finished in 3:06.48.

"For us to run Florida like we did, I think we'll be much improved in another three and a half weeks," Kraft said.

Junior Joel Phillip joined the men in the relay for the first time since he injured his knee at the Friday Night Challenge in Flagstaff Jan. 25.

Kraft called Phillip's return "huge.""If he's not running, we're not qualifying," he said.

At the Husky Invitational in Seattle, Wash., freshman Nectaly Barbosa ran the second-fastest time in school history when he finished with a time of 1:49.87 in the 800-meters event, placing eighth overall.

Senior Kyle Alcorn also clocked in with the second-fastest time in school history with his time of 7:55.63 in the 3,000-meter event to take fifth place.

Kraft said that for the first time since he came to ASU in July 1996, both the men's and women's program have "legit chances" at the national tournament.

"That doesn't happen very often," he said.

Reach the reporter at sarah.mclellan@asu.edu.