Hawkeyes win four events in last indoor home meet
The track and field Hawkeyes wrapped up an impressive home indoor season with four first-place finishes at the Black and Gold Invite.
Hawkeye Laulauga Tausago winds up and prepares to throw her weight in the women’s weight throwing competition at the Black & Gold Invitational at the Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Building on Friday, January 31, 2020.
February 2, 2020
On Jan. 31, senior thrower Laulauga Tausaga competed in her last home indoor meet as a Hawkeye — and she went out with a bang.
Tausaga clinched first place in both the shot put (16.54) and weight throw (21.33), again proving she is one of the best throwers in the country. Her weight throw mark now ranks third in the Big Ten.
“I was kind of nervous,” Tausaga said. “Being back, we’ve been very focused on the shot put and getting things right, because that’s the event I struggle in the most.”
For being an event she supposedly struggles in, Tausaga is still third in the Big Ten for her shot put distance (17.79 meters), a mark she set at the Larry Wieczorek Invitational in January.
In spite of feeling nervous going into the meet, Tausaga thought her outcome was great.
“You know, we’ve just got to keep fine-tuning some things,” Tausaga said. “It’s the first meet, so I wasn’t expecting to, you know, PR or anything, but I was expecting to be around that 21-22 area. I hit it about three times in the 21s, so I’m excited to see what happens when I get put in a high-pressure situation, like what we’ll being going into at Notre Dame.
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Joey Woody, Iowa director of Track and Field, is optimistic after seeing Tausaga’s performance in the shot put on Jan. 31.
Not that there’s a reason he would ever doubt Tausaga.
“She’s sitting No. 3 in the conference with that throw and one in the country for an opener,” Woody said. “That’s actually a meter better than what she opened with last year, so that was a good sign.”
Two other Hawkeyes took first in different events over the weekend.
Sophomore jumper James Carter dominated the triple jump with a length of 14.86 meters, and his mark at the Larry Wieczorek Invitational (15.07) still put him eighth overall in the Big Ten.
In the 600 meters, sophomore mid-distance runner Josh Andrews ran a time of (1:19.91), which became his new personal best.
“My strategy today was just to get out first two at about 24 low,” Andrews said. “I wanted to come through the four at about 51, which is exactly what I did, and I just went out there and competed. It just sets me at a good spot on the team rankings. To go out there and compete, and it means that I’m just one step closer to the Big Tens.”
While their teammates competed in Iowa City, senior sprinters Daniel Soto and Nathan Mylenek traveled to the UW Invitational in Seattle for the 3000-meter race.
On Feb. 1, both athletes posted personal bests in the event. Mylenek’s time (7:58.37) now ranks second all-time for Iowa and second in the Big Ten.
Iowa continues its indoor campaign on the road next weekend. The Hawkeyes will split their squads between the Frank Sevigne Husker Invite in Lincoln, Nebraska, and the Meyo Invite, hosted by Notre Dame.
