War Hawks open outdoor strong at Trinity Invite

SAN ANTONIO – McMurry University Track & Field made its 2022 outdoor debut this weekend at the Trinity Invite in San Antonio, hosted by Trinity University (Texas).

The War Hawks had nine athletes earn top five finishes and multiple runners, throwers and jumpers post personal records in the season opener. Additionally, McMurry has 64 times and marks in the national rankings following its early season meet.

Two McM athletes currently have the nation's top marks in their respective events. Sophomore Najwa Campbell leads 47 other NCAA Division III athletes in the 100 meter hurdles through one meet, posting a time of 15.17. Junior thrower Sutton Welch also leads the nation in the men's hammer with a mark of 49.84 meters – a personal best.

McMurry joined 16 other schools at the meet, mainly consisting of NCAA Division II, III, NAIA and two-year programs. American Southwest Conference (ASC) counterparts Concordia Texas, Hardin-Simmons and UT Dallas competed, as well as five Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) programs.

INTERACTIVE RESULTS l PDF RESULTS

Track Highlights:

Sophomore Dazhaun Walton took home gold in the men's 200 meter final with a time of 21.71 in his first outdoor dash this year. In the same section, fellow 2021 national qualifier Jayden Sloan earned bronze with a time of 21.83. The duo rank second and third nationally and first and second in the conference.
Najwa Campbell finished second in the women's 100 meter hurdles with her 15.17 time, trailing only Alana Holloway from Angelo State. Campbell just missed her PR of 15.00 in only her first outdoor meet of the season, but still ranks atop D3 through one meet. Campbell also ran a 1:14.91 in the 400 meter hurdles.
The McMurry women won the 4x400 relay against five other teams, finishing with a time of 4:11.45. Isabella Sanchez, Breauna Conner, Katelyn Hernandez and Jacee Dinkins made up the team.
On the men's distance side, McMurry had one of its best showings in the 1500 meter run in recent memory. Three runners ran sub-4:08.00 times, led by freshman Gabriel Sanchez at 4:05.62. Upperclassmen Abram Maldonado and John Zuniga Jr. were also fast, recording respective times of 4:07.39 and 4:07.67.
Maldonado and Sanchez also had nationally-ranked times in the 800, with Maldonando currently sitting seventh with a sub-two minute time at 1:57.83. Sanchez was just a hair over at 2:00.09. In the event itself, Maldonado was sixth place and second in the conference.
Sisters Janeth Chacon and Jazmin Chacon led McMurry's women's distance squads in both the 800 and 1500 events. The two were neck and neck in the 800, with Janeth earning a time of 2:28.13 to lead the way in sixth. Jazmin led McMurry in the 1500 with a sub-5:00.00 time at 4:57.33 to place fourth. Multiple distance runners had personal bests in a strong day.
Katelyn Hernandez cracked the national rankings in the 800 along with the Chacon sisters, posting a respectable time of 2:32.27. Fellow distance runner Trinity Martinez also made the early national rankings with a 20:55.37 time in the women's 5K.
Sophomore Breauna Conner led a trio of McMurry sprinters in the women's 200 with a time of 27.23, which is currently 30th in the national rankings.
Six runners had nationally ranked marks in the 100 to open the season, including four on the men's side and two on the women's side. Walton led the men with a time of 11.09, while Kelby Tidwell posted a 13.08 for the women.
In the men's 4x100 relay, McMurry's "A" team finished fourth of 13 teams with a time of 42.17, ranking second in D3. That team was made up of Caleb Kwiatkowski, Dazhaun Walton, Dontre Sinegal and Jayden Sloan.
The young group of Kade Kimmel, Shepherd Miller, Rylan Rogers and Cody McWilliams ran the 4x400 and finished with a time of 3:38.98.

Field Highlights:

DonTre Sinegal, who's ranked among the national indoor leaders for the men's long jump, made his outdoor debut and finished fourth overall with a mark of 6.87 meters on his last attempt.
The throws squad produced great results, with Welch earning bronze and ranking atop D3 in the men's hammer. He was joined by freshman Reagan Owen, who made his outdoor debut with a throw of 48.61 on his first attempt. Owen is third in the national ranks. Jarrett Hart is not far off in 12th with his mark of 44.43m.
Corbin Stulir had a good day for the women, competing in four events. She led McMurry in the javelin throw and ranks eighth nationally with her mark of 34.37m. Stulir also led the shot put for the women with a mark of 10.92m to rank 14th nationally.
Junior Ellie Ryan also competed in four events and finished in the Top 15 in all of them, including an eighth-place finish in the hammer. She ranks ninth in D3 after one week. She also ranks 13th in the discus at 34.34m, 11th in the javelin at 33.61m, and 21st in the shot put at 10.92m.
Vern Angton III opened strong with a 42.77m mark in the discus, ranking fourth in the nation and sixth at the meet. He also tossed a 12.85m throw in the shot put to rank just outside the national top 20.
Senior Nandhi Brown had a 4.99m mark in the women's long jump, moving up to 12th in the early national rankings.
Jayden Sloan transitioned from the track to the jumps pit to open his outdoor season, as he currently ranks fourth in D3 in the triple jump at 13.64m. He finished seventh in the meet.
Multi-eventer Kelby Tidwell opened her season with five events, most notably earning a ranking in the high jump with a clearance of 1.37m on her first jump. She also landed a ranking in the long jump at 4.58m.
Discus specialist Glenda Parra had a good start to her season with a toss of 33.42m, just two meters shy of her personal record and good enough for a national top 20 ranking.
Multi-sport athlete Zachary Wood led a group of War Hawks in the men's javelin with a mark of 46.44 meters to rank 22nd nationally. He finished seventh in the meet.

Up Next:
The NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships are scheduled for March 11-12 in Winston-Salem, N.C. Currently, DonTre Sinegal has McMurry's best chance of representation as he ranks 16th in the men's long jump. Entries will be announced later this week.

The outdoor season continues March 17-19 at the West Kittley Invitational – hosted by Abilene Christian University across town.

Print Friendly Version