It was another dominant week for Texas A&M Track & Field as they competed in the Jim Bush Collegiate Invitational in Los Angeles. The men’s team tallied a total of 179 points, finishing well ahead of runner-up UCLA who had 100 points. The women totaled 148 points to edge out Alabama by 13.
“Across the board we had 15 victories and that is encouraging,” A&M head coach Pat Henry told 12thman.com. “That’s the kind of the emphasis we had in this meet, we want people to win events and have great performances, but I’m also concerned about who is second, third and fourth. The way you win a SEC or NCAA championship is having people step up and do their best. That’s the challenge this time of the year. We want them to be part of a team.”
The Aggies’ weekend was highlighted by sophomore Jazmine Fray’s school record setting time of 2:01.43 in the women’s 800-meter run. Fray passed up her previous record of 2:03.25.
“I want to keep progressing as we go along during the outdoor season,” Fray said to 12thman.com. “That’s what I’m excited about. I definitely wanted to go out at my own pace. I like to lead a race and go out at my own tempo. I executed the plan and I was happy with the result. I wanted to go out in 28 and come back in 29, so that’s why I hit the 58 at 400m. Then I went into the 600 at 1:29 and finished well.”
“Her last couple of races were a little bit different for her” Henry added. “I think she settled in during those races and thought she would run away from people. I think she proved to herself that’s she has to go out and set her own race. If someone wants to run with her, they’re going to have to come after her.”
Texas A&M also swept both the 4×100 and 4×400 relays this weekend.
In the 4×100 relay, the men got around the track in 39.49 seconds with a lineup of Will Williams, Elijah Morrow, Seth Page, and Fred Kerley. The women posted a time of 43.44 behind Jaevin Reed, Danyel White, Brenessa Thompson, and Aaliyah Brown.
In the 4×400, the men ran a 3:03.90 behind Robert Grant, Devin Dixon, Richard Rose, and Ilolo Izu, while the women ran the relay in 3:32.88 with a lineup of Glorilisha Carter, Briyahna Desrosiers, Kadecia Baird, and Jaevin Reed.
The Aggies also excelled individually on the track. Junior Mylik Kerley (45.48), who set a personal record, junior Robert Grant (46.09), and sophomore Richard Rose (46.35) took first through third in the men’s 400-meter dash, while sophomore Briyahna Desrosiers (52.28), who also set a personal record, won the women’s side of the competition.
Senior Fred Kerley (20.45) and sophomore Brenessa Thompson (23.08) won their respective titles in the 200-meter dash. Kerley’s time was also a career best for him in the 200 meters.
“We all performed well in the 400m today,” Mylik Kerley said to 12thman.com. “At this point of the season, as we progress into the bigger meets, this was good for our confidence. Having a full week of practice and getting back into the groove of the 400m outdoors was good for me.”
The men’s team managed to take four individual titles in the field events. Junior Will Williams (7.64m) won the long jump, junior Garret Cragin (2.16m) finished first in the high jump, and senior Jeffrey Prothro (15.87m) took the triple jump title. Junior Sam Hardin threw a career best 72.71 meters to win the javelin throw.
In the women’s javelin throw, senior Shelby Poncik (49.60m), junior Kristen Clark (48.03m), junior Audrey Malone (47.78m), and sophomore Madalaine Stulce (47.33m) took first through fourth place. Senior Alison Ondrusek won the hammer throw with a distance of 60.33 meters.
With another successful meet in the books, the Aggies will come back to Texas to compete in the Michael Johnson Classic in Waco on April 22.
