UGA’s Morales Williams wins NCAA gold

Christopher Morales Williams didn’t set a world record this time, but the Georgia sophomore wasn’t complaining when he left Boston as an NCAA champion.

The Ontario native won the 400-meter run with a time of 44.67 seconds at the indoor national championship. That’s a couple of tenths behind the world-best time Morales Williams clocked at the SEC Championships the previous week, but he wasn’t complaining.

“It felt good; it felt the same,” Morales Williams told reporters in Boston. “Literally, I was more tired for this one. Overall, it feels like I can do it consistently and be this strong for outdoors, which also would be amazing.”

Morales Williams captured worldwide attention when he clocked 44.49 at the SEC meet in Fayetteville, Ark., the weekend before. Ultimately, the IAAF wouldn’t recognize the time as the world record because they used standard starting blocks at the meet. But Morales Williams and the rest of the track community acknowledged the accomplishment, and he was named the NCAA’s National Runner of the Year for the indoor season.

Still, the 44.67 was the fifth-fastest in collegiate history and the second-best time of Morales Williams’ career. It was the second consecutive year Georgia took gold in the 400 and third all time. Elija Godwin won the race last year and Torrin Lawrence won it in 2010.

Morales Williams ran the fifth-fastest collegiate time in history to capture his first 400meter dash title on the final day of the NCAA Indoor Championships at The Track at New Balance in Boston.

In the team standings, Georgia’s men’s team finished 15th and the women were third at the indoor championships. Eight Bulldogs came home as All-Americans.