Stephen F. Austin
Michael Johnson Invitational
Mayr has Big Vaulting Day at the Michael Johnson Invitational
4/23/2017 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field
SFA at Michael Johnson Invitational
Clyde Hart Track and Field Stadium – Waco, Texas
WACO, Texas – Despite some unfavorable weather the Stephen F. Austin Track and Field team posted some high numbers amongst the big competition held within the Clyde Hart Track. The three-year old stadium held the annual Michael Johnson Invitational, hosted by Baylor University, over the span of Saturday, April 23.
Top performances on Saturday came from the SFA vaulting crew and the men’s throwing squad, as junior Noah Gilfillan placed fourth in the men’s pole vault, and senior Derek Orlando placed fourth in the men’s shot put. Sophomore Dakota Mayr was in the spotlight after she cleared a height of 4.06-meters (13-03.75) in the women’s pole vault. The height was a new personal best for the sophomore, improving over 6.5 inches from her jump last week at the Texas Invitational. Mayr’s 13-foot jump is the second best height in the Southland conference and the 27th best in the west region.
In the women’s high jump event, junior Kadejah Wilson was part of a four way tie at the height of 1.67m (5-05.75), with the tiebreaker, Wilson found herself in seventh place and just a quarter inch shy of her personal best.
On the track, senior Aliyah Davis posted her season best time in the 100-meter sprint with a 11.79 mark that placed her 10th. Senior Rana Ryan, the 1,500-meters specialist, grabbed another terrific race to her resume with a fifth place finishing with a time of 4:35.13. Sophomore Dominique Jackson ran her second best race in the 400-meter hurdles, timing a 1:00.92 to finish 5th. Freshman Dkiara Otis finished a few seconds behind Jackson in tenth with a time of 1:04.04.
The Stephen F. Austin throwing team had another dominant performance lead by Orlando in the men’s shot put and hammer throw. Orlando posted a 15.98-meter (52-05.25) throw in the shot put, and then came back out to monster a 56.07-meter (183-11.0) throw in the hammer, which placed him seventh. Freshman Jake Allen was right behind Orlando in fifth with a 15.84-meter (51-11.75) throw, while freshman Kevin Steward took 8th with a 15.57-meter (51-1.0) toss. In the hammer throw, SFA claimed three in the top 10 as well as the 11th spot. Sophomore David Castillo posted a PR throw of 54.19m (177-09), which is the fifth best distance in the conference behind Orlando and senior Dillon Branson. Sophomore Trenton Bridges came in ninth with Branson rounding out SFA in the eleventh spot.
Gilfillan and sophomore Antonio Ruiz went 4-5 in the men’s pole vault. Gilfillan, in fourth, completed a height of 5.26-meters (17-03.0), which placed him in a three-way tie breaker scenario. Ruiz maxed out at a height of 5.11m (16-09.25).
The top finisher in the men’s track was freshman Khalil Lacey, who clenched eighth in the men’s 100-meter sprint with a time of 10.61. Senior Cole Stallcup finished tenth in the men’s 800-meter run, posting a time of 1:54.28. Senior Hunter Key also placed high on the track, claiming eighth for his 110-meter hurdles time (15.20).
The men’s and women’s relays capped the Michael Johnson Invitational and the Lumberjack squads did not disappoint. The women’s 4x100-meter relay team finish fourth in the competition with a time of 46.82. The squad consisted of Jackson, Davis, freshman Imani Nave and senior Chelsi Gill. The men’s 4x100-meter relay team of Lacey, sophomore Jared Love, sophomore Tedrick Hawkins, and junior Aaron Piper posted a time of 40.60, which placed them in fifth.
The Lumberjacks will next compete in the Bobcat Classic Invitational on Saturday, April 29. The event will be hosted by Texas State in San Marcos, Texas.
-SFA-
