Feb. 24, 2004
Coming off an off-week after one of its most impressive performances in recent memory, the TCU Flyin' Frogs track & field team is set for the Conference USA Indoor Track & Field Championships, which will take place on the University of Houston campus Friday and Saturday, February 27-28.
The TCU men will be looking to garner another conference title after a second place finish behind the home-standing Houston Cougars a year ago. Houston scored 155 points in the 2003 meet to edge the Frogs, who finished with 140.5 points. Memphis was a distant third with 75 points. TCU had won three consecutive indoor conference titles (two in the WAC and one in Conference USA) prior to its runnerup spot in 2003. The Frogs will be running without three of their top athletes, as injuries have sidelined Michael Frater, Erick Wilson and Reggie Harrell for the indoor season.
The TCU women expect to finish in the top three and could make a strong push for their first indoor conference title. The women finished third a year ago, their best indoor conference finish ever, by scoring 75 points, behind only Houston (135.5) and USF (131).
TCU will send 20 male competitors to Houston for the Conference USA Indoor Track & Field Championships, accounting for 34 individual events and two relay events. The Frogs have 19 female participants totaling 32 individual events along with a pair of relay events. On the men's side, Jerry Harris, Jackson Langat, David Harris and Chaime Breaux will be the busiest athletes, competing in three events each. Jerry Harris will vie for the titles in the 200, 400 and run the anchor leg on the 4x400 meter relay unit. Langat and David Harris will compete in the 800, mile run and on the distance medley relay team. Breaux, a freshman, will run in the 60, 200 and compete in the triple jump.
On the women's side, Donita Harmon, Deborah Jones, Larissa Bakasa, Heather Isbell, Calandra Stewart and Mary Kinyanjui are all slated for three events. Harmon will compete in the 60, 200 and 4x4. Jones will challenge for the 200, 400 and 4x4. Bakasa will take part in the 400, 4x4 and distance medley. Isbell and Stewart will run in the 800, mile and distance medley and Kinyanjui will vie for the mile, 3000 and 5000 meter runs.
The TCU Flyin' Frogs men's track & field team has moved into the top 10 for the first time this season in the most recent Trackwire poll. The Frogs are expected to score 19 points at the NCAA meet, one point ahead of Ohio State and Texas. Arkansas remains an overwhelming favorite to take the team title with 76 points. SEC rivals LSU (48) and Auburn (39) are second and third in this week's poll. Stanford (37) and Michigan (23) round out the top five. The Trackwire 25 projects a hypothetical score for the NCAA meet, factoring in injury reports and other variables supported by information gathered from coaches and NCAA-qualifying competitions across the country.
Trackwire Top 25 Men's Poll
1. Arkansas 76
2. LSU 48
3. Auburn 39
4. Stanford 37
5. Michigan 23
6. Florida 22
Baylor 22
8. UCLA 21
Minnesota 21
10. TCU 19
11. Ohio State 18
Texas 18
13. Purdue 17
14. Oregon 14
15. BYU 13
16. USC 12
17. Wisconsin 11
Georgia 11
19. Indiana 10
SMU 10
Nebraska 10
Kansas State 10
23. Eight schools 8
