Hawks finish 10th at Razorback Invitational
by Adam Hensley
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Competing against some of the top teams in the nation, the Iowa men’s track and field team finished 10th at the Razorback Invitational on Jan. 29 and Jan. 30.
In 17 events, the Hawkeyes tallied 24 points, finishing ahead of No. 16 Oklahoma State and Florida State. Performing well in front of its home crowd, No. 11 Arkansas won the meet with 122.2 points. Texas A&M (No. 3), Oregon (No. 5), LSU (No. 6), and Georgia (No. 7) rounded out the top five. Florida, the No. 1 team in the country, finished sixth.
Iowa’s Aaron Mallett stole the show in the 60-meter hurdles. The junior ran a time of 7.72 in the finals, and he was even faster in the preliminary round. In that round, he finished in 7.71 — 0.01 behind the school record.
“It was not a perfect race by any means,” Iowa director of track and field Joey Woody said in a release. “He was ready to run 7.65. He stumbled off the blocks [in the finals] but was still able to compete for the win. He caught some of the best guys in the country over the last three hurdles. Aaron competes with the heart of a champion.”
Before the Razorback Invitational, Mallett had yet to lose a race in the 60-meter hurdles. This meet marked his fourth victory this season.
“We have been setting him up to be ready for this meet,” Woody said in a release. “We knew he was going head-to-head with some of the best in the country.”
The competition was the best in the country. Iowa faced off against nine teams ranked in the top 25, including six of the top eight teams in the nation.
Mallett was not the only Hawkeye who showed off his skills over the weekend; others propelled themselves into the record books.
In the 60-meter hurdles, Chris Douglas finished five spots behind Mallett, but his preliminary time of 8.07 was a personal best. It was also the ninth-best in school history.
Avery Meyers placed eighth in the shot put, but his distance of 59-0.25 was good for eighth in program history.
Carter Lilly finished fourth in the 800 meters in 1:49.37. Not only was that time a personal best, but it boosted him to fifth all-time at Iowa. That time is the second fastest in the Big Ten this season.
William Dougherty competed in the heptathlon, getting personal bests in the pole vault and 1,000 meters. His point total of 5,172 is the fourth-best total in Hawkeye history.
Two of Iowa’s top freshmen continued their strong starts to the indoor season. DeJuan Frye and Mar’yea Harris were on the fifth-place 1,600-meter relay. Mitch Wolff and Lilly were also a part of that relay, the second fastest group in the Big Ten.
Iowa now turns its focus to the Meyo Invitational in South Bend, Indiana. Competition will start on Friday and end on Saturday.
Follow @A_Hens83 for Iowa track news, updates, and analysis.
