While the No. 2 LSU track and field teams saw some bright spots individually, neither team claimed a national championship at Gilliam Indoor Stadium in College Station, Texas, extending their indoor drought to seven years.
The Lady Tigers locked up third place in the championships for the second straight season, finishing a distant 30 points behind defending champion Oregon.
The Tigers also claimed the same spot as last year, stumbling to a fourth place finish after placing poorly in the 4×400 relay final.
The Tigers were poised to finish in the top 3 of the team standings, but dropped from third to eighth in the 4×400 final during the anchor portion of the race.
The drop in placement led to a loss of five team points, and LSU finished three team points behind BYU for third place.
On Friday, Kimberlyn Duncan became the first Lady Tiger to win the 200-meter title since former LSU great Muna Lee in 2002-03.
“I could never have imagined something like this at the beginning of the season,” Duncan said in a press release. “I’ve worked so hard here this season, and I’m just so thankful to my coaches who have helped put me in this position.”
Duncan went into the final with the world’s fastest time and didn’t disappoint. She beat the next closest sprinter by .03 seconds to claim the title.
Walter Henning continued his dominance over the rest of the NCAA in the men’s weight throw. Henning’s mark of 72-feet, 8 ½ inches was nearly three feet longer than his next closest competitor.
Henning is now a three-time collegiate national champion in the indoor and outdoor throwing events. Henning hasn’t been topped in a meet since the outdoor championships in 2009.
Junior hurdler Barrett Nugent turned in a season-best time in the 60-meter hurdle finals, running a 7.61 second time that was more than a tenth of a second better than his previous best this season.
Junior jumper Zedric Thomas earned two All-American honors for his performances in the long jump and triple jump, finishing seventh in both events.
LSU will kick off the outdoor season next weekend in Lafayette in the Louisiana Classics meet.