Everything lined up for another shot at dual indoor track & field national titles

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Aside from South Dakota temperatures being colder than he prefers, it seems everything has been to Wayland Baptist coach Brian Whitlock's liking as he readies the Pioneer men's and women's track and field teams to possibly repeat as dual team champions at the NAIA Indoor National Championships this weekend.
 
"Everything is going well," Whitlock said. "We had a good bus trip up. Everybody is healthy (and) nobody is sick."
 
The Pioneers arrived in Brookings, S.D., Tuesday and will begin competition at 2 p.m. Thursday at the Jackrabbit Athletic Complete on the campus of Dakota State University. By the time all it said and done around 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Whitlock hopes to be bringing back a couple of more red national championship banners to add to Wayland's vast collection.
 
"Our women's team looks pretty good to try to win here. It won't be easy, but they'll have an easier path than the men," the coach said.
 
Based on number of qualifiers and performances, both Wayland's teams are rated second behind rival Indiana Tech, according to the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. As usual, Indiana Tech has a leg up on Wayland with its tremendous depth, but the Pioneers look to make up for that quantity deficit with quality.
 
On the women's side – where Wayland has won two of the last three titles and seven overall (to go with four outdoor titles) – Indiana Tech shows up with 26 combined entries between individual events and relays. Wayland counters with 14 entries in individual events.
 
"Our women are ranked No. 2, but I have us as the favorite points-wise, just by looking at the entries," Whitlock said. "It definitely will be between us and Indiana Tech; most other teams can't score enough points, to be honest. It will come down to who has the better weekend."
 
While Indiana Tech's best event is the long jump where it has student-athletes ranked first and second, Wayland will get the majority of its points in the sprints and triple jump. Specifically, the Pioneers will be leaning on Devin Johnson, the defending champion in the 60 and 200 meters and last year's co-MVP at nationals, along with defending triple jump champion Tiona Owens. Johnson, a junior from Mesquite, and Owens, a senior from Dallas, are also both ranked highly in the 200 (No. 2) and 60 hurdles (No. 3), respectively.
 
"We're leaning heavily on Devin and Tiona. Both of them have a chance to win a couple of events, and we're counting on them for a big chunk of our points," Whitlock said. "Of course, the rest of our kids have to perform well, too."
 
That includes sprinter Cheyenne Hill-Johnson and distance/middle-distance runners like Jackline Cherono, Teresha Jacobs and Tiffany Cano.
 
"I like our chances. We have a good group of older kids who have been here," Whitlock said. "We have to get the ball rolling on Thursday and qualify all three of our relays.
 
"I like our chances. I feel pretty confident."
 
On the men's side, Indiana Tech and Wayland have finished first and second – in some order – at the NAIA Indoor Championships four times since 2014, and it should be the same story this weekend. Incredibly, the Pioneers have finished no lower than second only once in the last nine championships, with two titles and six runner-up showings. In all, Wayland has eight indoor titles to go with an outdoor crown.
 
Indiana Tech, which is seeking its fifth national title in the past six years, qualified 30 individual entries and three more in relay events for a total of 33. The Warriors don't have any top-ranked entries, but they do have nine in the top-5.
 
"Indiana Tech has a ton of kids," Whitlock said. "They have 14 events they can score in, and we only have eight. That's a little bit of a disadvantage, but I'm hoping our eight are really good. It was the same thing last year, but we were really good. If we can do that again we'll have a chance.

Wayland brings 14 total entries, although what the Pioneers lack in quantity, they make up in quality. WBU owns three No. 1 marks nationally thanks to seniors Tre Hinds (600) and Quintaveon Poole (400) and the 4×4 relay, not to mention several more in the top-5.

Poole, a senior from Sandersville, Ga., was last year's men's MVP after setting a new NAIA national indoor record in the 400 while also winning the 200 and helping the 4x4 relay to a second-place finish. Hinds will be trying to win the 600 for the third straight season while also anchoring the 4x4 and 4x8 relays.

"Quintaveon and Tre are our big guns," Whitlock said.
 
Among others the Pioneers must see come through, the coach said, are juniors Donte Irving in the triple jump and Demetrius Turner in the 400 and 4x4, along with sophomore Keiontae Williamson plus newcomer distance runners Derrick Reid and Martin Harding. Whitlock also said senior Raul Almaraz, who's ranked sixth in the 5,000, will play a pivotal role.
 
"If we're going to win we need a senior guy like Raul to step up. That will definitely help our chances."
Unlike in the women's competition, Whitlock said he shows the Pioneer men a bit behind Indiana Tech.
 
"I have Indiana Tech a little bit of a favorite, so we have to try to do a little bit better (than projected) and get some help from other teams to try to combat them and bring them a little closer to us."
 
He said he'd like nothing better than for the team championship to be decided in the final event of the meet.
 
"I just hope we get to the 4x4 with a chance."