Stephen F. Austin
Texas Relays
Innis, Mathenge Run Well to Start Texas Relays
3/26/2015 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field
Thursday Results|Friday Heat Sheets
AUSTIN, Texas - Stephen F. Austin distance runners Brittany Innis and Charles Mathenge led SFA with a pair of top five finishes in Thursday's action at the 88th Annual Nike Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays at Mike A. Myers Stadium. Cody Rhodes also completed the grueling competition in the men's decathlon while Cameron Meyer fared well in the men's pole vault.
Innis posted the best finish of the day for the Ladyjacks, running and leaping her way to a fourth place showing in the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase final. The freshman completed the race in 10:51.82 which was eight seconds ahead of Purdue's Kristin Fritts as the third-best collegiate time out of 13 competitors.
Mathenge, the 2015 Southland Conference Indoor Champion in the 5,000-meter run last month, brought the distance down but still performed at a high level on Thursday. He crossed the finish line of the men's 1,500-meter run in 3:55.42 to take fifth place out of 16 in his section of the event. The junior outlasted Sam Houston State's Evan Arambula down the stretch.
Rhodes made a significant move on the second and final day of the men's decathlon on Thursday morning, jumping several places to finish in eighth place among some of the nation's best multi-event specialists. He tallied 6,948 points overall, which was good enough for the sixth-best total of collegiate competitors.
Part of the reason for his big day two total was his success in Thursday's javelin throw. He recorded a throw of 182-05 feet (55.60m) for the third best mark in the 22-man field. He collected 672 points in the event while claiming 637 more for his 4:46.92 time in the 1,500-meter run - the fourth-best in the field - to close a successful week.
Competing unattached, SFA's Cameron Meyer jumped 17-0.75 (5.20m) in the men's pole vault to take sixth place out of 22. He waited to enter until the bar was raised to 17-0.75 and cleared the height on his third run. Chase Wolfle of Texas A&M won with a jump of 17-8.50 (5.40m).
A plethora of SFA athletes will be in the mix on Friday. Both running and field events will start at 9:30 a.m. To keep up-to-date on all things Texas Relays, check out the meet headquarters page here.
-SFA-
