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Track
team enters season looking for redemption Before the men’s track team competed in the final event of the NCAA Indoor Championships March 10, it was sitting in first place and looking at its first NCAA indoor title. But after senior sprinter Anthony Amantine dropped the baton in the 4x400-meter relay, the Frogs finished last in the event and second in the tournament.
Now as the Frogs prepare for their second meet of the outdoor season Saturday at the UTA Invitational in Arlington, senior sprinter Lindel Frater said that they are anxious to erase their NCAA indoor finish from their minds. “We are really disappointed with our finish, and we have a lot to prove in our outdoor season,” Frater said. “We’re ready to get started. We think we’re one of the best teams, and we’re going to show that to the other teams.” At the NCAA indoors, Frater finished fifth in the 200-meter dash with a time of 6.71, four spots behind teammate Kim Collins, a senior sprinter who grabbed the top spot in the event. Collins also finished first in the 60-meter dash. Senior sprinter and jumper Darvis Patton finished seventh. Last season, the team finished fourth at the NCAA indoor meet and won its first Western Athletic Conference title in school history. Head coach Monte Stratton said the optimism and the talent that both the men’s and women’s teams have will help them reach new heights. “Barring injury, I think the men’s team has a chance of winning the national championship, and the women’s team has a chance of winning a WAC Championship,” Stratton said. “We have a great deal of confidence right now, but we have to temper that enthusiasm and bring it at the right times. Our team feeds off every success, and our natural athleticism helps bring that success.” But to have that success, Stratton said that the Frogs will first have to get past the injury bug. “Injuries have been a plague,” Stratton said. “It has especially been a problem with our distance runners, which we are trying to recover. Any absence affects the whole team. When someone is not contributing, they’re not getting us the points that we need.” Frater said that although the men are not having huge injury problems right now, injuries can strike when least expected.
“Track is a funny sport because injuries can happen at any time,” Frater said. Distance runners on the women’s side, sophomore Robin Schacht, junior Katie Singleton and freshman Susan Hemphill, are all suffering from stress-related injuries due to their events, Stratton said. Despite the setbacks the injuries might cause for the women’s team, junior sprinter Heather Hanchak said the Frogs can overcome them. “(Injuries) are going to be a factor, but we have the confidence that we can be in the top three in conference,” Hanchak said. “This outdoor season we will do well in the longer distance events and have the opportunity of turning some heads this season. The women’s team is starting to come around and be a well-rounded program.” Hanchak said that while their usual indoor preparation may be the same for the outdoor season, the seasons themselves are different. “The outdoor season has more meets than the indoor season,” Hanchak said. “The outdoor season is our main focus. We try to make our indoor season carry over to our outdoor season.” In the Dr. Pepper Invitational, the Frogs first meet of the spring season (March 24 in Waco), the Frogs grabbed four first-place finishes before they withdrew from the meet because of inclement weather. Two of the Frogs top finishes came in the 1,500 meter run. Senior distance runner Glady’s Keitany captured first, with a time of 4:41.10 for the women, while junior middle distance runner Eliud Njubi won the event for the men with a time of 3:45.64. Senior Jason Howard took first place in the long jump.
As Frater enters his last season at TCU, he said he would love to
finish his career on top without another drop of the baton. Kelly
Morris |
