FAYETTEVILLE, ARKANSAS, May 06–07 — Florida soph Anna Hall PRed big in the opening hurdles (13.21 good for 4th in the event) separated herself from the field with a 23.14 dash in the 200 — a PR by 0.67 — and produced a scintillating 800 best of 2:03.11 at the end to qualify for July’s World Championships with a 6458 score.
The total carried her to No. 2 on the all-time collegiate list with George Mason Jamaican Diane Guthrie-Gresham’s 6527 from ’95 the only higher tally. It also replaced her own 6412 from the Texas Relays as the American-born CR.
Hall’s score is the highest with the current javelin. Her hard-pressing 2-lapper with a 57.75 first lap all alone in front was the No. 3 closer in event history. Nadine Debois of France leads that list with her 2:01.84 from Talence ’87.
“I feel like on Cloud 9, it still hasn’t really set in yet,” said Hall, who last summer DNFed the OT hurdles, breaking a foot which required a long rehab. “I feel a lot of relief to be done and that I hit the standard but I’m just really excited and proud of the group of people that I’m working with [on the Florida staff after transferring from Georgia] and excited to get ready for Worlds.”
She continued, “Honestly, yesterday outside of the running events was not that good for me and I wanted to be ahead of where I was points-wise. And I think my coaches noticed, and I noticed as well, I was a little tense and kind of like the 21-year-old in me was showing that I wasn’t as composed as I would like to be.
“So today I just tried to relax, think about anything but the meet all morning and then show up and just have fun.”
Hall’s second-day fun began with a 20-11¾ (6.39) long jump PR and rolled on from there through her inspired 800, a personal best by a second and a half.
Ashtin Mahler placed 2nd (6184) and Michelle Atherley 3rd (6154), neither near the Worlds Q-standard of 6420. Olympic 5th-placer Kendell Williams, having a Wild Card entry through her ’21 WA Combined Events Challenge win, never intended to finish and withdrew after the first day.
Erica Bougard, 9th in Tokyo and with a WC Q-standard in hand from her 6667 3rd-place OT finish, no-heighted the high jump after a 13.76 flight of hurdles yet nominally contested the remaining 5 events to secure a finish place (10th) that will keep her eligible under USATF’s protocol to accept a WA invitation to Eugene if one is offered. Bougard stood at No. 9 in the rolling WA ratings as the competition began.
OT winner Annie Kunz, who also owns a Q-standard mark, was forced to pass on the meet with a torn plantar fascia.
USATF HEPTATHLON RESULTS
1. Anna Hall (Fl) 6458 PR, AmCR (old AmCR 6412 Hall ’22) (2, 2 C) (WL, AL)
(13.21 PR, 5-9¼/1.76, 41-½/12.51, 23.14 PR [3781], 20-11¾/6.39 PR, 126-1/38.44, 2:03.11 PR [2677]);
2. Ashtin Mahler (Tracksm) 6184
(13.51, 5-10½/1.79, 42-11¾/13.10, 24.82 [3652], 19-4/5.89, 164-3/50.07, 2:17.71 [2532]);
3. Michelle Atherley (unat) 6154
(12.96, 5-5¾/1.67, 42-6¾/12.97, 23.80 [3673], 20-4½/6.21, 122-8/37.38, 2:11.05 [2481]);
4. Chari Hawkins (unat) 6031
(13.12, 5-10½/1.79, 45-7¾/13.91, 24.97 [3750], 19-7/5.97, 120-6/36.73, 2:19.08 [2281]);
5. Alissa Brooks-Johnson (unat) 5736
(13.94, 5-5¾/1.67, 39-10¾/12.16, 25.19 [3346], 19-8/5.99, 137-9/41.98, 2:18.83 [2390]);
6. Sarah Glidden (unat) 5608 PR
(13.97, 5-9¼/1.76, 33-11½/10.35, 24.45 [3401], 19-1½/5.83w, 108-10/33.18, 2:16.49 [2207]);
7. Melanie Winters (unat) 5590
(13.97, 5-7/1.70, 37-1¾/11.32, 24.20 [3416], 19-7/5.97, 104-4/31.81, 2:20.05 [2174]);
8. Cheyenne Williamson (SagV) 5427
(13.92, 5-5¾/1.67, 38-6¼/11.74, 24.09 [3424], 18-3¼/5.57, 88-8/27.04, 2:17.23 [2003]);
9. Taliyah Brooks (Asics) 4291
(13.15, 5-8/1.73, 42-11¾/13.10, 24.48 [3662], nm, 124-9/38.02, dnf [629]);
10. Erica Bougard (NikNYAC) 1675
(13.76, nh, nm, dnf [1013], nm, 130-4/39.73, dnf [662]);
… dnf—Kendell Williams (Nik)
(13.14, 5-9¼/1.76, 42-¾/12.82, 24.72 [3659], dnc),
… dnf—Hope Bender (unat)
(13.72, 5-7/1.70, 38-7/11.76, 24.86 [3418], nm, dnc).
— Heptathlon Top 5 Leaders After Each Event —
100 Hurdles: 1. Atherley 1130; 2. Hawkins 1106; 3. Brooks 1102; 4. Hall 1093; 5. Mahler 1049
High Jump: 1. Hawkins 2072; 2. Williams 2031; 3. Hall 2021; 4. Mahler 2015; 5. Brooks 1993; 6. Atherley 1948
Shot: 1. Hawkins 2860; 2. Mahler 2749; 3. Williams 2746; 4. Brooks 2727; 5. Hall 2716; 6. Atherley 2673
200: 1. Hall 3781; 2. Hawkins 3750; 3. Atherley 3673; 4. Brooks 3662; 5. Williams 3659; 6. Mahler 3652
Long Jump: 1. Hall 4753; 2. Hawkins 4590; 3. Atherley 4588; 4. Mahler 4468; 5. Winters 4256
Javelin: 1. Hall 5390; 2. Mahler 5329; 3. Atherley 5205; 4. Hawkins 5195; 5. Brooks-Johnson 4897
