On  Feb. 13, the opening day of the Don Kirby Elite Invitational, a trend continued for Texas A&M track and field: The Aggies broke five records, five event titles and marked 10 personal bests on the first day, adding to the story of dominance for the Maroon and White inside and outside the oval this season. 

Graduate students Auhmad Robinson and Henry Zimmerman both broke school records on opening day. Robinson broke the 200m school record with a time of 20.33, replacing a 13-year-old mark set by Ameer Webb. The Spring native won the event and placed first in the Southeastern Conference and second in the nation.

With Zimmerman’s record-breaking performance, he now holds the top four spots in the weight throw in Fightin’ Farmer history. His toss of 22.30m/73-2 earned him his second straight win in the event, leaping to No. 12 nationally in weight throw. 

Sophomore Lawson Jacobs bagged his second indoor win of the season, grabbing the 400m seeded title with a time of 45.45. For the women, three Aggies landed in the top five, all with times under 53 seconds. Sophomore Tyler Lowe led the pack with a personal best time of 52.87. The Georgia native claimed third in the event. Senior Lacarthea Cooper and graduate student Jahnile Registre were close behind at fourth and fifth, respectively, with times of 52.94 and 52.98 seconds. 

Graduate student pole vaulter Aleksandr Solovev had his best performance of the season so far, as his mark of 5.71m/18-8.75 placed third in a top-tier group of vaulters. Back to the track, freshman Richard Lee Jr. secured his first collegiate win in the unseeded 200m with a time of 20.72.

Fellow freshman Stefon Dodoo had a career showing in the 600m, finishing second overall and first amongst college athletes at 1:16.95. On the women’s side, sophomore Tharushi Karunarathna placed second with a career-high mark of 1:28.92. 

To close out Day 1, the jumpers leapt over their competition. The productive group was led by freshman Etoro Bassey who set a personal best mark of 2.16m/7-1 in the high jump, taking the 11th spot in the hallowed halls of Aggie history. The women were not left out of the party, as sophomore Milena Chevallier cleared 1.76m/5-9.25 for third in the event. In the long jump, the duo of senior Machaeda Linton and junior Morgan Davis finished sixth and seventh with marks of 6.23m/20-5.25 and 6.06m/19-10.75, respectively. 

Day 2 was all about the relay groups. The men claimed 2 of the 3 podium spots in the event. The Aggie A relay squad of senior Eric Hemphill III, senior DeMarco Escobar, sophomore Musa Isah and Robinson charged to the front of the pack, finishing first with a time of 3:06.47. The B group of graduate student Ja’Qualon Scott, Dodoo, sophomore Iliya Dryaba and Jacobs took second with a time of 3:06.56. 

The women kept the ball rolling in the same event, the quartet of Registre, senior Camryn Dickson, Lowe and Cooper finished first in the event with a season-best mark of 3:31.17. 

The Maroon and White had another impressive group with the hurdlers. Senior Jaiya Covington claimed second in the event with a time of 8.03 and claimed fifth nationally. Junior Jasmine Harmon kept the big wheel turning, coming sixth in the event with a time of 8.25 and earning the ninth spot in A&M record books. For the men, Scott claimed a podium finish in 7.64 to take third in the event.

Lee had another dominant showing in the 60m, clocking in at 6.65 to take fifth in the event, a personal best. Not just that, it entered him at fourth in the Aggies’ record books. Dickson ran a season best 7.29 to place seventh in the same event. 

In the field, the Fightin’ Farmers put on some more strong performances. Linton delivered a season-best mark in the triple jump with a mark of 12.95m/42-6 to take No. 10 all-time and sixth in the event. Freshman Lily Carlson cleared 4.25m/13-11.25 to take eighth amongst collegiate athletes in the women’s pole vault. Junior Carlie Weiser took third in the women’s shot put with a season best mark of 15.39m/50-6. 

The 800m groups put a bow on the day with a pair of podium finishes. Junior Grant Ashby took second with a time of 1:49.16, while junior Avery Perkins took third for the women in 2:10.38, also a career best. 

Next, the Aggies wrap up their regular season slate on the road at the Alex Wilson Invitational in South Bend, Indiana, on Saturday, Feb. 21.