University of Illinois
NCAA Outdoor Championships
Waller Makes 100m Hurdles Semifinal at NCAA Championships
June 12, 2008 | Women's Track & Field
June 12, 2008
DES MOINES, Iowa - The Illinois women's track and field team continued competition at the NCAA Outdoor Championships at Drake Stadium on Thursday, with senior LaNeisha Waller advancing past the first round of the 100m hurdles to Friday's event semifinals.
Waller timed 13.24 seconds to take third in her heat and qualify for the semifinals, finishing ninth overall. The top three finishers from each of the four heats plus the next four best times automatically advanced. Waller was running in the fastest heat, as LSU's Nickiehsa Wilson (12.95) and Georgia Tech's Shantia Moss (12.96) ran the second and third best times of the day. Michigan's Tiffany Ofili, the defending NCAA champion in the event, ran a blazing 12.73 to set a new Drake Stadium record and easily post the fastest time.
"It's exciting for (Waller) to advance because last year she didn't make it out of the first round," associate head coach Tonja Buford-Bailey said. "This is the farthest she's ever gone at nationals and she's just going to try to make it to the next day. She actually had a bad start and had to recover, so if she puts it all together tomorrow she should be in a very good position to make the finals."
The 100m semifinals will be held on Friday at 7:55 p.m. To make it to Saturday's final, Waller must either finish in the top three in her heat or post one of the next two fastest times.
Sophomore Aja Evans was also in action Thursday, concluding her season by finishing 22nd in the qualifying round of the shot put with a distance of 49 feet, ¾ inches (14.95m). The top 12 finishers advanced to Saturday's event final. Evans had a standout debut year with the Illini, as she was an indoor All-American in the shot put, the outdoor Big Ten champion in the shot put and set both indoor and outdoor school records in the event.
Along with Waller, sophomore Angela Bizzarri will also be competing tomorrow in the 5,000m final at 9:15 p.m. Bizzarri has a good chance of earning All-America honors, as she posted the fifth-fastest time in Wednesday's semifinal.
Live results from the NCAA Championships are linked on fightingillini.com and can also be found on godrakebulldogs.com.
Illinois NCAA Championships Thursday Results
100m Hurdles Round One
9. LaNeisha Waller 13.24Q
Shot Put Qualifying Round
22. Aja Evans 49'0.75" (14.95m)
Illinois Remaining Schedule
Friday, June 13
7:55 p.m. Women's 100m Hurdles Semifinals (LaNeisha Waller)
9:15 p.m. Women's 5,000m Final (Angela Bizzarri)
Saturday, June 14
3:53 p.m. Women's 100m Hurdles Final
