TRACK AND FIELD / NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS : Wisconsin’s Favor Breaks Record; UCLA Women Still Have Title Shot

Suzy Favor of Wisconsin earned a record eighth NCAA title, and she and Leroy Burrell of Houston and Baylor’s Michael Johnson each set world bests Friday in the NCAA track and field championships.

Burrell won his semifinal heat in the men’s 100 meters in 10.01 seconds, the fastest legal clocking in the world this year. Two weeks ago, Burrell ran 9.94 in winning the Southwest Conference title, but his time was wind-aided.

Johnson won the 200-meter semifinal heat in 20.18, a stadium record and fastest in the world this year.

“It was not a shocker, because I know I’m capable of running in the low 19s,” Johnson said.

Favor won the women’s 800 meters with the fastest clocking of her career and the fastest in the world this year, finishing in 1 minute 59.11 seconds.

It gave Favor her eighth NCAA title, breaking a tie with Olympian Vicki Huber, formerly of Villanova, as the winningest woman in the NCAA championships.

Favor will try for another title tonight when she goes for an unprecedented fourth 1,500-meter championship.

“Tomorrow is the big test, trying to make it four in a row,” Favor said Friday.

The 800 victory was her 39th in a row in individual collegiate races and gave her 53 victories in 55 such races. Her last loss was in an indoor 800 in February, 1988.

Oregon’s chance for the men’s team title suffered a jolt when Pedro daSilva, the favorite in the decathlon, injured his left thigh in the opening event, the 100-meter dash, and withdrew.

The men’s team leader after eight events was Louisiana State with 33 points. Florida was second with 28 1/2 and Alabama third with 16.

Wisconsin led the women’s team race with 24 points, after eight events, followed by Villanova with 20 and Indiana and Tennessee with 17 each.

The UCLA women were in fifth with 16 points, led by Tracie Millett’s victory in the discus with throw of 183-9 and the 400-meter relay team’s third-place finish in 44.30 seconds.

UCLA’s Janeene Vickers had heavy duty Friday. She ran anchor on the sprint relay team and then advanced to the finals in the 100- and 400-meter hurdles.

She was third in her semifinal heat in the short hurdle race with a personal best time of 13.16 seconds. She won her heat in the 400 hurdles in the time of 56.21. She is the defending champion in that event.

Vickers will run three more races today, both hurdles finals and anchoring the 1,600-meter relay team.

In the only setback for the Bruin women, Tonya Sedwick and Angela Burnham failed to advance to the final in the 400 and 200, respectively.

“We are still in good shape,” UCLA women’s Coach Bob Kersee said. “It comes down to us relying on Millett today in the shotput, Vickers (both hurdles races) and our 1,600 relay team. I wouldn’t want it any other way.

“We can’t worry about the other teams. We just need to do our job, concentrate and perform, then look up at the scoreboard after that final relay and hopefully see the Bruins on top.”

UCLA’s Brian Blutreich finished third in the discus with a throw of 190-9. UCLA’s Peter Thompson finished 11th and failed to score.

UCLA’s Steve Lewis, the 1988 Olympic Games gold medalist in the 400 meters, won his semifinal heat in 45.01. It was a season best time for him and a stadium record.

Lewis’ teammate, Mike Stevenson, finished fourth in the same semifinal heat with a personal best time of 45.49. He advanced to the final along with USC’s Travis Hannah, who was fifth in the same heat in the time of 45.54.

USC’s Mark Crear finished second in his semifinal heat of the 110-meter hurdles in the time of 13.57, second fastest of the day.

However, it was generally a disappointing day for the Trojans.

George Porter, who was favored to win the 400-meter intermediate hurdles, finished seventh in his semifinal heat with a time of 51.19 and didn’t advance.

Quincy Watts didn’t finish his 200 semifinal, pulling up with a strained left hamstring. He has been bothered by hamstring injuries since his senior year at Taft High School.

Long jumper Dietmar Haaf also had his problems, fouling on two of his three jumps and not making the final round. He had a mark of 25-2 in his only fair jump.

Leslie Maxie failed to advance in the women’s 400 meters. She finished fourth in her semifinal heat in the time of 53.30.

The only other Trojan woman competing is Ashley Selman, who will be in the javelin final today.

Among the winners Friday were:

--Sheila Hudson of California, the NCAA indoor long jump and triple jump champion, who went 22-1 in the long jump, a personal best and longest by an American this year.

Hudson, the U.S. record-holder in the triple jump, said, “I’m going to try and go for the record (45-5 1/4.)”

--Florida’s Mark Everett in the men’s 800 final, with a time of 1:44.70, the fastest by a collegian this year and a meet record, breaking the mark of 1:44.91 by Joaquim Cruz of Oregon in 1983. Everett, a 1988 Olympian, took the lead from Mississippi’s George Kersh around the final turn and won by about seven meters.

--Alabama’s 400-meter relay team, anchored by Clive Wright, finishing in a school-record 38.87, a collegiate best for the year. Arizona was second in 38.89, Baylor third in 38.98.

--Sonia O’Sullivan of Villanova in the women’s 3,000-meter final in 8:56.27. It was the fourth consecutive year a Villanova runner won the event, with Huber having taken the previous three.

--Texas’ Patrik Boden, the world record-holder in the men’s javelin, earned his second consecutive NCAA championship with a throw of 261-10. The distance was more than 30 feet short of the world record of 292-4 that Boden set March 24 at Austin, Tex., and the 265-6 that set meet and stadium marks during Wednesday’s qualifying.

Boden had an excuse, an ailing right shoulder. He injured the shoulder of his throwing hand on April 17 during weight training, and has been nursing it since, competing only once before the NCAA meet. “Today my technique wasn’t that good,” the sophomore from Karlstad, Sweden, said. “I was trying to protect my shoulder.”

--Kamy Keshmiri of Nevada Reno in the discus at 207-1.

--Ohio State’s Mark Croghan in the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 8:36.19

--Llewellyn Starks of Louisiana State in the long jump at 26-5 3/4

--Shannon Butler of Montana State in the 10,000 meters in 28:38.45

--George Mason’s Istvan Bagyula of Hungary in the pole vault at 18-4 1/2.

--Texas’ Angie Bradburn in the high jump, 6-2 3/4.

--LSU in the 400 relay, 43.99.