Jan. 16, 2016

BLACKSBURG | COLLEGE STATION- The men’s and women’s track and field teams competed in a pair of meets Saturday, with select members finishing competition at the Virginia Tech Invitational and the rest taking on a talented field at the Texas A&M Team Invitational.

The women would big winners in Texas, racking up three wins to finish fourth out of 11 teams. The 19th-ranked men also had a strong day, finishing fourth in a field that included four other top-20 men’s programs.

Field events would be where the women found the bulk of their success, with wins coming in the long jump and high jump. Alexis Murphy started the win with a mark of 19 feet, 5 ¼ inches in the long jump, with freshmen Makyla Stanley (18-3 ¾) and Milan Parks (18-3) finishing fifth and seventh, respectively.

In the high jump, Nakita Gray won with a mark of 5 feet, 10 ½ inches. She had three shots at setting a new personal best, but would have to settle for just the win. Other field event scorers included Natasha Dicks and Funlayo Oluwole in the triple jump. Dicks’ best mark of 41 feet, eight inches is a new personal best and moves her up to fifth in the program record book. She finished second in the event, with Oluwole (38-8 ¾) placing sixth.

The third win for the women came in the sprints. Aliyah Abrams started her collegiate career with an impressive performance in the 400, winning the event with a time of 53.21. In the 60 meter hurdles, the women had three score with Tarnisha Taylor fourth, Funlayo Oluwole sixth and Chalese Davis eighth.

The men would not record any wins, but instead packed the top five finishers in almost every event. The highlights would come from the sprints, where David Winters and Ncincilili Titi each scored in both the 60m and 200m races. In the hurdles, the men enjoyed a 2-3-7 finish from Isaiah Moore, Jermaine Collier and Dondre Echols.

In the field events, Josh Awotunde and Clarence Gallop built off strong opening weekends with podium finishes in their throws. Awotunde placed second in the shot put with a top throw of 59 feet, 2 3/4 inches, and Gallop finished third in the weight throw with a season-high mark of 60 feet, 5 3/4 inches.

In the jumps, Tye Williams recorded a new personal best in the high jump and made the podium. He went out at 2.08 meters (6-9 3/4) to take third overall. Michael Wamer finished fourth in the triple jump, bounding 49 feet, 10 inches.

Closing out the night were the relays, with the men’s and women’s 4x400m. The women’s `A’ team of Erika Rucker, Abrams, Briana Haith and Maiya Dendy finished third overall. For the men, the `A’ team of Ty Jaye Robbins-Lockhart, Dondre Echols, Ncincilili Titi and Ryan Bermudez initially finished third, but after the race the team was disqualified, costing them a chance to potentially move up in the standings.

Also finishing up competition Saturday were the members up at the Virginia Tech Invite. Carolina competed in three events apiece on the final day, with the women’s runners providing the best results. Maya Evans came second in the 400m with a time of 57.09, and Kaylee Wessel would also post a runner-up finish with a time of 18:13.14 in the 5,000m. Her time is over 20 seconds better than her outdoor personal best, and she was followed closely by teammate Martha McCoy in third place (18:33.24).Otis Jones had the men’s top finish, coming in sixth in the 800m (1:55.98.)