Thursday, March 11
Fayetteville, Ark.
4:30 P.M.
Texas Tech Athletics
vs
NCAA Indoor Championships
Red Raiders in Fayetteville for NCAA Indoor Championships
March 10, 2021 | Track and Field
Texas Tech primed for indoor nationals.
LUBBOCK, Texas – Texas Tech qualified 12 student-athletes across 15 events at the NCAA Indoor Championships.
After two stellar indoor campaigns, Ruth Usoro will finally get a chance to don the Scarlet & Black at an NCAA Championship meet. Usoro, whose first season at Tech was cut short due to COVID-19, was an All-American will now carry four Big 12 titles, two High Point Awards and two USTFCCCA Mountain Region Field Athlete of the Year honors into her first national meet as a Red Raider. Usoro's 2021 has been highlighted by her landing the 11th-best long jump in NCAA history, immediately followed a day later by triple jumping the second-best distance in NCAA history. Usoro will enter the meet boasting a long mark of 22'-4.5" (6.82m) and triple mark of 47'-1.5" (14.36m) – both of which came at the Big 12 Championships and both of which stand as new school records.
Joining her on the horizontal runway will be Monae' Nichols, whose breakout season after transferring from Bethune-Cookman has been incredible. Nichols came to Texas Tech having cleared 21 feet in the long jump just once in her career, but in her second meet as a Red Raider she exploded with a clean jump distancing 22'-1.75" (6.75m). It gave her the world lead at the time and landed her on The Bowerman's mid-indoor watch list. The mark still remains in the top-five in the world approaching nationals.
Jalen Seals will be the lone representative of the men's horizontal group. Seals, a Baylor transfer, arrived mid-year looking to improve in the long and triple. It did not take long. His first two triple jump marks as a Red Raider were his first two triple jump marks over 52 feet in his career. His very first recorded mark distanced 52'-4.75" (15.97m) – a new PR. At the Big 12 Championships, Seals landed his first 25-foot long jump since his freshman season in Waco. At 25'-2.75" (7.69m), it clinched him the first conference title of his career.
Rounding out James Thomas' jumps group competing at nationals will be Jack Scarborough. Like nearly every other Red Raider heading to nationals, a career year led him to a spot in the NCAA top-16. The San Antonio native recorded three of his four career seven-foot clearances this season, including a PR of 7'-1.5" (2.17m). That top mark came at the Matador Qualifier, right when he needed it. At the time, Scarborough was sitting at 13th in the nation – inside the cutoff but still vulnerable going into conference weekend. With the 2.17m height, he moved into the top-10, which turned out to be huge as conference weekend would see him settle at 14th heading into nationals.
Cliff Felkins will travel three to the meet, including two in the weight throw. Gabe Oladipo will carry a national ranking of sixth into the meet. He began his season by breaking his own school record, something he would continue to do nearly every week of the season. Come nationals, his top distance totals 73'-7.25" (22.43m). He is coming off his first career Big 12 title in the event. Sweeping the event alongside him was Seasons Usual, who is also qualified for her first NCAA meet in the event. Usual, who PR'd to win her conference gold, will come in ranked 13th with a career mark of 70'-10" (21.59m). Joining the two weight throwers is shot putter Kayli Johnson, whose lifetime-best 55'-3" (16.84m) from the Texas Tech Invitational qualified her for her first indoor title meet. Johnson enters the weekend ranked 12th.
Middle distance will comprise the third portion of the Red Raider team. Takieddine Hedeilli will run in the 800m and is set to anchor the DMR. Hedeilli, whose 1:45.68 makes him one of two in the NCAA to run sub-1:56 this season, also broke the Algerian national record. The graduate transfer also qualified in the mile and ranks ninth in the event, but he will forego that to anchor the mile on the relay. He'll run the relay with Owen Likins, Sven Cepus, and Chancellor Stephenson, who combined for a 9:36.72 time at the Matador Qualifier which ranks them ninth. Marco Vilca, after running the 800m in which he is ranked 12th with a season-best 1:48.39, will be available as a substitute. Freshman Paul Sherrill is also in Fayetteville as an alternate.
The NCAA Indoor Championships will begin Thursday and run through Saturday. The first two Red Raiders in action will be Gabe Oladipo and Seasons Usual in the weight throw, which gets underway Thursday evening.
