Track finds success at the Kittley Invitational & Texas Relays

By: Sydnie Grossnickle

Staff Writer

ACU Kittley Invitational 

Tarleton State University’s outdoor track and field season started at the Abilene Christian University Kittley Invitational on March 18-19. The Texans competed in 34 events. 

“Tarleton exhibited the impressive showing against a 14-team field that featured host and Western Athletic Conference rival, Abilene Christian, Big 12 power Texas Tech and former Lone Star Conference rivals Angelo State and Texas A&M-Kingsville,” reported Tarleton Sports.

Tarleton’s women’s track and field athletes had a thrilling start to the season with over 20 top 10 placings. 

Jenna Brazeal placed in the top three in two events. She claimed the No. 2 rank in the 800-meter run with 2 minutes, 16.55 seconds. The distance runner claimed the No. 3 spot in the 1500-meter run with a 4:45.13 finish. 

Hanna Dudley had two top 10 finishes on the weekend. The sophomore out of Cedar Creek, Texas, finished third in the 100-meter dash with a stellar time of 11.91. Dudley also ran in the 200-meter dash and finished ninth with 24.55. 

Nyla Barlow also found success during this meet, and she is no stranger to the program’s record books.

“Barlow, who owns Tarleton’s indoor 200m school record (24.53 seconds), nearly cemented herself as the greatest competitor in program history in the event. She won her heat and finished fourth in 24.08 seconds to notch a lifetime personal record and move to No. 2 on Tarleton’s outdoor school record list,” Tarleton Sports said. “She is within three-tenths of a second of breaking DeAijha Boye-Hicks’ school record of 23.76 seconds.”

Sam Houston State University transfer Elise Smith finished second in the javelin throw with a personal record of 137′ 6″. 

The men had an exciting weekend with multiple top 10 finishes. 

Oscar Rodriguez, the reigning Western Athletic Conference (WAC) outdoor champ in the discus throw, claimed two top 10 finishes on the weekend. The Del Rio native placed seventh with a throw of 160′. 

Rodriguez also holds the program record in the hammer throw. At the invitational, he ranked No. 9 in the event with a heave of 163′ 11.72″.

Freshman Justin Raines also had an eventful weekend with two top 10 finishes. Raines competed in the 110-meter hurdles and finished ninth with 24.67 seconds.

According to Tarleton Sports, “Justin Raines, the WAC Indoor Freshman of the Year and 60m champion, clocked the fifth-fastest 200m time in school history (21.33 seconds) and finished fifth out of 46 competitors.”

Fellow freshman Reid Vincent came in tenth in the 100-meter dash with 10.83 seconds.

Texas Relays

Tarleton sent 19 athletes to compete at the Texas Relays in Austin, Texas. While at the meet, many Texans broke their personal records. 

“Tarleton’s women’s 4x400m relay team of Nyla Barlow, Jordan Anglin, Hanna Dudley and Alessa King finished fourth in a 14-team field in 3:46.55,” Tarleton Sports said. “The time constituted a lifetime personal record for the foursome, who owns Tarleton’s indoor 4x400m relay school record (3:47.78), and was the fifth-fastest outdoor split in program history.”

Raines notched a lifetime personal record in the 100-meter dash. The Copperas Cove native finished No. 40 out of 126 with a time of 10.57 seconds. 

Fellow freshman Khloe Turnbull had an exciting event of her own. The Waco native was No. 41 in the 100-meter hurdles with 14.84 seconds. 

Konnor Hoerman, a freshman out of Abernathy, Texas, finished thirty-seventh in the 110-meter hurdles with 15.17 seconds. Senior Sullivan Sanders was No. 39 with 15.21 seconds in the same event. 

The Texans went to former rivals Angelo State University for the David Noble Relays from March 31 to April 1. They also attended the Baylor Invitational on April 2. 

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