Ester Repeats as NCAA Titlist in Long Jump

Andre Ester of Northeast Louisiana leaped 26 feet 4 inches Friday night to successfully defend his long jump title in the NCAA Indoor track and field championships at Oklahoma City.

Dean Starkey of Illinois won the pole vault in a jumpoff with Scott Huffman of Kansas and Monty Weller of Purdue. All three cleared 18-1 3/4 without a miss, then in the jumpoff, each missed once at that height, before Starkey cleared 17-9 3/4 while the other two missed.

In women’s finals, Angela Barker of East Tennessee State took the shotput at 53-4 1/2 and Angie Bradburn of Texas won the high jump at 6-2.

Florida State’s Arthur Blake broke a stadium record, winning his heat in the men’s 55-meter high hurdles in 7.13, well under the previous mark of 7.22, set by Michigan’s Tom Wilcher in 1986.

Pittsburgh’s Lee McRae, two-time defending champion in the men’s 55-meter dash, advanced to tonight’s final although he finished second in his heat in 6.13 to Brian Cooper of McNeese State, who ran 6.10.