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Carey McLeod sweeps 2023 NCAA long jump titles, Wayne Pinnock runner-up
AUSTIN – No. 1 Arkansas scored 21 points on the first day of the NCAA Championships at Mike A. Myers Stadium and the bulk of points were scored from a fantastic 1-2 finish in the long jump by Carey McLeod and Wayne Pinnock.
With six of 21 finals contested on the first day, the Razorbacks lead team scoring with 21 points and are followed by Stanford and Arizona with 18 each. The top five also currently includes LSU (15) and Harvard (13).
The only other 1-2 finish by teammates in the history of the men’s long jump at the NCAA Division Outdoor meet was in 2017 by the Florida pair of KeAndre Bates and Grant Holloway. The previous best finish for the Razorbacks was first and third in 1984 by Mike Conley and Mike Davis.
McLeod, who claimed the 2023 NCAA Indoor title on his sixth and last jump, produced a winning mark of 27-1.25 (8.26) in the opening round as he equaled the facility record set by Steffin McCarter of Texas in 2021.
Pinnock, the defending champion, followed with a 26-9 (8.15) for silver. Kentucky’s Jordan Turner challenged Pinnock with a 26-8.25 (8.13) effort for bronze.
McLeod is the sixth Razorback to win a NCAA Outdoor long jump and he claimed Arkansas’ 10 title as Pinnock collected the program’s sixth silver medal. The pair of All-America honors brings the Razorbacks total to 31 in the event.
It’s the first NCAA Outdoor long jump title for Arkansas since Jarrion Lawson in 2016.
With 18 points in the long jump, three more were scored by a seventh place for Jordan West in the shot put and an eighth place for Patrick Kiprop in the 10,000m.
In the third round of the shot put West moved from 12th to sixth position with his best mark of the competition to earn another three rounds of throws. The toss of 65-8.25 (20.02) ended up seventh when Ohio State’s Hayden Tobias passed West in the final round with a 66-5.75 (20.26).
Arizona’s Jordan Geist won the shot put with a toss of 69-1.25 (21.06) after earning bronze in the hammer event with a throw of 249-3 (75.97). Arkansas’ Rojé Stona placed 14 with a mark of 63-10.5 (19.47). Stona will compete in the discus with teammate Ralford Mullings on Friday.
Kiprop posted a time of 28:27.54 for eighth place in the 10,000m, one spot ahead of Alabama’s Victor Kiprop, who clocked 28:29.28 for ninth. The Stanford combo of Ky Robinson (28:10.96) and Charles Hicks (28:12.20) went 1-2 while BYU’s Casey Clinger (28:13.63) finished third.
Semifinal action for the Razorbacks had some mixed results.
Arkansas advanced to the final in the 4 x 400 relay with a semifinal heat winning time of 3:00.97 from the Razorback foursome of Lance Lang (46.18), James Benson II (44.11), Connor Washington (46.11), and Chris Bailey (44.37).
Georgia finished behind Arkansas with a 3:01.51 while Oklahoma was third in 3:01.85 and didn’t advance.
A total of five schools run under 3 minutes to advance while the two time qualifiers were Baylor (3:00.58) and Texas A&M (3:00.88). Florida, collegiate record holders, led the field with a 2:58.62.
The other schools advancing include Arizona State (2:59.14), Alabama (2:59.24), UCLA (2:59.51), and Clemson (2:59.78).
Phillip Lemonious led the 110m hurdle field with a 13.28 (1.1 wind), just off his career best of 13.21. Lemonious won the third heat over a 13.35 for Clemson’s Giano Roberts. The second best time in the field was a 13.33 for Texas A&M’s Connor Schulman.
The first day of the decathlon finds Yariel Soto Torrado tied for fourth place with a score of 4,266 points to match Iowa’s Austin West. The leader after day one is Leo Neugebauer of Texas with 4,591 points while Georgia’s Kyle Garland is second at 4,570 points. Razorback Daniel Spejcher is currently 18th with 3,877 points.
Soto Torrado opened with a 10.77 in the 100m (912 points, then set a career best long jump of 25-1.75 (7.66) to add 975 points. A shot put of 45-10.75 (13.99) followed for 728 points, and a high jump of 6-4.75 (1.95) added 758 more. Closing out the first day with the 400m, Soto Torrado ran a season best of 48.34 for 893 points.
Bailey missed advancing in the 400m as his 45.55 placed him fourth in the opening heat and 14th overall.
Ayden Owens-Delerme also missed advancing in the 400m hurdles as he finished fourth in his heat with a 49.82 that was 10th overall. The last time qualifier was 49.57. Also not advancing was LSU’s Sean Burrell, the two-time defending national champion, who posted a 49.84 to place fourth in the first heat.
In the 4 x 100m relay semifinal Arkansas produced a season best of 39.23 to finish sixth in the first heat. The foursome included Lance Lang, Connor Washington, Tre’Bien Gilbert, and James Benson II. The Razorbacks were 19th overall among the field of 24.
The nine schools advancing to the final are collegiate record holders LSU (38.06), Texas Tech (38.20), Florida (38.22), Florida State (38.27), Louisville (38.49), Alabama State (38.56), Georgia (38.62), Iowa (38.64), and Arizona State (38.67).