Waltz Qualifies Again

Even an unassuming gent like Ian Waltz would agree that Mr. Automatic sounds altogether more flattering than Mr. Provisional.

“Yep, pretty good,” the understated Washington State sophomore allowed Sunday, smiling broadly if only briefly in the afterglow of his Pacific-10 Conference discus championship. “I’m pretty happy.”

One day after winning the Pac-10 shot put title and becoming an automatic qualifier for that event at next month’s NCAA championships, Waltz duplicated his impressive feat in the discus ring on a chilly afternoon at Husky Stadium.

“It was kind of my goal just to get two automatics so they couldn’t draw the line above me and keep me from nationals,” said Waltz, who had been only a provisional qualifier in both events before this weekend.

Waltz, distance ace Bernard Lagat and triple jumper Hilary Mawindi helped the WSU men climb from seventh place after one day to sixth in the final conference championship standings.

The WSU women, competing without injured All-American Francesca Green and expected by coach Rick Sloan to finish as low as last place, rallied to sixth behind sprinter Tamika Brown.

Team championships went to the USC men and UCLA women. Arizona State is on probation and was barred from the meet, reducing the field to eight.

Waltz, meanwhile, seemingly reduced the shot and discus fields to one. In the process, the Post Falls High graduate became first man in WSU history to win two field events at the same Pac-10 Championships. Waltz was also this meet’s only male double-winner.

Sunday’s performance was remarkably similar to Saturday’s. His winning discus mark, measured at 196 feet 4 inches, mirrored his winning mark in the shot (61-8-1/4) on several levels: Each came on his final throw; each came after he had secured the Pac-10 title; each was a personal best; and each made him an automatic qualifier.

Furthermore, Waltz had entered the two-day meet as the third-ranked thrower in each event, behind first- and secondranked athletes from UCLA.

UCLA senior David Dumble, who had thrown the 2-kilogram disc a conference-leading 197-11 during the season, finished second at 189-2. Luke Sullivan, his sophomore teammate, was third at 188-4.

Waltz was guilty of a few technical shortcomings that resulted in excessively wobbly throws, but he more than compensated with superior strength and explosiveness. In fact, three of his discus throws were long enough to claim the title - just as his top four marks in the shot put had been long enough to win.

“When he gets into a competitive environment, he competes - he likes the competition, likes the challenge,” Sloan said.

With 90 points, the WSU men finished within six of third-place Washington. USC edged UCLA for the title, 145-138.

The WSU women, who scored just eight points Saturday, finished with 66 - leaping over California (64) and Washington (59). UCLA ran away with the title with 189.5 points, a women’s meet record, while runner-up USC scored 134.5.

Brown finished second in the 100 meters and third in the 200, in addition to running the third leg of WSU’s second-place 4x100 relay team. Her 11.93 in the 100 edged freshman teammate Sharika Higgins (12.02), who was third.

Brown enjoyed a laugh at her own expense in the 200, even if her 24.14 won’t take her to nationals. The loquacious junior, it would seem, failed to follow the all-too-familiar edict of sprints coach Mark Macdonald, who has implored her to become a faster starter.

“Race them to the scoreboard,” Macdonald likes to say. “I forgot,” Brown admitted, searching for an alibi, “but I did it yesterday. I didn’t say I’d do it for the finals.”

Lagat, meanwhile, pulled away from his 1,500-meter competitors on the final lap, then held off teammate Eric Kamau to win in 3:41.98. Kamau was second in 3:43.34.

Lagat, who later finished second in the 5,000, already was an NCAA automatic qualifier in the 1,500.

“With this 1,500 race I was just running to win and not make any time because already I have qualified,” Lagat said. “When the bell rung (signifying one lap remaining), I just took off.”

Mawindi was second in the triple jump, covering 51-3.

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