March 15-17 Results:
Men’s Results
Women’s Results
Highlights
Six men’s and nine women’s American Athletic Conference track and field teams opened their outdoor campaigns over the weekend, competing in eight meets.
UConn and USF traveled to Orlando, Fla. for UCF’s Black and Gold Challenge. The Knights collected 15 top 10 finishes on Saturday, bringing their weekend total to 25 in the first outdoor meet of the 2018 campaign. UCF’s Natosha Jordan cleared the ninth-best high jump in the country at 5’8.”
In the javelin, a pair of senior UConn men took the top-two spots as seniors Kevin Foster and Seth Zuidema finished one and two. In the pole vault, Craig Hunter finished fourth with a height of 5.15 meters (16’10.75”), currently first among conference leaders. Cameron Thompson (hammer throw) and Colt Nicholas (400m) also posted league-best marks in their respective events.
For the women, UConn shined in the throwing events with Olivia Oladipo throwing for the top distances in the league in the discus (50.75 meters) and the second-best league mark in the shot put (15.26 meters). Channell Botsis threw for a distance of 58.89 meters for The American’s top distance in the hammer throw.
Kaytlyn Gill had the day's top performance for USF, finishing second in the women's long jump with a mark of 19-1.50. The Bulls return to Tampa with an event victory, five total top-three finishes, and five new marks on the USF outdoor top-10 lists.
Houston opened the 2018 Outdoor Season in front of their home fans and won 15 events at the Cougar Spring Break Invitational on Thursday. The men’s 4x100-meter relay team began their National Championship title defense with the team of Mario Burke, Elijah Hall, John Lewis III and Cameron Burrell running a nation-leading 39.22, while the women’s team of Justice Henderson, Brianne Bethel, Essance Sample and Samiyah Samuels ran the second-fastest time in the NCAA at 45.61.
Memphis' Calvin Austin, Davon DeMoss, Imri Persaido and Luke Vaughn all were double winners in second-day action at the Rhodes College Invitational Saturday. The Tigers recorded 10 first-place finishes and had 25 top-three performances. Austin and DeMoss both earned their two titles as members of the Tigers' 4x100 and 4x400 meter relays, and Persaido won the men's 200 meters and ran a leg on the first-place 4x100 meter relay. Vaughn swept the men's discus and shot put crowns Saturday.
Tulsa hosted its annual Tulsa Duels Saturday at the Hurricane Soccer and Track Stadium, as it opened the outdoor portion of the season. The Golden Hurricane posted eight first-place finishes on the day.
Rebekah Markel and senior Jacqueline Esmay each earned event wins on Friday to highlight Tulane track and field's first day at the Louisiana Classics in Lafayette. Markel won the women's pole vault with a mark of 4.00m, earning her second consecutive win in the event, while Esmay led the field in the women's hammer throw, winning the event with a mark of 55.08m and beating the second-place finisher by 0.75m. The Green Wave notched numerous personal records on Saturday to wrap up the event.
Temple freshman Aisha Brown reached a personal best mark to win the high jump title at the annual 49er classic hosted by UNC Charlotte. Katie Leisher captured the individual title in the 10,000-meter run, placing first out of 25 participants. Overall the Owls pulled several top ten marks and personal bests on their second day of competition.
SMU picked up right where it left off after indoor season, opening the outdoor campaign with five first-place finishes at the TCU Invitational Friday and Saturday at the Lowdon Track & Field Complex. Hannah Miller placed first in the 1500-meter with a time of 4:28.11 and also claimed the top spot in the 3000-meter in 9:34.90. Tess Misgen delivered a first-place finish in the 800-meter with a time of 2:12.26. SMU's sprinters were led by junior Latessa Johnson, who finished first in the 100-meter dash in 11:35, as Tochi Nlemchi won the shot put with a throw of 16.2m (53-1.75).
Wichita State’s Tyra Bickham and Aaron True each started the 2018 outdoor season by winning their respective main events. True javelin by winning the event with a mark of 69.18m/227-0. Bickham highlighted the day for the Shocker women's team that had 14 athletes competing. She won the discus event with a mark of 44.91m/147-4.