EUGENE, Oregon —— USC stormed to an upset victory over Florida in the men’s 4x100m relay to kick-start the main program on Day 3 here at the 2022 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Hayward Field on Friday (10).
The Trojans got the baton around safely and then 400m runner Johnnie Blockburger held off a late surge by Florida’s Joseph Fahnbulleh to collect the 10 points with a winning time of 38.49 seconds.
READ MORE: Day 3 order of events: 2022 NCAA outdoor championships
The Gators came into the championships as the favorites, but trailed entering the final exchange. Fahnbulleh, as he did in the semi-finals on Wednesday, closed super fast, but the Olympian ran out of real estate and had to settle for second place with Florida posting a time of 38.52 secs.
USC was winning the men’s 4x100m NCAA national championships title for the first time since 1980, according to the statisticians.
Houston was well placed in second place in the closing meters, but Shaun Maswanganyi, who wasn’t able to catch Blockburger, was chased down by Fahnbulleh.
In the end, Houston crossed the finish line in a time of 38.64, while SEC representative Tennessee crossed fourth in 38.83. Read more: How to watch the Portland Track Festival High-Performance meeting?
Rounding out the finishers were Baylor (38.99) in fifth place, followed by Texas (39.09) North Carolina A&T (39.35), and Clemson (39.44).
The men’s 1500m title went to a delighted Joe Waskom of Washington who crossed the finish line at 3:45.58, holding off Ole Miss’ Mario Garcia Romo (3:45.69) and Sam Ellis of Princeton (3:45.82).
The 2022 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships will continue tonight with a host of finals on the men’s side as the battle for the team championship heats up.
