By Jared Fields, Editor in Chief
Getting closer to the Lone Star Conference meet in two weeks, the ACU track and field teams head to the Michael Johnson Invitational at Baylor University to pick up better marks and times for the national meet.
“We’re going to try to approach it more as another opportunity to qualify,” said head coach Don Hood.
Hood said his team is excited for the meet this weekend and a chance to run again against such competition as Baylor and other Division I schools that will be competing.
“We’re taking pretty much everybody; probably taking about 50 athletes,” Hood said. “We’ve got a pretty good crew going.”
Hood said the focus of the meet will be on individual events instead of relays. However, the men’s and women’s 4×100 meter relay teams will compete their best squads.
Hood will run both a men’s and women’s 4×400 meter relay team, but not the “A-team” for the men.
“We’re gonna sub a couple of people in and see,” Hood said. “Ramon [Sparks] is going to run it this week; we’ll see what he can do.”
Harold Jackson, Shawn Hughlett and decathlete Campy Pounds will round out the relay.
Usual relay members Raymond Radway and Jordan Johnson won’t run on the relay because they’ll compete in the 200- and 400-meters.
“We’re going to do more individual events and more of a focus there, I think, than we are at the relays,” Hood said.
Hood said he’s hopeful of good weather this weekend for the individual events. The only good weather enjoyed by the Wildcats so far this season came at the Texas Relays.
“We haven’t had good weather yet outside of the Texas Relays, and that was all relays,” Hood said. “We ran really fast in 50 degree weather in [Texas] Tech last week, so I’m hoping some
good things will happen.”
With each week’s practices building off the previous week, Hood would like to see the combination of good weather and competition improve his team’s performances.
“I think we’re going to do some real good things. Our practices have looked good, and they built more confidence off of last week,” Hood said. “So I think they have a better sense that good things are about to happen.”
