Jan. 15, 2004
The TCU Flyin' Frogs track and field team opens its 2004 indoor season on Saturday, January 17, when the Frogs travel to Norman to take part in the Oklahoma Indoor Classic. Field events begin at 10 a.m. at the Mosier Indoor Facility, while the first event on the track is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. The TCU men enter the 2004 season ranked in a tie for 20th place, according to the Trackwire 25 pre-season poll.
"As always, I'm very optimistic for this first meet of the season," said TCU head coach Monte Stratton. "The rankings really don't mean anything this time of year. We just need to go out and see what we can do this weekend. After that, we'll know a whole lot more about this team."
The Frogs will feature sprinters Chaime Breaux, Cleavon Dillon, Aundre Edwards and Jabari Fields in the 60 meter dash. Dwayne Bell, Ché Chavez, Nate Garcia and Jerry Harris will all compete in the 400. David Harris, Wes Johnson, Nelson Kwambai and Raita Yamanouchi will vie for the 800 meter title. David Harris, Johnson, Jackson Langat and Brad Maciulewicz will challenge in the one mile run, while Chris Benassi, Johnathan Bundren, Steven Lenney, J.T. Reinert, Josh Sharon and Maciulewicz will take part in the 3000 meter run.
The Frogs will also compete in the mile relay. Stratton will choose from among Bell, Langat, Garcia, Jerry Harris and Brett Wilson for the four legs.
In the field events, Dillon, Edwards, and Mark Lettieri will vie for the long jump title while freshman Rob Coffman will take part in the pole vault competition.
On the women's side, Kandis Bell, Virgil Hodge and Jamee Jones will compete at 60 meters. Jones will double in the 200. Larissa Bakasa, Marquita Davis, Donita Harmon and Deborah Jones are scheduled to run in the 400. Justina Malone will represent TCU in the 600 yard dash. Pattie Parker will double up in the 800 and mile run, while Calandra Stewart will compete in both the mile and 3000. Other 3000 meter runners include Heather Isbell, Mary Kinyanjui, Alayne Thompson and Katrina Zielinski. MaKeatha Cooper and Julie Curtis will challenge for the 60-meter hurdles title. The mile relay unit will consist of Bakasa, Davis, Deborah Jones and Harmon. The Frogs will also send two competitors, Kandra Lakey and Zelma Wade, into the shot put ring.
The TCU men's team begins the season ranked in a tie for 20h in the nation, according to the first Trackwire poll. Arkansas is the pre-season NCAA favorite, followed by Stanford, Auburn and Texas. LSU rounds out the top five. The Trackwire 25 is a power ranking of NCAA Division I track & field teams. This ranking's methodology takes into account a variety of statistical predictors and is intended to project the outcome of the NCAA Division I track & field championships. The scores provided with the rankings indicate each team's projected score based on formcharts for each NCAA event.
TRACKWIRE TOP 25
MEN:
1. Arkansas 62
2. Stanford 39
3. Auburn 37
4. Texas 35
5. LSU 29
6. Minnesota 28
7. Florida 26
8. UCLA 23
Michigan 23
10. South Carolina 22
11. Ohio State 18
12. Texas Tech 16
13. Tennessee 15
14. Indiana 13
Oklahoma 13
Wisconsin 13
Nebraska 13
18. Kansas State 12
USC 12
20. TCU 11
Colorado 11
Baylor 11
23. Washington 10
Kansas 10
Connecticut 10
Purdue 10
