COLUMBIA, Mo.—Nick Adcock says he’s always been too exhausted to smile after a decathlon.
Not this year. The Missouri senior beamed Saturday after winning the decathlon title with 7,704 points at the Big 12 Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
The meet was satisfying for Adcock on several fronts. Lots of friends and family from his hometown of Kansas City packed Walton Stadium on a chilly, rainy day. It was also the last home meet for his coach, Rick McGuire, who is retiring after 27 years at Missouri.
And then there was the matter of his performance at last year’s Big 12 meet.
Adcock was one of the favorites in 2009 but failed to clear any bars in the pole vault and settled for eighth place.
“A little bit disappointed would be an understatement,” McGuire said of Adcock’s state of mind after last year’s conference meet. “So obviously he had a lot of reasons to want to do really well in this.”
Adcock entered Day 2 of the decathlon in first place and won Saturday’s first event, the 110-meter hurdles, in 14.26 seconds. The pole vault loomed, but Adcock did fine, clearing 15 feet, 5 inches. In the final event—the 1,500 meters—he finished a step ahead of teammate Lars Rise, who placed second overall with 7,695 points.
“It makes it even sweeter knowing what happened last year,” Adcock said. “Same conditions, same everything, but this time conquering it and getting things done.”
In Saturday’s other men’s finals, Kansas freshman Mason Finley won the shot put with a distance of 62-8 3/4, Texas freshman Marquise Goodwin won the long jump (26-0 3/4) and Kansas’ Jordan Scott won the pole vault (17-8 1/4).
On the women’s side, Nebraska’s Chantae McMillan won the heptathlon with 5,349 points, Texas’ Chantel Malone won the long jump (21-0 1/2), Oklahoma’s Brittany Borman won the discus (174-5) and Texas’ Victoria Lucas won the high jump (5-8 3/4).
Texas A&M All-American sprinter Gabby Mayo pulled up in her 100-meter preliminary heat and failed to qualify for the finals. Coach Pat Henry said he doesn’t believe the injury is serious, but he scratched Mayo from the 200, so the Aggies will likely lose some points they expected in Sunday’s sprint finals.
“Any time you pull up and you’re running that fast, it doesn’t make any difference if it’s a cramp or you’re a little bit hurt, it’s a problem,” Henry said.
Overall, Nebraska leads the women’s standings with 59 points, followed by Texas with 35 and Texas A&M with 33. Texas A&M is the defending Big 12 and national champion.
The Cornhuskers also lead the men’s standings with 52 points, followed by Texas with 34 and Oklahoma and Missouri with 30 each.
