Despite it being Spring Break, the Wildcat’s track and field teams began their outdoor season competing at the Texas Christian University Invitational as well as the Angelo State Spring Break Mutli Meet.
Junior Taylor Yantis won the women’s heptathlon after topping the score table in all seven events, setting a new PR with 4,866 points. She would solidify her win with the 800-meter run after falling behind in the second day of competition by 129 points. Yantis won by nine points.
Sophomore Wyatt French took third place in the decathlon, scoring a personal best of 6,346 points. Angelo State’s Joe Owens and Harry Maslen would take first and second.
Over in Fort Worth, sophomore Kai Schmidt edged out Texas’ Brian Peterson to claim the first place spot in the discus with a throw of 173-05 (52.87m) despite only receiving three throws due to darkness.
In the men’s hammer throw, senior Jelani Rainey set a new PR with his toss of 183-01 (55.81m) and finished fourth overall.
In other field events, sophomore pole vaulter Jaden Dement cleared four separate heights to finish fifth with a new personal best vault of 16-10.75 (5.15m). The men’s team would post eight personal bests at the conclusion of the meet.
The women’s team made a statement on Friday with both junior Allie Hackett and sophomore Kimone Green taking gold in their respective events.
Hackett took first in the 1,500 meter run with a personal best of 4:31. She had a 13-second improvement from the last time she was in Forth Worth in which she placed 13th with a time of 4:46. Later that day, she would finish second in the 3k with am outdoor PR of 9:42, missing first place by less than one second to unattached competitor Cate Barrett, who ran for Baylor from 2008-12.
Green led from start to finish in the 400m race with a time of 55.56. This was Green’s first 400 since claiming the conference title just over one month ago. She was also apart of the women’s 4x100m relay that placed sixth with a time of 48.29.
Sophomore Jessica James would also claim a medal, placing third in the 800m with a personal best of 2:11.33, finishing behind a Texas and SMU runner.
The Wildcats will be back in action in Lubbock on Friday, March 24 for the Texas Tech Outdoor Open meet.
