FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - The LSU track and field program added its sixth automatic qualifier into the field at the 2011 NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships during Saturday's finale for the Razorback Invitational as junior Kyron Blaiseeclipsed the national standard in the men's triple jump with an impressive seasonal-best mark of 53 feet, 4 ½ inches.
Blaise joins an impressive list of early season qualifiers for the NCAA Championships that includes Tiger teammates Zedric Thomas (26-3 ¾) and Damar Forbes (26-3) in the long jump and Walter Henning(72-3 ¾) in the 35-pound weight throw. Lady Tiger sprint star Semoy Hackett has also qualified for the national meet in both the 60-meter dash (7.24) and 200-meter dash (22.98). The Tigers and Lady Tigers combined to win four event titles and set 11 personal records on the final day of competition at this year's Razorback Invitational held at the Randal Tyson Track Center. "We've really gotten a lot done with both teams from last week to this week. That's a credit to our kids in how they prepared themselves to compete this weekend," said LSU head coach Dennis Shaver. "We have taken a big step with our performance these last two days in becoming the kind of team we want to be. "And that is true for us across all of the event areas. You can tell that just by the number of personal bests that were set at this meet and the number of athletes who put themselves in a position to compete for us at the NCAA Championships. We are certainly a better team now than we were just a few short weeks ago." Blaise, who joined the LSU program as the No. 1-ranked triple jump prospect at the junior college for the Class of 2010, has already made his mark as a true All-America contender for the Tigers this season. His jump of 53-4 ½ ranks No. 3 in the NCAA following the Razorback Invitational as he improves on his seasonal best of 52-7 ½ set in his LSU debut at the Texas A&M dual meet last weekend. Blaise posted an impressive series during Saturday's triple jump competition as he recorded jumps of 52-6 ¾ on his second attempt and 52-8 ¾ on his third attempt before setting a best of 53-4 ½ on his fifth attempt of the day. LSU was outstanding in the triple jump on Saturday afternoon as senior All-American Zedric Thomasset a seasonal best of his own in a fourth-place finish at 52-4 ½, while sophomore Damar Forbesopened with a seasonal best of 51-10 in a fifth-place finish behind Blaise's runner-up performance. The Lady Tigers were just as impressive in the event as senior All-America Melissa Ogbourne just missed the NCAA qualifying mark by mere inches with a seasonal best of 43-2 ½ to finish in second place. Headlining LSU's list of event champions with Saturday's action at the Razorback Invitational was junior All-American Michael Lauro, who shattered his own personal best in the men's 35-pound weight throw to win his first event title as an LSU Tiger. Lauro eclipsed his previous personal record by 15 inches with an impressive mark of 69-6 ¾ that ranks No. 2 in the NCAA behind Henning's seasonal best of 72-3 ¾. The Tigers and Lady Tigers also swept 60-meter titles on the final day of competition at Arkansas as LSU junior Horatio Williams won the men's crown with a time of 6.63 seconds and sophomoreKimberlyn Duncan matched her personal best with a time of 7.38 to win the women's championship. Senior Gabriel Mvumvure also proved to be a threat for the men's 60-meter crown as he placed third with a personal-best time of 6.68 that ranks No. 5 on LSU's all-time indoor performance list. Senior Tenaya Jones preceded LSU's sweep in the 60-meter dash by taking the crown in the women's 60-meter hurdles with a seasonal-best time of 8.24 in the final that ranks in a tie for No. 7 on the national lists for the 2011 campaign. Jones entered the meet with a previous seasonal best of 8.38. Freshman Jasmin Stowers seemed poised to challenge Jones for the event championship after setting a PR of 8.28 in the semifinal round that ranks No. 1 among all freshmen in the NCAA this season. But Stowers stumbled over the third hurdle in the final and was unable to finish the race. LSU athletes recorded eight other personal bests on Saturday afternoon, including juniors Cassandra Tate (53.45) and Rebecca Alexander (54.73) in the 400-meter dash, freshman Lynnika Pitts (41-0 ½) in the triple jump and freshman Karen Henning (58-0 ¼) in the 20-pound weight throw for the Lady Tigers, and senior Alan Sticker (8:21.22), junior Richard Chautin (8:20.32) and freshman Alden Heaphy (8:56.79) for the Tigers in the finals of the men's 3,000-meter run. The Tigers and Lady Tigers will return to action next weekend as they make their annual journey to New York to compete against more than 100 universities from across the country at the prestigious New Balance Collegiate Invitational to be held Feb. 4-5 at the Armory Track & Field Center.