While the inclement weather in the Pacific Northwest claimed the
seasons of a number of other athletes over the weekend,
UCLA’s 4×400-meter relay team was able to escape with its
NCAA hopes intact. The Bruin mile relay team, which has been among
the top 10 in the country all season, saw its season almost come to
an abrupt end when UCLA’s Brandon Johnson dropped the baton
after colliding with Oregon’s A.K. Ikwuakor in the exchange
zone. But despite the pouring rain and 40-degree temperatures,
anchor leg Craig Everhart came to the Bruins’ rescue, picking
up the baton and helping them to a fourth-place finish ““ good
enough to keep them in position for an at-large bid. “We
probably would have won the race if it weren’t for
that,” Johnson said. “We were in third when I was
coming in and I was trying to decide what to do, but I didn’t
have the time to react.” Going into the last lap, the Bruins
were in prime position to take home an automatic bid to the NCAA
Championships, but Johnson’s error left their hopes in
jeopardy. The collision caused both Johnson and Ikwuakor to hit the
track, taking valuable seconds away from Everhart, who was passed
by Washington and had to hustle to maintain fourth place. But
despite the uncertainty of having the relay’s fate in the
hands of the at-large selection committee, the team knew it was a
near lock for the NCAA Championships even with its disappointing
showing at waterlogged Hayward Field. After finishing with the
second fastest time of any non-qualifying mile relay, just behind
Mississippi State, UCLA earned one of six at-large bids.
“We’re getting in there by the skin of our teeth by the
way we’ve been running,” sprints coach Tony Veney said.
“Sometimes you just get a brain hiccup and you lose sight of
what’s going on around you.” UCLA, which boasts the
10th fastest time in the nation ““ 3:04.11 minutes ““ is
hoping to cut that time down to the 3:02 range and qualify for the
finals. Seniors Mario Bassani and Denye’ Versher will run the
first two legs of the relay for the Bruins, followed by Johnson and
Everhart.
DOWN TO ONE EVENT: Despite easily qualifying in both the 1500m
and 800m races, senior Jon Rankin will now focus solely on the
1500m at the NCAA Championships. “(UCLA coach Peterson and I)
decided that it will be difficult for the team to win a team
title,” Rankin said. “It would be easier to focus on
one event and we have been working on the mile all year.” Had
the team been in contention to place high, Rankin believes that he
and his coaches would have come to a different conclusion.
“We were hoping we would get a few more athletes to qualify
and I could help us place higher,” Rankin said. “If
that were the scenario, then maybe 13 points would be better than
maybe six or eight.” Rankin will now be able to focus his
full abilities on the 1500m, where he will be up against fellow
top-tier milers Donald Sage of Stanford, Sean Jefferson of Florida,
Nathan Brennan of Michigan and Bryan Lindsey of BYU.
OTHER AT-LARGE BIDS: Also joining the Bruins’ automatic
qualifiers will be a bevy of throwers and one pole vaulter who all
received at-large bids Tuesday. Freshmen Greg Garza and John
Caulfield will represent UCLA in the throws ring as Garza qualifies
in the discus and Caulfield moves on in the shot put. Also, senior
Ely Dial picked up an at-large bid in the javelin throw. In the
pole vault, the Bruins picked up just one at-large bid as junior
Dave Murphy survived the conditions in Oregon last weekend to
qualify as the only UCLA jumper participating at the
Championships.