As the Kansas State track and field team traveled to Fayetteville, Arkansas, for their third indoor meet of the season, several Wildcats placed over the two-day tournament.
Two senior veterans, Gary Moore Jr. and Vanessa Mercera, started day one with exceptional marks, both breaking their previous school records.
During the men’s weight throw, Moore threw 23.54m [77’2.75”], putting him in second place for the weekend, along with keeping his No. 5 best throw in the NCAA. Moore easily surpassed his previous PR, beating it by well over a foot.
Mercera made school history again during the women’s 400 meters as she ran 52.83 seconds, shaving two-tenths of a second off her previous time.
Three Wildcats competed in the World Athletics Silver field events — men’s and women’s long jump. Junior Maud Zeffou-Poaty finished in 8th place with a jump of 6.40m [21’0], right behind Olympic talent. In the men’s long jump, sophomore Uroy Ryan jumped 7.63 [25’0.5] with freshman Croix DaCunha trailing behind with a leap of 7.35m [24’1.5].
Junior Vienna Lahner had a personal improvement of 20 seconds during the women’s 3,000 meters championship race. She had a time of 9:17.52, placing her fourth and reaching No. 2 in the K-State record books. With some more improvements, Lahner could break a 24-year record if she runs better than a 9:09.99, which is currently held by Amy Mortimer.
During the men’s 400 meters, junior Nen Matlock was six seconds from his fastest indoor record, but was still able to place 13th out of 75, with a time of 46.55 seconds. Freshman Delaney Brinker and senior Bongumusa Nkosi were two more Wildcats who made an impact, getting themselves into the K-State indoor top-10. Brinker ran a time of 53.50 seconds, making him No. 8, along with Nkosi at No. 10, clocking a time of 46.85 seconds.
Making a name for herself, freshman Anna Pozdeeva placed 11th, with a time of 2:08.81, and made it to No. 10 in the all-time top 10.
Performing well in the long jump, junior Aaliyah Foster now holds the No. 8 best distance in the school’s indoor records at 6.33m [20’9.25].
Rounding out day one were juniors Tah Chikomba and Trevon Hamer, who competed in the men’s 60-meter dash prelims. Out of 47 runners, the K-State pair tied for 9th, sprinting the distance in 6.73 seconds, but were unable to make the qualifying race.
“Super pleased with everything, attitudes, the efforts,” K-State head coach Travis Geopfert said. “I guess more than anything, the efforts, these kids; they got after it and competed like veterans. You know, we got a lot of new athletes to this stage, this was a big track meet and they handled themselves with poise, executed their individual plans and competed like veterans, so I’m super pleased.”
A determined Wildcat squad acknowledged day one’s accomplishments and went into day two with the same record-breaking mindset.
A group made up of freshman Desirae Riehle, Delaney Brinker, Anastasiia Kretova and senior stud Vanessa Mercera combined to be the runner-up in the women’s 4×400 relay. Finishing with a time of 3:33.59, the fantastic four broke the previous school record of 3:24.27 from 2015.
“That women’s 4×400, they broke the school record and I’m just so happy,” Geopfert said. “Desirae on the front of that, a true freshman, handled everything really well. Anastasiia also on there, a true freshman, Delaney Brinker on there, a true freshman, and then anchored by the senior in Vanessa. Three true freshmen on the school record relay, I’m just proud of these kids, and we’re on a good trajectory heading into championship season.”
Paving the way to 6th place in the men’s 4×400 relay, juniors Matlock, Tavon Underwood, Nkosi and senior Cyrus Ways ran a time of 3:08.42. The Wildcat crew also made their way to the K-State top-10 list, clocking in for the No. 4 fastest time.
Coming out on top, junior Daniela Wamokpego won the women’s triple jump with a leap of 13.59m [44’7”], just three inches short of her personal best. Wamokpego holds the third-best distance in the NCAA and holds the No. 5 spot in K-State’s indoor records.
Finishing in 3rd place, senior Devin Loudermilk cleared the bar at an impressive 2.19m [7’ 2.25”] in the men’s high jump for one of the World Athletics events.
In only his second time competing, junior Aaron Antoine placed 5th in the men’s triple jump championship with a jump of 16.22m [53’ 2.75”].
Sprinting around the track for their fastest mile times, sophomore Jackson Esquibel and senior Julian Avila both placed out of 32 runners. Esquibel placed 3rd with a time of 4:05.83, and Avila placed 6th with a time of 4:07.20.
K-State will round out the indoor season at home on Friday, Feb. 20, competing in the Steve Miller Invitational.
