USAO track and field teams kicked off their indoor season at the NAIA/JUCO Challenge, which was held at Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg, Kan. The Drovers traveled with a team of 15, with 11 men competing and four women.
The 60-meter dash for the men saw freshman Crispin Mbii, freshman Colby Keller, sophomore Omario Johnson, sophomore Daylen Huff, and junior Tyrike Cunningham. Johnson finished first for Drovers with a time of 7.06 seconds. This performance from Johnson would tie USAO’s school record, and he earned 21st place overall at the event. Mbii also saw great success with his performance, as he broke USAO’s freshman record with his time of 7.09 seconds. He would earn 26th place overall at this meet. Cunningham followed his teammates closely as he placed 30th overall at the event with a time of 7.16. Huff was the next Drover with a time of 7.38 seconds and 48th overall. The final runner for USAO to finish in this event was Keller, as he finished in 71st place with a time of 7.82 seconds.
“I expect nothing but improvements, since I got this one under the belt, I think I should be solid for the rest of the season,” Huff said about his first college track meet.
Many of the Drover men also competed in the 200-meter dash. In this race, both senior Quintin Pennells and Mbii had just a hundredth of a second that separated their times. Pennells had the faster time for the race with 23.134 seconds, while Mbii’s time was 23.139. Pennells placed 46th overall and Mbii was 48th overall for the meet.
Four more Drovers ran in this event; Johnson crossed the line with a time of 23.47 seconds for a 61st finish. Huff was the next individual to conclude his race, as his time was 24.46 seconds with an 86th overall finish. Junior Brayden Keller would end his run in 92nd place with a time of 24.71 seconds. Finally, sophomore Hunter Dewall was not far behind him, as his time was 24.79 seconds to secure 91st place.
Pennells, Cunningham, and Dewall ran in the 400-meter dash. Pennells placed 16th with a time of 51.4 seconds. Cunningham crossed at an even 53 seconds for 35th place. Finally, Dewall crossed at the 56.31 second mark for a 55th finish.
Junior Aarin Simon competed in the 600-meter run, where he had an impressive 3rd place finish overall and ran the race in one minute and 22 seconds. Freshman Ryan Joseph also ran in this event and finished his race in one minute and 31 seconds, placing 25th overall.
Senior Savannah Creech started off the Drover women in the 200-meter run and placed 49th overall with a time of 28.9 seconds. The 400-meter run saw sophomore Trinity Albao-Cozad complete the race in one minute and 14 seconds, placing 35th overall.
For the throwing events, freshman Antonio Reyna placed 32nd overall in the shotput with a throw of 9.41 meters.
The Drovers had two athletes for the field events which saw freshman Cameryn McColley place 6th overall in the high jump with her highest jump being 1.53 meters tall. For the shotput event, sophomore Kyra Willett had her farthest throw of 9.41 meters and earned 20th place overall.
The men’s team placed 17th out of 19 eligible teams, while the women’s team ranked 20th out of 22 eligible teams.
“I feel the team overall did good. It was the first track meet of the season and we had to knock off a little rust, but we competed against the other schools, and I believe we got to see where we are and what we need to work on for our next track meets,” Huff said.
USAO’s track and field teams will compete at their next event Saturday, Jan. 27 at the Wendy’s/Pittsburg State Invitational, which will be held at the Robert W. Plaster Center in Pittsburg, Kan.
Gary Jackson is a third-year communication major at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma.
