The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Three Track & Field athletes advance to final day of Toyota USATF Outdoor Championships
07.27.2019 | Track & Field / Cross Country
Texas sprinters Morolake Akinosun, Teahna Daniels and Micaiah Harris qualified for the women’s and men’s 200-meter semifinals, respectively, on Saturday.
DES MOINES, Iowa – Texas Track & Field sprinters Morolake Akinosun, Teahna Daniels and Micaiah Harris all advanced to the women's and men's 200-meter semifinals, respectively, on Saturday at the 2019 Toyota USATF Outdoor Championships.
Daniels and Akinosun both qualified for the IAAF World Championships in the 100-meter dash on Friday and will look to complete the sprint double on Sunday in the 200 meters. Harris, who owns the three fastest 200-meter times in school history, is looking to qualify for his first IAAF World Championships.
Daniels captured the 100-meter national title last night and ran a 23.31 in Saturday's third heat of the women's 200 meters to advance on time. She was a 10-time All-American while competing for The University of Texas, making her one of 20 women in program history to earn double-digit All-America honors. She joined that list of the Longhorn elite by earning a trio of first-team All-America nods (100m, 200m, 4x100m) at the 2019 NCAA Outdoor Championships.
Meanwhile, Akinosun continued a successful run for former Longhorns as she ran a 23.36 in the women's 200 meters to advance to Sunday's semifinal round. Akinosun, a 22-time USTFCCCA All-American and 2016 Olympic gold medalist, is trying to complete a sprint double this week after qualifying for the IAAF World Championships with a third-place finish (11.28) in the 100-meter dash yesterday.
Harris rounded out the trio of 200-meter performances with a 20.66 mark on the men's side, putting the Texas sophomore into the semifinals on time. Last month, Harris was a first-team All-America honoree after a fifth-place finish in the 200 meters at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Austin. The Virginia Beach, Va. native also earned a bronze medal in the 200 meters at the NACAC U23 Championships earlier this month.
Six other current and former Longhorns were in action Saturday, including Ashtin Zamzow, who competed in the first four of seven events in the heptathlon. Zamzow opened the day with a 13.77 in the 100-meter hurdles, followed it up with a 1.67m/5-5.75 effort in the high jump, threw the orb 12.89m/42-3.5 in the shot put and wrapped up her first day with a 25.17 mark in the 200 meters. She sits 13th with a score of 3,420 after the first day of the heptathlon.
Last month at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Austin, Texas, Zamzow became the first heptathlete in school history to win a national title in the event. Zamzow's 6,222 mark at Mike A. Myers Stadium broke her own UT record and made her the eighth-best collegiate heptathlete of all-time. She set or matched personal bests in four events (13.33 – 100mH, 24.23 – 200m, long jump – 19-8.75, high jump (1.78m/5-10) en route to becoming only the second heptathlete in NCAA history to win the national championship on her home track. Zamzow was later named the 2019 Big 12 Female Athlete of the Year and a semifinalist for The Bowerman after her title-winning effort.
In the men's javelin, Trevor Danielson placed ninth with a 70.87m/232-6 mark being the Newberg, Ore. native's best effort on Saturday. Last month, Danielson was one of 19 Longhorns to earn All-America honors at the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
Tara Davis, a native of Agoura Hills, Calif., finished 11th in the women's long jump. Her first attempt was her best, as she launched herself 6.50m/21-4 into the pit. Davis, a sophomore, redshirted this past outdoor season after transferring to UT from Georgia and was competing unattached this week.
Thirteen-time USTFCCCA All-American and two-time NCAA national champion Ashley Spencer was also in action. The Texas Ex ran the 400-meter hurdles in 56.25 to advance to Sunday's final. Spencer brought home a bronze medal in the 400-meter hurdles at the 2016 Olympic Games and is a former world champion, as she helped the American 4x400-meter relay team win gold at 2013 IAAF World Championships in Moscow, Russia.
In the women's 400-meter final, Courtney Okolo finished fourth with a 50.86 mark. Her fourth-place finish and World-standard time qualifies her for the U.S. relay team in Doha. Okolo, a 2016 Olympic gold medalist in the 4x400-meter relay, was a 10-time USTFCCCA First Team All-American, a seven-time NCAA national champion, the 2016 USTFCCCA Women's Track Athlete of the Year and a finalist for The Bowerman in 2014 during her historic Texas career.
North of the border, former Texas sprinter Mariam Abdul-Rashid finished second (13.31) in the 100-meter hurdles at the 2019 Canadian Track and Field Championships. Abdul-Rashid was a three-time All-American at The University of Texas and the 2016 Canadian Junior Champion in the 100-meter hurdles. Earlier this summer, she claimed a bronze medal in the 100-meter hurdles at the NACAC U23 Championships in Queretaro, Mexico.
Several Longhorns are slated to compete in Des Moines, Iowa, on Sunday, the final day of the 2019 Toyota USATF Outdoor Championships. Included in that group is 2016 Olympic gold medalist Michelle Carter, who will look to join her fellow Texas thrower, Ryan Crouser, as the shot put national champion this year.
Longhorns to Qualify for IAAF World Championships (through July 27)
Name Event Country Years at Texas
Morolake Akinosun 100m USA 2014-16
Ryan Crouser Shot Put* USA 2012-16
Teahna Daniels 100m* USA 2016-19
Jonathan Jones 400m* Barbados 2019
Courtney Okolo 4x400m Relay USA 2016-19
*National Champion
Players Mentioned
