Baylor T&F: 10 Bears Qualify for Indoor Nationals

[Pirtle, Colin]

BAYLOR ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS – March 2, 2022

Baylor T&F: 10 Bears Qualify for Indoor Nationals
Nugent returns for a shot at back-to-back championships

For more information contact: Colin Pirtle, 940-564-0351, Colin_Pirtle1 at Baylor.edu


WACO, Texas – Baylor track and field will be sending 14 Bears to the 2022 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships next week in Birmingham, Ala., the committee announced late Monday.



Ackera Nugent, Howard Fields III, Mariah Ayers, Johnny Brackins, Dillon Bedell, Mathew Moorer, Nathaniel Ezekiel, Kavia Francis, Imaobong Uko and Aaliyah Miller all qualified for the meet with Jayson Baldridge, Hasani Barr, Demitra Carter and Gontse Morake joining as relay substitutes.



“I am super proud of the student-athletes that qualified for the indoor championships in Birmingham,” said head coach Michael Ford. “I think these championships are probably the hardest to qualify for, because they only take the top-16 individuals and top-12 relays.”



Nugent will make the return to the stage where she won it all last year, improving her time this season to a 7.89-second race, two-hundredths of a second faster than last year. The sophomore is fresh off her Big 12 Championship and is the fastest 60-meter hurdler in program history. She currently sits in the No. 4 position nationally in the event.



Fields III, the current reigning Big 12 indoor and outdoor champion in the 400 meters, enters the pack in the 16th spot, putting up a 46.16 personal-best at the conference meet last Saturday.



Ayers makes her individual event debut at the indoor championships in the 200 meters. The junior from Garland, Texas, qualified with her time from the Texas Tech Shootout of 23.18, converted to 23.25.



Brackins makes his NCAA Championship debut as a true freshman. A native of Lee’s Summit, Mo., Brackins set his long jump personal-best at the Rod McCravy Memorial in Lexington, Ky, jumping 25-8 (7.82m). He was voted Big 12 Athlete of the Week in Week Two of the season after sweeping the long jump and triple jump competitions in Iowa City in late-January.



The men’s 4x400 squad of Bedell, Moorer, Ezekiel and Fields III take their time from a silver-medal finish in the Big 12 Championships. Their 3:04.60 time found the No. 7 spot all-time at Baylor in the program’s storied history of the event.



The women’s 4x400, comprised of Francis, Uko, Miller and Ayers, enters the meet with the 3:32.77 race that won the 2022 Big 12 Championship. The 2021 indoor championships saw Francis and Miller finish eighth in the relay, grouped with Lily Williams and Arria Minor.



The championship meet is set for March 11-12, with action streamed on ESPN3 live from the Birmingham CrossPlex. ESPNU will re-air the competition Sunday night, March 13. Ticket information can be found on the NCAA website<https://www.etix.com/ticket/e/1025088/2022-ncaa-di-track-and-field-birmingham-birmingham-crossplex>.


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 | Communications Intern (Interim-T&F/XC)
Department of Athletics | Baylor University
C: 940-564-0351

[signature_1425178961]<http://baylorbears.com/>


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