UW's Lindsey and Aoki Earn All-America Track Acclaim
May 31, 2000
Box Score
DURHAM, N.C. - Washington seniors Ben Lindsey and Anna Aoki each earned All-America accolades while junior Ja'Warren Hooker successfully advanced through the men's 200-meet quarterfinals on Wednesday during the first day of the NCAA track and field championships at Duke's Wallace Wade Stadium.
Lindsey hurled the discus 191-feet, 5-inches on his second attempt to place 11th. He missed an opportunity to advance into the nine-man final round by less than two feet. Auburn's Gabor Mate won the discus with a stadium record mark of 215-8. Ian Waltz of Washington State posted a ninth-place mark of 192-8.
A product of Lynnwood (Wash.) High School, Lindsey received the third All-America certificate of his career. He placed fifth in the discus at the 1998 NCAA championships and was ninth in 1997.
Lindsey concludes his collegiate career on Thursday, competing in the shot put. He is the Pacific-10 Conference shot put champion and ranks No. 6 nationally.
Aoki finished exactly where she was ranked entering the meet, placing ninth in the women's 10,000-meter race with a time of 34:22.79. Aoki was in sixth place for much of the race, but was overtaken by three runners over the final 150 meters.
"I felt really good the whole race, but the last 150 meters a couple people got me," explained Aoki, a Fort Vancouver (Wash.) graduate. "From the beginning on I had the mentality to be really tough. Last week was really upsetting to me and no matter what I was going to run the 25 laps the best I could."
On May 20 at the Pac-10 championships in Eugene, Ore., Aoki was the pre-race favorite in he 10,000 meters. She was battling a week-long illness and finished fourth.
" To go in as a favorite and not end up as I would have hoped, that made me a lot hungrier at this meet," she said.
Brigham Young athletes finished one-two in the women's 10,000. Tara Rohatinsky won (33:49.24) followed by teammate Marty Hernandez (33:50.45).
Hooker clocked the fifth fastest 200-meter qualifying time of 20.67, finishing second in his heat. The Ellensburg (Wash.) High School product was ahead for the first 100 meters before Florida's Bernard Williams surged to the lead and finished with the fastest preliminary time of 20.32. Hooker slowed up over the final 20 meters, having clinched second place and an automatic semifinal berth.
"I wasn't trying to do anything special, just make it to the semifinals," Hooker said. "I kind of tripped midway through, but other than that it was a pretty good race."
Hooker stumbled while negotiating the curve on the unconventional lanes at Wallace Wade Stadium. The track layout has sharper turns and narrower lanes than a standard oval.
"In the semifinals on Friday it's going to be pretty important to run a good time because that determines what lane you get for finals," Hooker said of the 200-meter semifinals that are scheduled for Friday.
Hooker won't have to worry about the curves on Thursday when he competes in the 100 meters. He finished third in that event at the 1998 NCAA championships.
Washington sophomore Kelsey Sheppard finished seventh in her semifinal heat of the women's 400-meter hurdles and did not advance to the final round. The Lake Washington High School graduate posted a time of 59.51 that was her sixth fastest effort of the season. Sheppard finished fourth in the intermediate hurdles at the Pac-10 championships.
Five Washington athletes, including Hooker and Lindsey, will compete Thursday at Duke. Seniors Margaret Butler and Cami Matson will run the women's 3,000 meters while senior Matt Phillips participates in the men's pole vault.
