Texas Tech University Athletics
Tech Hosts Second Invitational of the Year
January 23, 2009 | Track and Field
Jan. 23, 2009
Complete Release in PDF Format 
LUBBOCK, Texas - Texas Tech hosts its second Texas Tech Invitational of the year this Saturday at the Athletic Training Center as it continues to prepare for the Big 12 Championships, in late February.
Omo Osaghae and Gil Roberts hope to continue their impressive starts as they lead the No. 12 Red Raiders into the meet. Osaghae has the nation's second-fastest time in the 60M hurdles and Roberts has the fastest time in the 400M.
D'Andra Carter, Patience Knight and Ozie Okolie of the No. 9 Lady Raiders were a strong point last weekend as the trio threw NCAA provisional marks in the shot put and weight throw. Sally Kipyego and Lillian Badaru are looking for a fast start in the 5000m as they look to qualify for the NCAA Indoor Championships. The 5000M race is slated to start at 11 a.m.
The Texas Tech Invitational starts on Saturday at 10 a.m. with the long jump and weight throw. The running events will start at 11:30 a.m. with the preliminaries of the 55M hurdles.
Last Week The Texas Tech track squads wrapped a successful Texas Tech Invitational winning nine titles and five provisionally qualified for the NCAA Indoor Championships. Omo Osaghae set a new school and ATC record in the 55M hurdles. His time of 7.17 is only .02 away from an NCAA automatic mark. Gil Roberts started the year strong by winning the 400M in a nation-leading time of 46.59.
Big 12 AOW Sophomore Gil Roberts earned his first Big 12 Athlete of the Week honors for his performance at the Texas Tech Invitational this past weekend. He won the 400M in impressive fashion with a NCAA provisional and personal-best time of 46.59.
School Record Broke Omo Osaghae broke a year-old school record held by former teammate Shawon Harris on Saturday. He won the 55M hurdles with a NCAA provisional and personal-best time of 7.17.
Rankings Both the Red Raiders and Lady Raiders were in the preseason rankings by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. The Red Raiders are No. 12 and the third-ranked Big 12 school and the Lady Raiders are No. 9 and the second in the Big 12.
Star Studded Returners Texas Tech has a total of eight All-Americans returning for the 2009 season. The group is highlighted by eight-time NCAA champion Sally Kipyego. Two-time All-American throwers Patience Knight and D'Andra Carter are the other women retuning. The men have Anthony Flemons, Tim Foster, Rodney Mims, Omo Osaghae and Gil Roberts.
History in the Making Senior Sally Kipyego is entering her final season as a Lady Raider and has the potential to make history. During the fall, the Kenyan native became the first male or female in Division I history to win three-straight NCAA cross country individual championships. Kipyego has eight NCAA individual titles and could tie Wisconsin's Suzy Favor who has the most female individual titles in track & field and cross country NCAA history with nine.
Newcomers Tech has 27 newcomers for the season. The men boast the fifth-best recruiting class in the nation by Track and Field News and the class is highlighted by Markus Henderson, Jamele Mason and Brandon Tucker. The women have a strong group of freshmen and transfers. Lillian Badaru has already made a name for herself as she earned her first All-American honor in cross country last fall.
New Additions The Texas Tech track program added a new face as Roy Williams, a former TCU All-American, was hired to coach sprints and relays. Williams spent the last three years at the University of Texas at Arlington as the associate head coach of sprints, relays, jumps and hurdles. He coached an Olympic qualifier in the 200M and 4x100M relay and an All-American in the 110M hurdles during his tenure.
10-Year Anniversary This season marks the 10th year that head coach Wes Kittley has been with the Texas Tech track & field program. Since then his program has seen nine NCAA champions and 97 All-American honors.
Players Mentioned
