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Women's Track and Field: Rice Repeats as Conference Champs
5/20/2001 12:00:00 AM | Women's Track & Field
May 20, 2001
FRESNO, Calif. - The Rice Owls claimed their second straight Western Athletic Conference outdoor track and field championship title, defeating Nevada 142.5-111, at Warmerdam Field in Fresno, Calif. Saturday.
The 15th ranked Owls put forth an outstanding effort throughout the meet, and were rewarded not only with the championship, but the high-point winner, freshman of the year and coach of the year. Keitha Moseley, a junior from Barbados, once again nabbed the high point award, adding 26 points to the Owls total. Moseley repeated as heptathlon champion, finished second in the 100 meter hurdles and high jump, and crossed the finish line sixth in the 200 meters. Moseley set a new school record in the heptathlon with 4,862 points, which included three first place finishes in the seven events. In the 100 meter hurdles, Moseley was edged by Nevada's Chanika Corley by four one-hundredths of a second, finishing second with a time of 13.80. In the 200 meters, Moseley posted a time of 24.47 and she crossed the high bar at a season best 5-09 1/2. Freshman Keia Watkins, a native of College Station, grabbed fourth place in the high jump, notching a personal best 5-07 1/4. Jessica Sommerfeld, competing in her last outdoor conference championship for Rice, posted a fifth place finish in the discus with a heave of 144-05.
The freshman of the year award went to Allison Beckford. The Jamaican native earned her award after winning both the 400 meters and 400 meter hurdles. Beckford improved her 400 time by a second, posting an NCAA automatic qualifying time of 52.06. In the 400 hurdles - one lap around the track covering ten hurdles - Beckford crossed the finish line in 58.59. She has already automatically qualified for the NCAA championships with a time of 56.31, set at the Drake Relays.
Senior LaKeisha Robertson added to the Owls point total with a fourth place finish in the 200 meters, and a fifth place finish in the 100 meters. The San Antonio native clocked a 24.09 and 11.78, respectively. Monica Twum of TCU set a new stadium record, topping the old record of 11.35 set by Gail Devers in 1986, with a first place finish and a mark of 11.31. Robertson was also a member of the 4x100 relay that took second. The foursome of Robertson, Kelechi Anderson, Moseley and Konnett Mays posted an NCAA provisional qualifying time of 44.98.
In the 800 meters, the Owls took second and fourth, with juniors Aimee Teteris finishing with an NCAA provisional qualifying time of 2:06.02, and Erin Brand clocking a time of 2:10.98. Both were season bests for the duo. Four Owls ran in the 1,500 meters, with Brand the top Rice athlete to complete the race. The Petrolia, Ontario, Canada native finished fifth with a time of 4:32.78. Right behind her was junior Elizabeth Ruckman, and freshman Shannon Murto placed eighth.
The final point standings were as follows: Rice-142.5, Nevada-111, TCU-110, Fresno State-110, SMU-109, Tulsa-96, UTEP-91.5, Hawaii-46.
Head coach Victor Lopez walked away as the coach of the year again for the second straight year. The Puerto Rican has nabbed the honors the past two years in both indoor and outdoor competition. The Owls will head to the NCAA outdoor championships May 30-June 2 in Eugene, Ore. This was their fifth WAC championship in six tries. The Owls captured the 1999 cross country title, and added indoor and outdoor championships in 2000 and 2001.
