Arizona men’s and women’s track and field both took home podium finishes at the Big 12 Outdoor Track and Field Championships this weekend, giving the program its best conference championship showing in more than a dozen years.
The Arizona men placed runner-up to Texas Tech, while the women took third, finishing behind Texas Tech and BYU. The Wildcats hosted the Big 12 Championships this year at Drachman Stadium in Tucson.
Arizona’s Mason Lawyer brought some fireworks to the final day of competition
Saturday, sweeping the men’s 100- and 200-meter dashes. Lawyer ran a time of 9.93 in the 100, then followed it up with a 20.02 time in the 200, setting a facility and meet record. Lawyer’s 200m time is the 8th0fastest in the world this year.
Lawyer, a senior, transferred to Arizona from Washington State last year after WSU cut its sprints and hurdles program.
Lawyer’s day also included a second-place finish as part of Arizona’s 4x100m relay team. The Wildcats ran a time of 38.93, behind only Kansas State.
The Arizona men secured points in the middle and long distance events with the help of a pair of freshmen. Lawi Ngetich took third in the 1500m with a time of 3:59.27, and Evans Tanui placed sixth in the 5,000m with a time of 13:53.93.
Arizona finished with 101 points in the men’s team event. The runner-up finish was the team’s best since 2011, when the UA took second at the Pac-12 Championships.
The Wildcats women ended the meet strong Saturday with a big showing in the high jump. Arizona’s Emma Gates, Kya Crooke and Paris Mikiniski finished second, third and fourth in the event, all clearing 1.85m.
Tapenisa Havea contributed to the Wildcats’ point total with a 5th-place finish in the discus throw. Arizona also performed well in the 100m hurdles, with Taylen Wise and Hollan Powers taking fourth and fifth, respectively.
The Arizona women finished with 79. Their third-place finish was the program’s best since finishing second at the 2013 Pac-12 Championships.
The weekend marked a big milestone for first-year head coach Andrew Dubs, who was hired to bring the program back to national success. The Arizona men and women both greatly improved from eighth place finishes at last year’s Big 12 Championships.
Arizona will next compete at the NCAA Prelims in Fayetteville, Ark. from May 27-30.
