TEMPE, Ariz. -- All it took was one throw by All-AmericanWalter Henning to put his name in the LSU record books as the school-record holder in the hammer throw and two throws to put his name atop the NCAA list this season during Friday’s action at the Sun Angel Classic.
In the only event contested Friday at Arizona State’s Sun Angel Stadium, Henning blew away the competition with a winning throw of 235 feet, 5 inches on his second attempt of the afternoon.
No one in the competition came within 11 feet of catching Henning for the event title as Arizona State’s Jason Lewis was runner-up with a mark of 223-7 and Boise State’s Simon Wardaugh took third with a toss of 215-10. Lewis won the NCAA weight throw title at the NCAA Indoor meet in March, while Wardaugh also earned All-America honors with a fifth-place finish in the event.
Henning earned All-America honors of his own with a fourth-place finish in the 35-pound weight throw at the NCAA Indoor Championships while finishing the season as the school-record holder in the event by more than four feet with a seasonal-best effort of 74-5 ½.
The native of Kings Park, N.Y., added a second school record to his already impressive resume in his first season at with the Tigers with an NCAA-leading throw of 235-5 on Friday.
Henning, who actually broke the school record on his first throw with an opening mark of 228-10, finished the competition more than 13 feet clear of the previous school record of 222-3 held by former LSU All-American Dave Paddison since 1994. Not only that, but he also eclipsed Virginia Tech’s Marcel Lomnicky (235-3) for the NCAA lead this season by a mere two inches.
Henning is a legitimate NCAA title contender in the event as he has already shattered his personal best of 225-5 by exactly 10 feet in just his second hammer competition of the 2009 season.
Two other Tiger hammer throwers also recorded seasonal-best marks Friday as senior Rabun Fox threw 202-6 and sophomore Chris Bless recorded a new personal best effort of 196-7, improving upon his previous best of 191-4 by more than five feet. Both Fox and Bless entered the meet with qualifying marks for the NCAA Mideast Regional Championships to be held May 29-30.
Junior Kim Williams nearly set a personal best of her own with a seasonal-best mark of 190-11 in winning the women’s university hammer throw on Friday afternoon. Williams improved upon her seasonal-best effort of 189-0 entering the meet by nearly three feet.
The 30th edition of the Sun Angel Classic picked up once again for the Tigers and Lady Tigers on Saturday as the teams combined for 11 new NCAA regional qualifiers on the meet’s final day.
Junior All-American LaTavia Thomas was the Lady Tigers’ top performer on the night as she ran the second-fastest 800-meter time in the NCAA this season at 2 minutes, 4.48 seconds in her very first 800-meter race of the 2009 outdoor season. With her performance, Thomas won the premiere section of the women’s 800 meters. Lady Tiger senior Kayann Thompson also clocked an NCAA regional qualifying time in the race with a season-opening performance of 2:07.49.
The Lady Tigers also saw four athletes earn NCAA regional qualifying times in the 200 meters as junior Samantha Henry (23.27), sophomore Kenyanna Wilson (23.45), junior Liann Kellman (23.78) and junior Kristina Davis(23.87) each punched their postseason ticket on Saturday.
Both Henry and Wilson finished the meet ranked among the top six performers in the NCAA with Henry at No. 5 and Wilson at No. 6 nationally with her new personal best of 23.45.
Senior sprinter Monique Cabral was actually LSU’s first regional qualifier on the day as she ran a time of 11.72 to win the university division of the women’s 100-meter dash. The Lady Tigers will return to Baton Rouge with a total of 17 individuals and two relays qualified for the regional meet to be held at Cardinal Park Stadium in Louisville, Ky.
Like Thomas, LSU junior Richard Jones clocked the second-fastest 800-meter time in the NCAA in his outdoor debut by running 1:48.85 to finish second in the premiere section of the men’s race on Saturday. He nipped teammate and fellow junior Jamaal James (1:48.86) at the finish line with both times earning a spot at the regional meet.
Junior Armanti Hayes also qualified for the regional meet in his first 400-meter race of the season while running a time of 47.08, while fellow junior Josh Dominguez became a regional qualifier for the first time this season on Saturday by clearing a height of 16-6 ¾ in the pole vault.
While the LSU women have now qualified 17 individuals and two relays into the NCAA Mideast Regional Championships, the men have added 19 individuals and two relays of their own.
The Tigers and Lady Tigers return to Baton Rouge next weekend to play host to the LSU Alumni Gold on April 18 at the Bernie Moore Track Stadium. They will then wrap up the outdoor regular season with their annual trip to Philadelphia to compete in the 115th running of the Penn Relays to be held once again at historic Franklin Field at the University of Pennsylvania.
LSU’s Qualifiers for the 2009 NCAA Mideast Regional Championships (as of April 11)
MEN
Name, Event, Mark/Time
Chris Bless, Hammer Throw, 196-7
Mark DeBlanc, Javelin, 216-4
Josh Dominguez, Pole Vault, 16-6 ¾
Rabun Fox, Hammer Throw, 202-6
Reggie Haslom, Triple Jump, 49-5 ½
Armanti Hayes, 400 meters, 47.08
Walter Henning, Hammer Throw, 235-5
Jeremy Hicks, Long Jump, 26-1 ½
Trindon Holliday, 100 meters, 10.12
Jamaal James, 800 meters, 1:48.86
Richard Jones, 800 meters, 1:48.85
Michael Lauro, Hammer Throw, 203-1
Patrick Lee, 400 hurdles, 51.57
Marcus McGehee, Pole Vault, 16-6 ¾
Barrett Nugent, 110 hurdles, 13.84w
Gabriel Mvumvure, 100 meters, 10.42w
Gabriel Mvumvure, 200 meters, 21.00
Zedric Thomas, Long Jump, 24-9 ¾
Zedric Thomas, Triple Jump, 50-6w
Hicks, Coppage, Mvumvure, Holliday; 4x100 Relay; 39.10
Howard, Hayes, Alleyne-Forte, Simmons; 4x400 Relay; 3:05.97
WOMEN
Name, Event, Mark/Time
Monique Cabral, 100 meters, 11.72
Brittani Carter, High Jump, 6-0
Kristina Davis, 200 meters, 23.87
Samantha Henry, 100 meters, 11.19
Samantha Henry, 200 meters, 23.27
Tenaya Jones, 100 hurdles, 13.28
Liann Kellman, 200 meters, 23.78
Brieanna Kennedy, Javelin, 151-6
Rachel Laurent, Pole Vault, 14-1 ¼
Anna Lyons, Javelin, 160-11
Katelyn Rodrigue, Pole Vault, 13-5 ¼
Cassandra Tate, 200 meters, 23.68
LaTavia Thomas, 800 meters, 2:04.48
Kayann Thompson, 800 meters, 2:07.49
Kim Williams, Hammer Throw, 190-11
Kenyanna Wilson, 100 meters, 11.31
Kenyanna Wilson, 200 meters, 23.45
Davis, Tate, Henry, Wilson; 4x100 Relay; 43.76
Hall, Tate, Thompson, Thomas; 4x400 Relay; 3:31.81