After two stellar indoor campaigns, Ruth Usoro will finally get a chance to don the Scarlet & Black at an NCAA Championship meet. Usoro, whose first season at Tech was cut short due to COVID-19, was an All-American will now carry four Big 12 titles, two High Point Awards and two USTFCCCA Mountain Region Field Athlete of the Year honors into her first national meet as a Red Raider. Usoro's 2021 has been highlighted by her landing the 11th-best long jump in NCAA history, immediately followed a day later by triple jumping the second-best distance in NCAA history. Usoro will enter the meet boasting a long mark of 22'-4.5" (6.82m) and triple mark of 47'-1.5" (14.36m) – both of which came at the Big 12 Championships and both of which stand as new school records.
Joining her on the horizontal runway will be Monae' Nichols, whose breakout season after transferring from Bethune-Cookman has been incredible. Nichols came to Texas Tech having cleared 21 feet in the long jump just once in her career, but in her second meet as a Red Raider she exploded with a clean jump distancing 22'-1.75" (6.75m). It gave her the world lead at the time and landed her on The Bowerman's mid-indoor watch list. The mark still remains in the top-five in the world approaching nationals.
Jalen Seals will be the lone representative of the men's horizontal group. Seals, a Baylor transfer, arrived mid-year looking to improve in the long and triple. It did not take long. His first two triple jump marks as a Red Raider were his first two triple jump marks over 52 feet in his career. His very first recorded mark distanced 52'-4.75" (15.97m) – a new PR. At the Big 12 Championships, Seals landed his first 25-foot long jump since his freshman season in Waco. At 25'-2.75" (7.69m), it clinched him the first conference title of his career.
Rounding out James Thomas' jumps group competing at nationals will be Jack Scarborough. Like nearly every other Red Raider heading to nationals, a career year led him to a spot in the NCAA top-16. The San Antonio native recorded three of his four career seven-foot clearances this season, including a PR of 7'-1.5" (2.17m). That top mark came at the Matador Qualifier, right when he needed it. At the time, Scarborough was sitting at 13th in the nation – inside the cutoff but still vulnerable going into conference weekend. With the 2.17m height, he moved into the top-10, which turned out to be huge as conference weekend would see him settle at 14th heading into nationals.
Cliff Felkins will travel three to the meet, including two in the weight throw. Gabe Oladipo will carry a national ranking of sixth into the meet. He began his season by breaking his own school record, something he would continue to do nearly every week of the season. Come nationals, his top distance totals 73'-7.25" (22.43m). He is coming off his first career Big 12 title in the event. Sweeping the event alongside him was Seasons Usual, who is also qualified for her first NCAA meet in the event. Usual, who PR'd to win her conference gold, will come in ranked 13th with a career mark of 70'-10" (21.59m). Joining the two weight throwers is shot putter Kayli Johnson, whose lifetime-best 55'-3" (16.84m) from the Texas Tech Invitational qualified her for her first indoor title meet. Johnson enters the weekend ranked 12th.
Middle distance will comprise the third portion of the Red Raider team. Takieddine Hedeilli will run in the 800m and is set to anchor the DMR. Hedeilli, whose 1:45.68 makes him one of two in the NCAA to run sub-1:56 this season, also broke the Algerian national record. The graduate transfer also qualified in the mile and ranks ninth in the event, but he will forego that to anchor the mile on the relay. He'll run the relay with Owen Likins, Sven Cepus, and Chancellor Stephenson, who combined for a 9:36.72 time at the Matador Qualifier which ranks them ninth. Marco Vilca, after running the 800m in which he is ranked 12th with a season-best 1:48.39, will be available as a substitute. Freshman Paul Sherrill is also in Fayetteville as an alternate.
The NCAA Indoor Championships will begin Thursday and run through Saturday. The first two Red Raiders in action will be Gabe Oladipo and Seasons Usual in the weight throw, which gets underway Thursday evening.
Players Mentioned
Middle Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Throws
/ Track and Field
XC/Distance
/ Track and Field
Jumps/Sprints
/ Track and Field
Throws
/ Track and Field
Jumps
/ Track and Field
Jumps
/ Track and Field
XC/Distance
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Jumps
/ Track and Field
Throws
/ Track and Field
Mid. Distance
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