No. 11/8 Baylor T&F: Pettway Wins All-America Honors in Long Jump

[Pirtle, Colin]

BAYLOR ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS – June 9, 2022

No. 11/8 Baylor T&F: Pettway Wins All-America Honors in Long Jump
Francis, Miller and 4x400 advance to national finals
For more information contact: Colin Pirtle, 940-564-0351, Colin_Pirtle1 at Baylor.edu


EUGENE, Ore. – Baylor track and field completed Day Two of the NCAA Division I Track and Field Championships at Hayward Field on Thursday. Caira Pettway highlighted the day in the few final rounds held on Thursday, winning All-America honors in the long jump. A trio of Baylor entries also made their way through to Saturday’s finals, including Kavia Francis in the 400, Aaliyah Miller in the 800 and the 4x400-meter relay.



“I think the girls have been on a mission all year, especially in the fall when we talked about expectations for the team and trying to eventually be a podium team,” said head coach Michael Ford. “And I said, it starts this year with them. We knew who we had coming back, and that just kind of put everything together.”



Pettway needed a big jump on her last attempt, and she got it. After falling to ninth place in the final rounds of the long jump, Pettway became only the fifth Bear to ever cross the 21-foot mark, hitting 21-0 1/2 to secure her first-ever All-America honors. Alex Madlock also competed and finished 21st with a 19-3½ jump.



“I think Coach (Stacey) Smith told her, ‘You’ve got one left, just pop one,’” said Ford. “And that’s the good thing about the long jump is that you can do it on your last jump.”



Francis not only put up a time fast enough to advance to the final round of the 400 meters, but she also broke her own program record set at the Big 12 Championships mid-May. Her 51.17-second mark puts her No. 8 overall in the event for the championships on Saturday. Imaobong Uko also competed and finished in 20th place after 51.89 seconds.



Miller led her heat of the 800 meters for about 600 meters and secured her spot in the finals after finishing in 2:03.05. Her final round will be contested on Saturday evening at 5:44 p.m. CT.



The Bears’ 4x400-meter relay squad of Mariah Ayers, Francis, Gontse Morake and Uko ran a 3:29.03 to finish in sixth place overall and take the first time qualifying spot to Saturday’s final round. The group will compete Saturday night at 6:51 a.m. CT.



The women’s 4x100-meter relay, comprised of Mariah Ayers, Pettway, Sydney Washington and Bria Bullard put forward their second-fastest time of the season, finishing in 43.78 seconds. The mark also sets them as the seventh-fastest 4x1 squad in Baylor history.



Pettway also competed in the 100 meters, clocking a 11.18-second race to finish 12th overall. Her time as a Baylor sprinter closes as the fastest to ever do it wearing the green and gold, setting the program record twice at the Big 12 Championships in May.



Nathaniel Ezekiel and the men’s 4x100 get their shot at national gold in Day Three of competition beginning Friday at 8:02 p.m. CT.



Coverage of the NCAA Championships will continue across ESPN networks, with Friday on ESPN2 and Saturday on ESPN. A schedule of broadcast information broken down by event can be found here<https://www.ncaa.com/championships/trackfield-outdoor/d1/broadcast-info?_ga=2.199929326.1941007768.1652910602-224928530.1652910602>.



Live results can be followed throughout the meet online<https://flashresults.ncaa.com/Outdoor/2022/index.htm>, and tickets can be purchased either at the stadium or online<https://www.ncaatickets.com/championship/outdoor-track-and-field>.


For the latest news on the Baylor track and field team all season long, follow its official Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts: @BaylorTrack.



www.BaylorBears.com

_____________________________________________
Colin Pirtle | Associate Director of Athletics Communications (T&F/XC)
Department of Athletics | Baylor University
C: 940-564-0351

[signature_1523422349]<http://baylorbears.com/>


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