Harter: Razorbacks carrying a good mix

Arkansas' Lexi Weeks competes in the pole vault Saturday, April 23, 2016, during the John McDonnell Invitational at John McDonnell Field in Fayetteville.
Arkansas' Lexi Weeks competes in the pole vault Saturday, April 23, 2016, during the John McDonnell Invitational at John McDonnell Field in Fayetteville.

FAYETTEVILLE -- Before Arkansas' women's track and field team left campus to travel for Lawrence, Kan., for the NCAA West Regional, Razorbacks Coach Lance Harter filmed a cooking video to be shown to UA athletes.

"I made 'Crock Pot Santa Fe Chicken,' " Harter said. "It's really easy and it tastes pretty good."

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Harter said preparing the meal was sort of like getting his No. 2-ranked team ready for the West Regional, which begins today and runs through Saturday at Kansas' Rock Chalk Park.

"You have to follow a recipe for success and figure out what ingredients you want to incorporate," he said. "Make sure they're all fresh and ready to go and blend them together and watch the result."

Competing at the West Regional has a similarity to crock pot cooking, too.

"You want it to simmer," Harter said. "You don't want to overheat it."

The top 12 individuals in each event and six teams in the two relays at the West Regional advance to the NCAA Championships June 8-11 in Eugene, Ore.

So the Razorbacks want to be at their hottest in two weeks, not this weekend.

"The regional is the gate keeper to the NCAA finals, so it's a matter of survival," Harter said. "Obviously, we want to make sure we take care of the opportunity and advance, but we don't want to burn ourselves out.

"We've got to make sure we get everybody to Eugene we possibly can, but especially our major scorers that are going to dictate the team finish."

The Razorbacks are counting on major points at the NCAA Championships from senior Dominique Scott-Efurd in the 5,000 and 10,000 meters; senior Taylor Ellis-Watson in the 400; freshmen and twin sisters Lexi and Tori Weeks and seniors Ariel Voskamp and Megan Zimlich in the pole vault; and senior Jessica Kamilos in the 3,000-meter steeplechase.

Ellis-Watson also will run on the 400- and 1,600-meter relays.

Arkansas sophomores Taliyah Brooks and Payton Stumbaugh, senior Alex Gochenhour and junior Leigha Brown already have qualified for the NCAA Championships in the heptathlon, but Brooks will long jump at the West Regional and Stumbaugh and Gochenhour will run the 100-meter hurdles.

Overall, Arkansas has 26 athletes competing in 14 events.

"We're coming from all sides," Harter said. "We're excited about our chances."

Sports on 05/26/2016

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