by Steven Fernandez
Daily Lobo
Freshman Anthony Fairbanks has not taken long to prove he can compete at the collegiate level.
At this weekend's Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays, Fairbanks finished second out of 18 with a throw of 210-9. The throw was his farthest of the season, and bested his NCAA regional qualifying mark of 206-4.
Fairbanks defeated Joseph Brown (207-5) of Texas Christian University, who holds the record in the Mountain West Conference in the event.
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UNM head coach Matt Henry said he was excited to see Fairbanks perform well at a meet that featured some tough field event competition.
"That's really good for Anthony," Henry said. "At the Texas Relays, those are some of the better kids throwing. That's a good deal that he could have that much success."
Fairbanks has made a name for himself in the first three meets of his collegiate career. UNM's first-year javelin thrower won the throw at last weekend's Cardinal & Gold Invitational in Los Angeles and qualified for the regional meet. In his debut at the Jim Click Shootout, Fairbanks earned a third-place finish. Fairbanks was a three-time state champion in the event at Albuquerque Highland High School and has shown promise early in his collegiate career.
As a high-profile college athlete, Henry said Fairbanks had opportunities to go to other colleges but chose UNM. Henry said Fairbanks' presence has helped make a positive impact on the team.
"He's still very, very young," Henry said. "We're really lucky to have him here."
On the women's side, the Lobos had two more athletes qualify for the NCAA Midwest Regional meet. Seven Lobos qualified for the meet in earlier competitions. Sophomore pole vaulter Whitney Johnson punched her ticket with a fifth-place finish and a height of 12-05.50.
Henry said Johnson has started to regain her confidence after a few shaky meets. "She was struggling there for a couple of meets, and that's frustrating for her," Henry said. "I'm glad that she can qualify and get that out of the way. Maybe now that she's qualified, she can put that bar a little higher. We'll see what we can do."
The other regional qualifier at the Texas Relays was Jamie Fishencord in the women's hammer throw. The senior placed 14th overall but still managed to qualify after tossing 177-09.
Henry said he is glad the veteran Fishencord is starting to come around.
"Jamie's going to do some really nice things for us," he said. "I'm glad we got a few more meets with her."
Henry said he is pleased to see every one of the nine team members earn the trip to the 2006 NCAA regionals and said there could be a few more. Junior pole vaulter Robert Caldwell is one of the athletes Henry said has a chance of doing that.
"Robert just needs to take some time off from competition," Henry said. "We'll see if he can put some workouts together and come back in a couple of weeks and get back on track."
Caldwell failed to clear the opening height on Saturday, while teammate and regional qualifier Derek Mackel finished seventh overall. Mackel cleared 17-4.50, which is his best height of the 2006 outdoor season.
In high jump, freshman Josh Cosio tied for eighth place with a jump of 6-8.75. Cosio is also one of the Lobos who has already qualified for the regional meet.
The Lobos did not take a big group of athletes to the Texas Relays, but they have a big week ahead of them. This weekend, most of the team will travel to El Paso, Texas, for the Spira Invitational, while a select few will make the trip to the elite Mount Sac Relays in Walnut, Calif.
