As the Cougars competed in Houston, Arkansas and Washington, several improved their placements on the NCAA Charts. | Courtesy of Stephen Pinchback
The Cougar track & field team traveled to Arkansas and Washington and hosted a home meet for their final weekend of competition before the Indoor American Conference Championships.
Despite being separated, the Cougars continued to set PRs and break records, with several notably making marks on the NCAA charts.
Burrell and Lattin set fire to Fayetteville
The majority of the athletes sent to the Tyson Invitational in Fayetteville were from the sprinting unit. While some athletes were unable to compete in certain races, the major story of the day came from senior sprinter Cameron Burrell and sophomore hurdler Amere Lattin. While neither won their respective events, both ran season bests that are currently No. 7 on the NCAA charts.
Burrell came in second place in the men’s 60m. After winning his heat with a 6.67 run in the semi-finals, Burrell ran a 6.63s in the final, being edged out by only Darryl Haraway of Florida State, whose 6.59s tied for No. 2 in the NCAA. He improved his time by only .01 seconds, but Burrell strengthened his hold on the No. 7 spot.
Lattin’s competition in the 60m hurdles was his best this season. The fact that Grant Holloway of Florida ran the nation’s best time to win the event tells as much. Lattin’s 7.74 third place time shaved .08 seconds off his PR and is the No. 3 time in school history.
Barraza and Sierra break records again
The Cougars sent all of their best distance runners to the Husky Classic in Seattle this Saturday, with the majority running in the men’s and women’s distance medleys. The men placed fourth and the women fifth.
The highlight of the day, however, came from seniors Brian Barraza and Selena Sierra.
Barraza came into the meet having ran one of the nation’s top times in the 1 mile, 3:58.66, currently No. 15 in the NCAA. His running of the 3000m was his first competitive distance event since the 2016 season, after he redshirted during cross country.
He appears to be in competitive form as he finished second in the event with a time of 7:53.60. Barraza’s time broke his own school record in the event, 7:59.66, and shot him up to No. 11 in the NCAA.
Sierra came into the season fit from a cross country campaign where she was the top runner for the women. She started the day already owning the school record in the 5000m, 17:14.43 and, while she may not have received a medal on the day, her 17:00.35 set the new mark by a wide margin.
Coogs host Howie Ryan Invitational
The athletes not sent on the road remained in Houston to host the Howie Ryan Invitational on Friday. The two teams had 3 event victories, nine top-3 places and three PRs.
Sophomore Colin George jumped 1.95m in the men’s high jump to win the event. Senior Cameron Cornelius continued his unbeaten streak in the shot put, winning with a throw of 18.16m.
For the women, Taylor Scaife once again claimed victory in the weight throw. Her throw of 20.44m at the Charlie Thomas Invitational is currently No. 14 in the NCAA.
Sophomore pole vaulter Haley Houston set a new PR with her third place vault of 4.00m. The height is the No. 3 best in school history and has Houston closer to her preseason goal of 4.05m.
Sophomore Tia Omagbemi and freshman Anna Larsson also claimed PRs on the day. Omagbemi ran a 7.89 in the 60m, while Larsson placed fifth in the long jump with a high of 1.55m.
