Wildcat track and field athletes had relatively equal success last week when they split up between the Texas Relays and the Bobcat Invitational.
The Texas Relays, an annual meet which is arguably one of the biggest track and field competitions in the country, was held at the University of Texas and featured some of the nation’s top colleges, including UCLA, California, Baylor, Auburn, Duke and Oklahoma. ACU sent a handful of its top athletes to the Relays for the first time since 1973, and the results were mixed.
The Wildcats picked up five top-eight finishes last weekend with a nine-person squad comprised of five seniors, three juniors and a sophomore.
Baptiste Kerjean came in second place in the men’s hammer throw on Thursday, falling only to Kyle Strawn of the University of Florida. Junior Daniel Block came in fourth in Section B of the men’s 1,500 meters with a time of 3:52.91, finishing behind two Tarleton State runners and Brian Barraza, a freshman from the University of Houston.
Only one top-eight performance was turned in by the women’s team, with senior Amelia Mitchell finishing in sixth place in the women’s javelin. Junior Lexus Williams came in sixth in her heat of the 100-meter hurdles, but her time of 14.39 was well off from her opening week time of 14.09 at the War Hawk Classic, and she finished 54th overall in the event.
On Friday, the men’s sprint medley team finished seventh overall in their event. Johnathan Farquharson and Maliek Golden each ran 200 meters, followed by Osie Alleyne-Forte with 400 meters and Daniel Block on the anchor 800. They combined for a time of 3:22.00 to come in seventh behind victor Arkansas (3:18.57) and powerhouses LSU, Texas A&M and UCLA.
The other group of Wildcats experienced equal success at the Bobcat Invitational at Texas State University, recording several personal bests in the process.
Sophomore Malcolm Barnes recorded personal records in the men’s long jump and triple jump, finishing in 11th and ninth place, respectively. Teammate Darian Hogg came in just ahead of him in the same events, finishing eighth in the long jump and seventh overall in the triple jump. Also representing ACU well in the field events was senior Aaron Bynum, who earned sixth place in the men’s javelin.
Senior Erik Forrester gave an outstanding performance in the men’s 3,000-meter run, coming in fourth place. Equally impressive was fellow runner Jeremy Tatham, a sophomore who finished fourth in the men’s 110-meter hurdles with a personal record of 14.77.
Freshman Diana Garcia Munoz came in ninth in the women’s 800-meter run with a personal best outdoor time of 2:15.82. She bested teammates Emily Hill, who came in 20th with a time 2:20.28, and Christian Engelmann, who finished 26th with a personal record of 2:28.60.
The Wildcats expect to continue last weekend’s success this upcoming Saturday at their next meet, when they compete at the Texas Tech Open.
