Okolo leads women’s track and field to fourth place at NCAA Outdoor Championships

By Steve Lansdale

EUGENE, Ore. — Courtney Okolo closed out her brilliant college career in the only appropriate way at the NCAA Outdoor Championships at Hayward Field at the University of Oregon.

The senior Texas sprinter won her fourth NCAA title — her second outdoors — in the[s2If current_user_can(access_s2member_level1)] 400 meters, crossing the finish line in 50.36 seconds, the 10^th-fastest time in collegiate history. She also ran the anchor leg in the 4×400-meter relay, making up about 20 meters over the final half lap to give the Longhorns the national title in the event.

“I’m glad we won because we’re Texas,” Okolo said. “We have to win the 4×4.”

Thanks in large part to Okolo’s dominance, the Longhorns finished with 36 points, good for fourth place in the meet. Arkansas won its first national championship with 72 points, followed by Oregon with 62 and Georgia with 41.

The college record holder in the 400, Okolo now has run four of the 10 fastest times in collegiate history.

“It hasn’t sunk in yet with everything,” Okolo said. “I’m just tired. I think I need to sit down for a second and then everything will sink in.”

Fellow senior Morolake Akinosun had a strong meet, placing third in the 100-meter dash in 11.07 seconds and then finishing fourth in the 200, in 22.54.

Other top individual performers included sophomore Ashtin Zamzow, who finished 17^th in the heptathlon and Sandie Raines, who finished 21^st in the 5,000 meters.

Akinosun said that she took considerable pride in her team’s performance on the largest stage.

“I said before that we have kind of mastered the Big 12 meet, and to come here and put on a show at the NCAA meet it means a lot.”

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