Two meets into the outdoor season and already junior Amere Lattin owns top 10 times in two events. | File photo/The Cougar
On March 10, the indoor track & field season concluded with the Florida Gators winning the national championship.
Now, the Cougars’ focus shifts to training for the outdoor season, which involves more events and competitors. Athletes no longer have to get into the Top 16 of their event. Instead, the athletes are split into the East and West regions. The goal for every athlete is to finish in the Top 48 of their event to qualify for the NCAA Regionals.
Two meets into that outdoor season, several Cougars are sitting above the qualifying mark.
The team of juniors Mario Burke and John Lewis III and seniors Elijah Hall and Cameron Burrell combined to run a time of 39.22s in the men’s 4x100m relay at the Cougar Spring Break Invitational. Their time is currently the fastest in the country.
Junior hurdler Amere Lattin owns top 10 times in both the 200m and 110m hurdles. His 110m hurdles time of 13.93s is No. 2 in the West, and his 200m time of 21.30s is No. 10 in the West. His hurdle time is also No. 3 in the country.
Senior thrower Jack Thomas marked his return from an injury with the fourth-best javelin throw in the West, 71.58m. His mark broke his personal record and is the second-best in program history.
Senior jumper Jared Kerr owns top 20 times in triple jump and long jump. His triple jump mark of 14.65m is currently No. 18 in the region, while his long jump mark of 7.43m is No. 8.
Other notable marks include freshmen Jemiyah Franklin and Quivell Jordan, who own the No. 24 and No. 28 400m times at 48.10s and 48.19s respectively. In addition, they contributed to the 4x400m relay team that ran 3:17.83 at the Cougar Spring Break Invitational, the No. 21 time in the West.
The track & field team’s next meet is Friday at the Victor Lopez Classic on the campus of Rice University.
