Andrea Jameson
Contributing Writer
On Saturday, Jan. 30, the Murray State track and field team competed in the Thundering Herd Invite hosted by Marshall University.
Six Racers placed first in the competition while eight others posted personal bests during the event.
Murray State featured several freshmen showing their mettle at the collegiate level. Freshman Teliyah James finished with a 60 in the 200 and a personal record in fourth place with an overall score of 25.13 for her first collegiate meet with Murray State. Junior Brooke Misukonis tied for fourth with freshman Ella Siebenberger in the event with a height of 3.45m in the pole-vault.
Freshman Jasmine Claunch came in second overall in the long jump with a distance of 5.10m and was overall first in the triple jump with a score of 11.55m.
Head Coach Adam Kiesler was pleased with the way his team competed in the event after getting the opportunity to knock the rust off early in the season.
“Overall, there is always room for improvement for the team,” Kiesler said. “Mentally and physically the team has been doing a good job in terms of performing what they show during practice.”
The Racers had the chance to enter another environment after 10 months of not regularly practicing and competing because of COVID-19. While four members of the track team competed in a pentathlon at the Boo Rogers Combine Events Jan. 15, Saturday’s meet was the first time the majority of the team got the chance to compete.
“It was a good time for the team to get out and compete with everyone else,” Kiesler said.
Freshman Alexis Witherspoor placed in the 60m hurdles for her first collegiate meet. She placed with a final score of 8.36 in the 60-meter dash.
Sophomore Meghan Fletcher won her second high jump in a row with a height of 1.68m. Sophomore Lucia Herrero Yanez won first place in the 300m dash at 40.67.
Junior Rachel Hagens won the long jump and overall first place with 5.43m. Hagens final results placed her with a score of 27.85 overall.
“The main goal of the year is to win the outdoor OVC title,” Kiesler said.
The track and field team will spend the coming weeks preparing to compete at Marshall University once again for the Marshall Invite on Saturday, Feb. 13.
