SFA Track and Field Multi-Events Teams to Compete at Texas Tech Invitational

Friday, January 26

Lubbock, Texas

ALL DAY

Stephen F. Austin

Texas Tech Invitational (Multi's Only)

SFA Track and Field Multi-Events Teams to Compete at Texas Tech Invitational

1/25/2018 4:31:00 PM | Track & Field

By: Kevin Meyer | Assistant Director of Athletic Media Relations

LUBBOCK, Texas – For the first time in the 2017-18 track and field season, the Stephen F. Austin multi-athletes will compete in the heptathlon and pentathlon at the Texas Tech Invitational on Friday and Saturday. Both events will begin on Friday, with the women's pentathlon wrapping up that day and the men's heptathlon continuing into Saturday.

Faced with the unique opportunity to bring a larger than normal group of athletes to compete in the multis, SFA will send five men and four women to compete in the two-day event.

"I'm very appreciative of Texas Tech for letting us bring our big group of multis up there,", said SFA track and field assistant coach Ron McCown. "It's rare to get an opportunity in an indoor facility to have more than one or two compete, so competing five on the guys side and four on the girls side is a great opportunity for us."

Representing the men will be a five-man contingent headed up by a trio of conference scorers in the event last season. Hunter Key, who finished runner up in the indoor championships, and Conner Wilbur, who finished third. Tyji Yulee will also compete this weekend after finishing eighth to score for SFA in the event last season in the indoor championships. Joining the trio will be Bradley Beaty and freshman Daniel Rosado.

Competing for the women in the pentathlon will be Jillian Turner and Caitlin Lennon, both scorers in the event during last season's outdoor season. Sammi Brashears and Avery Ellis-Byerly will also compete, with Ellis-Byerly marking her first in an SFA uniform.

"I feel like we're ready to go, kind of curious what the weekend will bring," McCown said. The kids have been working hard and have a great attitude, so I expect good things and even better things down the road at conference. This is a stepping stone to being ready to do really well at the Southland Indoor Championship. Hunter and Connor are the only ones who have been able to do a multi yet, so after this weekend we'll be able to see where we stack up as a group in the conference, and I'm looking forward to seeing their hard work begin to pay off."

The remainder of the track and field team has the weekend off of competition and will instead prepare for the New Mexico Classic and Multi's on February 2-3 in Albuquerque, NM.

-SFA-