AFTER 5 MEN — none of them named Courtney Lindsey — broke 10-flat in the prelims the Texas Tech senior with his PR of 10.02 was nearly forgotten in lane 8 at the start of the final.
Florida senior PJ Austin led the heats with a list-leading 9.89 that raised him to =No. 4 on the all-time collegiate list. He would be in 5, between Auburn’s Favour Ashe (9.96) and LSU soph Godson Oghenebrume (9.93). Favored Udodi Onwuzurike of Stanford would be in 1; his heat earned him the final qualifying spot by just 0.005. Left behind was Indoor 60 champ Terrence Jones of Texas Tech.
At the gun, Onwuzurike and Houston’s Shawn Maswanganyi (lane 3) got out best. By midrace Oghenebrume had caught them, only to be caught himself by Lindsey. The two flew to the line, Oghenebrume sneaking several glances at Lindsey in the final strides. The Red Raider had a 6-inch margin at the finish and his 9.89 with a 1.8 wind tied Austin’s collegiate lead.
Oghenebrume landed a PR with his 9.90, while Maswanganyi crossed 3rd with a PR 9.91. LSU’s Da’Marcus Fleming also got a lifetime in 4th with his 9.97, just 0.004 ahead of the 9.97 by Austin. Onwuzurike crossed 6th in 9.98, with Oregon’s Micah Williams 7th in 9.99. Seven under 10.00 made this the deepest NCAA final ever, easily topping the legal best of 3 in ’19 (and 5 windy in ’15).
“It helped me get ready for the 200,” said Lindsey. “I think the 200 is going to be even faster. It was a fast race. I didn’t have a very good start. I thought I was the last one out. But once I got in my drive phase, and I got up and looked at the field, it kinda seemed like I put myself back in the race.
“All I knew then was to trust myself and let my feet carry me.”
For Lindsey, it helped dull the pain of the ill-fated relay experience which ended in a DQ for Tech. “I was disappointed,” he said, “But I had to keep my head focused and actually go out there and score for my team. And try to win the thing.”
He explained that having the slowest PR on the starting line had not intimidated him. “Every race I go into I think I can win. I knew I was capable of it.
MEN’S 100 RESULTS
FINAL (June 09; wind +1.8)
1. Courtney Lindsey (TxT) 9.89 PR (=CL) (=4, =4 C; 3, 3 NCAA;
2. **Godson Oghenebrume’ (LSU-Ngr) 9.90 PR (=7, =7 C; =6, =6 NCAA);
3. *Shaun Maswanganyi’ (Hous-SA) 9.91 PR (=9, =9 C; =8, =8 NCAA);
4. *Da’Marcus Fleming (LSU) 9.97 PR (9.965);
5. PJ Austin (Fl) 9.97 (9.969);
6. **Udodi Onwuzurike’ (Stan-Ngr) 9.98;
7. *Micah Williams (Or) 9.99;
8. **Favour Ashe’ (Aub-Ngr) 10.02;
9. Cole Beck (VaT) 10.05.
(best-ever mark-for-place: 9; best-ever mark-for-NCAA-place: 2–9)
SEMIS (June 07)
I(1.3)–1. Austin 9.89 PR (CL) (=4, =4 C; 3, 3 NCAA);
2. Beck 9.97 PR; 3. Fleming 10.01 PR; 4. *Kion Benjamin’ (Mn-Tri) 10.09; 5. *Javonte Harding (Tn) 10.12; 6. Isaiah Trousil (NnIa) 10.13; 7. ***Louie Hinchliffe’ (WaSt-GB) 10.19;… fs—*Ryan Martin (TxAM).
II(1.3)–1. Ashe’ 9.96 PR; 2. Lindsey 10.03; 3. **Robert Gregory (Fl) 10.04 PR (fastest non-qualifier ever) (10.038); 4. *Terrence Jones’ (TxT-Bah) 10.06; 5. Amir Willis (FlSt) 10.07 PR; 6. Sterling Warner-Savage (Louis) 10.12 PR; 7. Karlington Anunagba’ (NTx-Ngr) 10.20; 8. Lawrence Johnson (Wi) 10.27.
III(0.8)–1. Oghenebrume’ 9.93 PR (=10, =10 C; =7, =7 NCAA);
2. Maswanganyi’ 9.99 PR; 3. Williams 10.03; 4. Onwuzurike’ 10.04 (10.033); 5. Alaba Akintola’ (MTn-Ngr) 10.07; 6. Brandon Hicklin (LSU) 10.12 PR; 7. **Nolton Shelvin (Tx) 10.15; 8. **Rodney Heath (LaT) 10.33.
