Sun Devils double up

Track and field teams capture national indoor titles

 by Sarah McLellan
 published on Monday, March 17, 2008

Photo courtesy of Kirby Lee/Image of Sport

SALUTE AND SMILE: ASU’s men’s and women’s track teams celebrate in Arkansas Saturday.

"Don't be afraid of verbally saying what your goals are for greatness."

ASU track and field coach Greg Kraft gave that message to former Sun Devil Dwight Phillips after he made the Olympic team, explaining that there was nothing wrong about articulating his Olympics goals.

Kraft used the same tactic this season, letting his athletes know from the beginning what the expectations were and what they should expect as members of the Arizona State track and field team.

So when the men's and women's teams grabbed the NCAA Indoor Championship titles Saturday in Fayetteville, Ark., the only surprise belonged to the onlookers.

"There was a lot of shock [Saturday] night when we walked out with both titles," Kraft said.

But with the women's winning the indoor championship for the second straight year and ASU's being only the second school in history to sweep the titles, that shock is about to dissipate into cold reality.

"There's no more shock," Kraft said. "They understand that we're dangerous. We've got everybody's attention."

The women's team racked up 51 points to defend its title, while the men earned its first indoor championship by posting 44 points.

"It was really an overwhelming weekend," Kraft said. "All the student athletes went there with a purpose. They got it done."

Aside from the team victories, ASU also had three individual champions as senior Jacquelyn Johnson won her third indoor pentathlon championship, sophomore Ryan Whiting captured the shot put title and senior Kyle Alcorn earned the 3,000 meter crown.

Johnson became the first three-time winner of the indoor pentathlon and the ninth woman in NCAA history to be a three-time winner in the same event. She scored 4,496 points in the event to shatter the meet and collegiate records.

Johnson finished first in the 60-meter hurdles and the high jump, second in the long jump and third in the shot put. She needed to win by at least four seconds in the 800-meters to take the title and did so by clocking in at 2:13.45, which nearly broke the collegiate pentathlon 800-meter record of 2:13.40.

Like Johnson, Whiting's victory came down to the wire. On his last throw, Whiting won the shot put title with a toss of 21.73 meters, breaking a collegiate record of 21.50 meters set in 1977.

"It took them to set the collegiate record to even win," Kraft said of Johnson and Whiting. "That speaks to why they're national champions. They're clutch."

Alcorn's victory in the 3,000 meters came at a crucial time for the men's team.

After the first day of action, the men's team sat in third place with 19 points.

"I thought we needed to be around 20 points to have a chance to win," Kraft said.

With Alcorn's event and the 4x400-meter relay the only events remaining, the men's team found itself trailing Florida State by 10 points.

But Alcorn's first-place run in the 3,000 meters, a race in which he finished in 8:00.82, tied up the team scores heading into the final event.

With the pressure on the 4x400-meter team of senior Jimmie Gordon, junior Darryl Elston, sophomore Justin Kremer and junior Joel Phillip to finish ahead of Florida State, the team clocked in at 3:06.34 to finish third, three spots in front of Florida State, sealing the team victory.

The women's team sat in the fifth spot after the first day of competition with 15 points, but strong performances in the field coupled with Johnson's pentathlon victory vaulted the women to the No. 1 slot.

Louisiana State is the only other team to sweep the indoor titles in NCAA history, earning the honor in 2004.

For Kraft, having both teams win the national title is more special than last year when the men were left on the outside looking in as the women seized the national glory.

"To have them both being there with their smiling faces and celebrating, it's really cool," he said.

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