By Shawn Medow
Day Three of the NCAA Championships was action-packed as the men’s championship came down to the final event of the day: the 4×400 relay. Texas A&M won the relay, but Florida finished in fourth, which was just enough for the Gators to win the national championships with 61.5 points to Texas A&M’s 59.5. (Oregon finished ninth with 19.5 points.) Isaac Gibson covered the Aggies throughout the men’s meet for the Houston Chronicle.
Tennessee sprinter and 100-meter collegiate record holder Christian Coleman is the 2017 NCAA national champion in both the 100 and 200. Read Maggie Vanoni’s story for the Knoxville News Sentinel on Coleman’s double here.
In the men’s 800-meter final, Penn State’s Isaiah Harris finished second after a collision on the final lap between UTEP runners Michael Saruni and Emmanuel Korir. Read Gus Morris’ story for the Sun Journal in Lewiston, Maine.
Gonzaga steeplechaser Troy Fraley became the school’s first track All-American in the steeplechase, and Colorado’s Zach Perrin finished 11th in the 5,000 meters. Read Jack Butler’s story on the two Kalispell alums for 406mtsports.com.
New Mexico’s Josh Kerr took the 1,500-meter race in 3 minutes, 43.03 seconds, 0.47 seconds ahead of Michigan State’s Justine Kiprotich. Gus Morris wrote about the race for Run Blog Run.
Texas A&M senior Fred Kerley won the 400-meter race in 44.10 seconds after out-kicking the field in the final 100 meters. Kim Holm has the story for Run Blog Run.
Florida junior Christoff Bryan reached a season-high in the high jump at 7 feet, 3 inches, beating Texas Tech junior Trey Culver to win the NCAA title. Becky Hoag wrote the story for Run Blog Run.
Florida freshman Grant Holloway was instrumental for the Gators’ team national championship, winning the 110-meter hurdles and anchoring the 4×400 relay at the end of the meet to help clinch the title. Ariel Sax has the story for Run Blog Run.
