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 Abe Jones ran 50.00 seconds to advance to the 400m hurdles at the NCAA Championships.
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June 11, 2004
Abe Jones and Adrian Walker advanced to the finals of the 400m hurdles today at the NCAA Championships in Austin, Texas. In what has become a back-and-forth battle between the two sophomores, Jones overtook Walker for the fastest time run by an Illini this season after he ran 50.00s to eclipse Walker's season-best time of 50.01s.
Jones' time now stands as the second fastest time in UI history with both runners looking to run sub-50 second races in tomorrow's final. In their heats, Jones placed third, while Walker ran second with his time of 50.28s. After watching today's performances, Illini head coach Wayne Angel was ecstactic with the races Jones and Walker ran.
"They ran great," Angel said. "They executed the race plan perfectly. They ran aggressively and did what they had to do."
Angel continued, "It was so exciting, I'm very proud of both these men. I can't put into words how happy I am for them. They represented Illinois extremely well and we're hoping that tomorrow they can continue race the way they have been. If they do, they have the potential to finish in the top four or five. Either way they'll be All-Americans. It's a great way to end their collegiate season's and get ready for the Olympic Trials."
Since the preliminary heats at the Big Ten Championships, the Illini pair have rotated positions each outing. After Walker won the prelims, Jones came back to win the championship. The following week at the NCAA Mideast regional meet, Jones won the prelims only to see Walker come back and win the regional title the next day.
For the Illini women, Camile Robinson was unable to join her sister Carlene in her event finals, clocking 59.00s in the preliminary heats of the 400m hurdles. Despite the outcome of today's race, Robinson had an outstanding freshman campaign, winning the Big Ten Championship in the 400m hurdles, running a leg on the champion 4x400m relay team at the conference meet and finishing third at the regional meet in the 400m hurdles.
In tomorrow's event finals, the Illini will have four athletes competing. Cassie Hunt is scheduled to run the 3,000m steeplechase at 7:10 p.m. while Jones and Walker run at 7:50 p.m. and Carlene Robinson competes in the 800m run at 8:35 p.m.
Full Illini results can be found at www.fightingillini.com while complete meet results can be accessed at www.texassports.com.
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