For most students, the arrival of finals week signals the end of the school year and the beginning of a lazy summer break — but not for the LSU track and field teams.
It’s championship time, and they’ve got work to do.
The No. 1 Lady Tigers and the No. 2 Tigers will travel to Athens, Ga., at the conclusion of finals week for the Southeastern Conference championship meet.
The NCAA Championship takes place June 8-11, and a handful of LSU’s national contenders will make the trip to Des Moines, Iowa, to try to claim LSU’s fourth outdoor team championship in the last decade.
“I’m confident that we’re going to have good meets. We’re a contender at the SEC meet, and we’re a contender at the NCAA meet,” said LSU coach Dennis Shaver. “If we take care of business on a daily basis I expect both teams to represent LSU very well in those championship meets.”
Shaver said he understands the added stress his athletes experience during finals week, but he conveyed a message to his teams to ease their stress.
“I told the team yesterday that they need to take care of business to go to the championship meets and do what it is that they had done to get themselves in that position, and they’ll be fine,” Shaver said.
Both the Tigers and the Lady Tigers have been near the top of the national rankings throughout the indoor and outdoor seasons, and both had an athlete claim an indoor title this spring.
Sophomore sprinter Kimberlyn Duncan burst on the scene to claim a title in the 200-meter dash after finishing 13th in the event in her freshman season.
Duncan, who was the world’s top-ranked performer in the event before the championship meet, cruised around the track in 22.85 seconds to secure her first collegiate title.
Senior Walter Henning won his third collegiate title at the NCAA indoor meet, winning the weight throw with a mark of 72-8 1/2.
“This season has gone as well as we anticipated it to,” Shaver said. “I’m extremely pleased with the competitive nature of both teams and how they’ve been able to get things done when the pressure was there.”
 
______
Contact Luke Johnson at [email protected]