With four weeks before the Indoor NCAA National Championships, this weekend is pivotal for Texas A&M as they return to Fayetteville, Arkansas for the second time this season.
The No. 2 ranked Aggie men’s team and the No. 18 women’s team compete at the Tyson Invitational hosted by the Arkansas Razorbacks this weekend. The meet begins Friday at 1 p.m. and concludes Saturday afternoon at the Randal Tyson Track Complex.
Top SEC schools competing this weekend include the host Arkansas’ No. 1 women’s team and Florida’s No. 1 men’s team. A&M brings its No. 2 men’s team to take on No. 4 LSU and a slew of highly ranked SEC teams. A&M’s No. 18 women’s team will be challenged by No. 7 USC’s and Texas’ No. 5.
With the high level of competition, the Tyson Invitational offers insight of what to expect at the national meet and big rivalries looking ahead to the outdoor season.
A&M’s trio of Jacob Wooten, Audie Wyatt and Chase Wolfle will challenge Tennessee’s Jake Blankenship in the pole vault, leading collegiate athletes with a height of 18-foot-9 and a quarter. After breaking A&M’s school record at the Charlie Thomas Invitational last weekend, Katie Willard will run the 800 meter along with teammate Jazmine Fray, the top-seeded freshman.
The women’s 60 meter has Aaliyah Brown, Jennifer Madu, Krystal Sparling and Brenessa Thompson for the Aggies as they face Florida’s Shayla Sanders, the women’s top collegiate sprinter.
Aggies men in the men’s 60 meter features Devin Jenkins, Edward Davis, Elijah Morrow and Will Williams. The men’s race also has the top collegiate sprinter at the Tyson Invitational — Tennessee’s Christian Coleman.
Middle distance runners Alex Riba, Nathan Ricketts and Ryan Teel are scheduled to race in the men’s mile while the women’s mile features the Aggies’ Arin Rice and Katie Watson.
In the distance medley, A&M goes against Kansas State, Missouri, Nebraska, South Plains and USC. With 12 top-ranked teams running in the 4×400 relay, the world-leading time ran by LSU’s men and Florida’s women has a very good possibility of being lowered.
The Aggies have the chance to take down No. 1 Florida while the women have a chance to improve upon their national ranking and take down familiar SEC foes.
