TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Samford University track & field teams took part in the John Mitchell Alabama Relays on Saturday, March 19, at the Sam Bailey Track & Field Stadium.
After having 14 total events canceled on Friday due to unfavorable weather conditions the Bulldogs made the most of their trip to Tuscaloosa with several impressive finishes throughout the day on Saturday.
The women's 4x100 meter relay team of
Abbie Cutcliffe, Tonia McKinley,
Daijah White and
Jaida Cole ran the third fastest time in Samford history and went on to place 12
th overall with a time of 47.72.
For the men the 4x400 meter relay squad of Jay Vines,
Austin Billings, Andrew Patterson and
Shelby Campbell placed 19
th with a time of 3:30.68.
Individually
Lindsey Kessler and
Sarah Lee cracked into the Samford Top-10 record book with their performances in the women's pole vault. Kessler vaulted 3.55m (6
th – Samford All-Time) to place 7
th overall while Lee cleared 3.40m (9
th – Samford All-Time) and finished 16
th.
A pair of other Bulldogs turned in Top 10 performances at the Alabama Relays as
Courtney Prengaman placed 7
th overall in the women's high jump with a mark of 1.65m while
Sarah Sanford ran 14.00 to finish 8
th overall.
Josh Salter paced the field with the Bulldogs highest finish of the day as he took 4
th overall in the men's 3,000 meter run with a personal best time of 9:39.45. The time also ranks as the 8
th fastest time in Samford history.
The duo of
Marquis Barnes and Jay Vines sprinted their way to a couple of top finishes as Barnes took 7
th with a time of 54.63 in the men's 400 meter hurdles while Jay Vines tallied an 11
th place finish with a time of 54.90.
Chris Thrasher rounded out the competition with a personal best vault in the men's pole vault with an outdoor personal best mark of 4.75m and placed 11
th overall. The mark also puts Thrasher in the Samford Top-10 record book.
Other Notable Performances- Qiona Payton turned in a personal best performance in the 400 meter hurdles with a 15th place finish time of 1:05.00 and placed 25th in the 100 meter hurdles with a time of 14.93.
- Aerial Horton turned in three Top 20 finishes on the day: shot put (20th – 11.91m), discus (17th – 35.67) and hammer throw (11th – 47.25).
- Victoria Wicks placed 13th in the women's 400 meter hurdles with a time of 1:03.53
- Andrew Jaeger ran a personal best in the men's 800 meters with a personal best 1:55.57 time and placed 19th overall.
- Brian Smith placed 11th in the men's shot put with a 15.14m mark and 16th in the discus with a throw of 43.58m.
- Joseph Lee placed 17th overall with a 49.66m throw in the men's Javelin
Newcomer NotesWomen's Shot PutJayci Floyd – 21
st – 11.84m – 6
th best Samford All-Time
Tatiana Taylor – 22
nd – 11.83m – 7
th best Samford All-Time
Women's DiscusCamille Caldwell – 15
th – 42.74m – 4
th best Samford All-Time
Jayci Floyd – 20
th – 34.35m – 6
th best Samford All-Time
Women's Hammer ThrowTatiana Taylor – 12
th – 46.46m – 5
th best Samford All-Time
Camille Caldwell – 21
st – 43.36m – 7
th best Samford All-Time