Texas A&M track and field were in California this weekend competing in the Rafer Johnson/Jackie Joyner-Kersee Invitational hosted by UCLA. The Aggie men’s and women’s squads swept the team titles, winning a combined 29 events on Saturday.
The men’s squad totaled 217 points, well ahead of runner-up Sacramento State who scored 124. The women’s squad was also dominant, scoring 247.5 points over UCLA’s 133.
The meet was highlighted by two school recording-setting performances for Texas A&M.
Alex Riba won the 1,500m with a time of 3:43.06, bettering the previous record of 3:43.65 set by Tommy Bonn in 2002. The senior set the school’s indoor mile record with the first sub-four-minute time earlier this year.
“After the mile indoors, I was hoping the outdoor record would come eventually,” Riba said to 12thman.com. “I knew I was capable breaking the record, it was just a matter of actually getting out there and doing it. Today was more about racing the competition. I was not concerned about time at all. I just ran and raced and that was the result. It’s a stepping stone to what I can do in the future.”
Fray produced the other record-setting performance, this time in the 800m. Her winning time of 2:01.18 broke her own record she set on the same track a year ago. Fray’s time currently leads the collegiate ranks for the 2018 season.
“I really just wanted to execute my race,” Fray said to 12thman.com. “Those were the points I was wanting to hit with my splits. I was excited because I hit very evenly and that’s what I’m always going for. No one wants to hit an uneven pace or an uneven 200m. The pacing was really good.”
Brittany Parker and Jean Jenkins sealed the 1-2-3 finish for the Aggies with career best times, as Parker placed second with a time of 2:06.12, while Jean Jenkins finished third with a 2:08.26.
“I love it when we all set PRs from working together,” Fray added to 12thman.com. “One person’s vibe of doing really well rubs off on someone else. Then it makes the whole team do really well. It’s exciting to watch and see.”
Freshman Sammy Watson produced a career best time of 4:21.45 to win the women’s 1,500m. Watson was neck and neck with Ana Cristina Narvaez until the final 200 meters when she pulled away to take the title.
“I knew today would be good for my 800 ultimately,” Watson said to 12thman.com. “Moving up in distance will really help me with the strength in getting through an 800. It was a giant learning experience with me taking the lead earlier in the race. It was nice to know how I can be competitive during a race more than sitting and kicking.
“I’m really proud of Jazmine, and I’m glad we don’t have to race each other as competition to do well in our individual events. So, it’s nice that we’re not always competing against each other every week to get good times and be great.”
The men’s 4×400 relay squad won their event with a time of 3:02.43, setting a new stadium record. The previous record of 3:02.74 had stood since 1986 and was set by TCU. On track were Mylik Kerley, Bryce Deadmon, Devin Dixon and Ilolo Izu.
A time of 3:38.78 saw the women’s 4×400 team place first. Running for the Aggies were Jarra Owens, Virginia Kerley, Jaevin Reed and Glorilisha Carter.
Both sides also produced top finishes in the 4×100 relays. The men’s squad ran a time of 39.78 with Jace Comick, Seth Page, Will Williams and Deadmon on track. Amber Ivy, Julia Madubuike, Diamond Spaulding and Brenessa Thompson ran a time of 43.26 to lead the women’s team to victory over an all-star USA team.
Texas A&M had 1-2 finishes on both sides of the 3,000m steeplechase. Zephyr Seagraves and Raymond Gonzales were the top finishers on the men’s side with times of 9:12.78 and 9:14.56, respectively. Ashton Hutcherson ran a time of 10:46.94 to win the women’s race, while Rachel Bernardo clocked an 11:10.97 to place second.
In the men’s 800m, Dixon and Efrain Hernandez placed first and second with times of 1:47.00 and 1:48.32, respectively. In the 400m hurdles, Tyler Hart clocked a 51.36, while Jackson Davis ran a time of 51.90 to claim another 1-2 finish for Texas A&M.
The women’s team had a 1-2-3 finishes in both the 400m and 200m. Madubuike won the 400m with a time of 52.72, followed by Carter and Owens, while Spaulding won the 200m with a time of 22.92, ahead of Ivy and Kerley.
The women’s 100m hurdles saw Gabrielle McDonald take top spot with a time of 13.47, followed by Sharia Moore in second place. Another 1-2 finish came shortly after, as Thompson won the 100m with a time of 11.37 and Ivy finished runner-up with an 11.46.
Other winners on the track included Tyler Guillory in the men’s 110m hurdles (14.25), Richard Rose in the men’s 400m (46.81), Comick in the men’s 100m (10.45), and Lauren Lawless in the women’s 400m hurdles (59.64).
Texas A&M also got several big wins in the field events on Saturday.
Senior Will Williams, who won the indoor long jump NCAA title in March, leapt 8.04m to win the men’s title this weekend, while newcomer Tahar Triki jumped 7.53m to place second. Williams’ distance leads in the U.S. and collegiate ranks this 2018 season among wind-legal marks.
“Today was a beautiful day and I felt great,” Williams said to 12thman.com. “I had a feeling something spectacular was going to happen today. It was a great day to jump and you don’t get too many days like this. So, it was a great day to compete.”
Lajarvia Brown also produced a giant jump, with a 13.58m to win the women’s triple jump. The sophomore passed teammate Ciynamon Stevenson in the fifth round, who finished runner-up with a distance of 13.04m.
The women’s long jump produced a 1-2-3 Aggie finish. Freshman Tyra Gittens leapt 6.17m to take the title, followed by Brown and Stevenson.
The men’s discus throw saw Gabriel Oladipo finish on top with a heave of 54.93m. Aggies Josh Brown and Brody Gowing recorded distances of 50.04m and 48.92m to place second and third, respectively.
Other winners for the men included Audie Wyatt in the pole vault (5.50m), Garret Cragin in the high jump (2.15m), and Oladipo in the shot put (16.72m).
The women’s team also had several other winners in the field. Gittens won the high jump (1.77m), Madalaine Stulce won the javelin throw (51.29m), and Emily Gunderson took top spot in the pole vault (4.10m)
The Aggies’ next action will come on April 21 when they will head to Waco to compete in the Michael Johnson Invitational hosted by Baylor.