AUSTIN, TEXAS, June 08-10 — “When you see something in them, and they don’t really see it, and then watching them actually physically execute the plan, it is so rewarding.” Thus spoke Texas coach Edrick Floréal after his Longhorn women hooked ’em the NCAA team trophy.
“Watching them realize their own potential is like the coolest thing.”
The women’s team victory was Texas’s fifth outdoors — after wins in ’86, ’98, ’99 & ’05 — and the first since Floréal was named director in June of ’18.
The title effort saw Texas triumph with 83 points, the No. 5 score ever, in turning back Florida (51) and Indoor champion Arkansas (46), with Oregon (44) and Texas A&M (36) filling out the top 5.
Texas came to its home track at Mike A. Myers Stadium favored and in position on our formchart to rack up a prodigious 88-point tally. Incidentally, keen observer Jack Pfeifer’s chart correctly IDed the top 5 teams with only the order of the Aggies and Ducks reversed.
Not unexpectedly Texas did the job with sprint and jumps power. Super sprinter Julien Alfred doubled in the 100 and 200 and led off the 4×1 winner quartet. Rhasidat Adeleke captured the 400 and ran the second curve on that lap relay. Soph jumper Ackelia Smith won the long jump and was runner-up in the triple.
In the 100 Kevona Davis (5th) and Ezzine Abba (7th) joined Alfred as scorers. In the 200 Alfred was followed by Davis (3rd) and Lanae Thomas (5th) for a 5-point pickup versus the chart. Smith’s LJ podium topper put her team 2 points ahead of the chart and heptathlete Kristīne Blaževiča’s 3rd-place finish came as predicted.
Only in the 4×4, after a DQ in the semis, did the No. 2-rated Longhorns take a serious hit.
Floréal and several of his athletes emphasized that the meet for them was a matter of doing it for each other. “They all agreed it isn’t about anybody’s record or time, it was about supporting their team and fighting like hell, and that is what you saw today.” The coach said. “It was really about Texas.”
With a team emphasis, Floréal said, “Fear and anxiety goes away, because you’re not doing it for you. You’re not worrying about your time. You’re just trying to help your team, and when you free yourself, you can perform at the highest level.”
Keeping with recent protocol, the meet was staged over 4 days with women’s events on 3 of them: Thursday mostly prelims, Friday heptathlon, Saturday finals-only. Tickets sold Wednesday–Saturday: 5741/5721/8247/7430. Daily high temperatures were in the low-to-mid 90s with humidity and a lightning delay of about 2 hours on June 08 set back the start times for the hammer, javelin and pole vault.
WOMEN’S TEAM SCORES
1. Texas 83 (#5 total ever)
2. Florida 51
3. Arkansas 46
4. Oregon 44
5. Texas A&M 36
6. Kentucky 28
7. LSU 26
8. Nebraska 25
9. Harvard 23
10. tie, Georgia & Tennessee 19;
12. tie, Oklahoma & Utah Valley 18; 14. Michigan 17; 15. tie, USC & Utah 16; 17. tie, Ball State, BYU & Virginia 14; 20. tie, Stanford & Vanderbilt 13; 22. tie, Notre Dame & Oklahoma State 12; 24. Auburn 11½; 25. tie, Alabama, Mississippi, Texas Tech & Virginia Tech 11; 29. tie, Missouri & Washington 10½; 31. tie, Campbell & Ohio State 10; 33. New Mexico 9; 34. South Dakota 8½; 35. tie, Cal Baptist & NC State 8; 37. tie, Cal, Florida State, Iowa State, Oregon State, UNLV & West Virginia 6; 43. tie, Arizona, Arizona State, Baylor, Duke, Hawai‘i & Kansas State 5; 49. tie, High Point, Memphis & Rice 4; 52. tie, Clemson, Coastal Carolina, Penn State & Providence 3; 56. tie, Arkansas State, Colorado State, San José State, Syracuse, Texas State, UCLA & Wisconsin 2; 63. tie, Cincinnati, Colorado, Georgetown, Illinois, Louisville, Miami, North Carolina A&T & North Carolina 1.
