Georgia’s Irby Doubled Down, Set 400 MR

There were 14 instances of women scoring in both the 200 and 400 at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships between 1982 and 1989.

That number dropped to five from 1990 to 2003 and then zero in the next 14 years.

It’s safe to say Lynna Irby brought a throwback feel to the 2018 meet at Hayward Field.

Irby, then a freshman at Georgia, set her sights on becoming the only woman in meet history to win both the 200 and 400. She entered the weekend with the fastest 200 in the nation at 22.25 – the 14th fastest performance in collegiate history – from her victory at the SEC Championships and sat fifth on the seasonal 400 chart at 50.95.

First, Irby had to get through the semifinals, which she did with ease. Irby showed a sign of things to come with a 50.11 PR in the 400 for the fastest qualifier and added the second fastest qualifier of the meet in the 200 at 22.37.

Nothing was going to stop Irby in the 400 on the final day – not even inclement weather.

Irby destroyed the field for a meet-record 49.80, shaving 0.30 seconds off the previous meet best of 50.10 established by Monique Henderson of UCLA in 2005. That was just 0.09 seconds off the 49.71 collegiate record by 2016 The Bowerman winner Courtney Okolo of Texas. Irby also became just the fifth freshman to win that event crown in meet history.

“Honestly, I can’t even remember what the track felt like,” Irby said after the meet. “I just remember I wanted to be first across the finish line. All I could think about was the execution of our race plan today.”

Less than 40 minutes later, Irby returned to the track for the 200-meter final.

Irby got out strong, but fresh legs prevailed, as Anglerne Annelus of Southern California won with NCAA Indoor champ Gabrielle Thomas not too far behind. Annelus took her first of two half-lap crowns in 22.76 with Thomas in second at 22.86 and Irby third in 22.92.