UCLA Women Take the Lead

The UCLA women’s team stayed on track in its bid to end Louisiana State’s 11-year reign as NCAA track and field champions, getting a third-place finish Thursday from senior Nada Kawar in the shot put to lead the overall standings after five events.

UCLA had 29 points and was followed by Brigham Young with 26 and Southern Methodist 16. LSU had yet to score. Neither had Texas, which last year finished a point behind LSU in second.

Kawar had a throw of 58 feet, 4 1/2 inches in finishes behind Nebraska’s Tressa Thompson, who won her second straight shot put title and broke her meet record with a heave of 61-2 1/4. Runner-up Teri Tunks of SMU also surpassed Thompson’s 1997 record of 60-8 1/2 with a throw of 60-10 3/4.

“I wanted to hit 19 meters [62-4], which would be a collegiate record,” Thompson said. “I knew I would be head-to-head with Tunks, and we went back and forth.”

In a brilliant display of team running, twin brothers Brad and Brent Hauser led a 1-2-3 Stanford finish in the men’s 10,000 meters. Brad was timed in 28:31.30, Brent in 28:32.39 and Nathan Nutter in 28:32.62.

UCLA senior Mebrahtom Keflezighi, the defending champion, was fourth in 28:39.58.

The sweep gave Stanford 24 points for the event and 34 for the meet, putting the Cardinal in the men’s team lead. UCLA was second with 16 and Arkansas third with 15 1/2.

Meanwhile, Robert Howard, Arkansas’ “Mr. Clutch,” lived up to his nickname.

The unflappable Howard won his eighth NCAA title, capturing the long jump for the second straight year with a wind-aided leap of 27 feet, 5 1/2 inches, the farthest in the world this year under any conditions. As Howard has done so often, he won on his final attempt.

He had trailed Nebraska’s Chris Wright, who had gone 26-10 1/2.

Outdoors, Howard, a 1996 Olympian in the triple jump, also has won two triple jump titles and will go for his third in a row Saturday. Indoors, Howard has won one long jump title and three consecutive triple jump championships.

“I just saw my mother’s face, always saying, ‘You can,’ ” Howard said. “That’s why I say every day it’s important how a child is raised by a parent. I could see a picture of the face of my mother, right in the eyes, ‘You can do it. You can do it. You can do it.’ And I believe I can do it.”

Howard’s pressure jump was a huge boost for Arkansas, which had its chance for a seventh consecutive title jolted when Phil Price failed to advance to the 1,500-meter final and freshman Kenny Evans, the indoor high jump champion, tied for fourth.

Kansas State’s appropriately named Nathan Leeper won the high jump with a career-best 7-5 3/4, then missed three times at a stadium record 7-7.

In the other final, Tiffany Lott of BYU repeated as heptathlon champion with 5,982 points.

Tracye Lawyer of Stanford finished second with 5,789 points and Kansas’ Candy Mason was third with 5,637.