On Friday, April 14, and Saturday, April 15, the Southern Utah University track and field team traveled to California to take on three meets: the Bryan Clay Invitational in Azusa, the Mount Sac Relays in Walnut and the Pacific Intercollegiate and Beach Invitational in Long Beach.
Bryan Clay Invitational
Senior Haley Tanne again rewrote the school record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, sprinting a time of 10 minutes and 10.69 seconds. Tanne finished 21st in the loaded field.
The men’s 4×100 relay team took first in their event with a time of 40.31, which not only secured the win but also secured a new school record. The team was made up of juniors Cameron Beans, Ricardo White, Dylan Gibson and senior Nelson Douglas.
The men’s 4×400 team found themselves in a similar situation, breaking the school record, earning the meet record and finishing atop the podium with a time of 3:07.98. The team consisted of freshmen Jaedyn Carpenter and Ashton Miller, junior Dylan Gibson and senior Nelson Douglas.
Junior Astley Davis shattered his own school record in the triple jump with a leap of 51-11, beating his old record by almost two inches. Davis finished third in the meet and is ranked 15th nationally.
Pacific Coast Intercollegiate Invitational
Carpenter set a meet record for the Pacific Coast Intercollegiate Invitational in the 400-meter dash, blazing to a time of 47.39 in the event. This also earned Carpenter the first-place finish and moved him to third all-time in SUU history.
Junior Joren McKeever leapt his way to a third-place finish in the high jump. McKeever topped out at 6-9.
Mount Sac Relays
The women’s 4×100 team, consisting of sophomores Iana-Michovani Graham and Maya Benjamin and juniors Ronnie Walker and Secret Mceuen, raced to a time of 46.09, which is good for fourth in school history and a 15th-place finish overall.
Up next
The Thunderbirds will now turn their attention to the Brigham Young University Robison Invitational in Provo, which will run from Wednesday, April 19, to Saturday, April 22.
Story by: Aidan Mortensen
Photo courtesy of SUU Athletics
