The South Plains College men’s and women’s track and field teams opened the outdoor season on Saturday, combining for seven event titles at the WT Spring Break Open at the Buffalo Sports Complex on the campus of West Texas A&M University.
“Opening up the outdoor season, it’s kind of like hitting the reset button and moving into some different events,” South Plains head coach Erik Vance said. “We didn’t execute a few things as we would have liked, but that’s not uncommon coming off a break, and overall we ended up getting some good work in as the day went on.”
Trayquan Francis and Christian Francisco went onetwo for the Texans in the men’s 800 meters, as Francis went 1:55.53, while Francisco turned in a 1:56.29. Freshman Mitchell Allen took first in the men’s triple jump, soaring 46' 1.25' on his first attempt.
In the men’s high jump, Billy Mosnier placed first with a clearance of 6' 4.75', while Django Segovia took second in the men’s pole vault, clearing 13' 11.25'. Kimar Farquharson and Caio Almeida placed third and fourth for South Plains in the men’s 400 meters, as Farquharson clocked a 46.80, while Almeida went 47.55.
In the men’s 110 hurdles, freshman Dishaun Lamb placed second with a time of 14.42, while Tajae Francis turned in a 15.30, good enough for fourth.
Maximus Palacios tallied a third place finish in the men’s steeplechase, posting a 9:54.21. Sophomore Donroy Brown placed third in the men’s discus with a throw of 156' 9', while Charles Gaither placed fifth in discus with a mark of 147' 11'. Gaither would then take fourth in the men’s hammer with a throw of 154' 11'.
“I thought our throws group as a whole did a really good job today,” Vance said. “They had to get out and start the meet earlier than everyone else, and we had several qualifying marks, and that group is going to show they are going to be a big part of our success this year.”
The Texans closed out the meet with a first place finish in the 4x400 relay as Gregory Prince, Hossam Hatib, Evaldo Whitehorne, and Sean Fisher posted a 3:10.40.
“I thought after we got going, our energy picked up and we acted like we wanted to be there,” Vance said. “It’s kind of hard to hit the ground running when you get into your first outdoor meet coming off an indoor season, and I thought we did a decent job today, but we definitely have a lot we can improve on and clean up some things this week.”
Amaya Brown won the first event title for the Lady Texans in the women’s high jump, clearing the bar at 5' 2.25' on her fourth attempt. Paula Ann Chambers took fourth in the women’s long jump with a jump of 17' 11.75', while Kimola Hines placed fourth in women’s discus with a throw of 144' 1'. In the women’s hammer throw, sophomore Ronelle Plaza notched a fourth place finish with a throw of 147' 1'.
In the women’s 100 meters, Brandy Hall and Maria Umoibang went two-three in the final standings, as Hall posted an 11.98, while Umoibang clocked a 12.25. Rushana Dwyer posted a fourth place finish in the women’s 400 meters in 57.21, while Shenell Tucker was fifth in the 400 in 57.89.
In the women’s 1500 meters, Jeniel Jones placed second with her time of 5:07.22, while Ashyiria Savage was second in the 100 hurdles with a time of 14.24. South Plains placed first in the women’s 4x100 relay as Success Umukoro, Umoibang, Hall, and Breanna Clarke posted a 45.68. The Lady Texans would then close out the meet with a first place finish in the 4x400, as Safhia Hunds, Umukoro, Leticia Quingostas, and Dwyer clocked a 3:53.77.
“Coming off your first meet, you know what you need to address,” Vance said. “If we go out and clean up some things and get back to work, we are going to see better results as the year continues. We go to Tech this next weekend, and I think we will see some better results having a full week of practice and getting back in our routine.”