Florida Track and Field Opens Competition at Arkansas Razorback Invitational
The Gators men’s and women’s track and field teams returned to action at the Arkansas Razorback Invitational for day one of a two-day meet. The meet at the Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville, Arkansas, featured teams from across the country, including Kentucky, LSU, Texas, Miami and Oregon.
In the pentathlon, the Gators entered two athletes, sophomore Abigail Elmore and Pauline Bikembo. This was Elmore’s first time competing in the pentathlon. She sustained an injury during her freshman season and used it as a year of learning experience and training.
“Each event, I would like to execute that thing and feel good about it, and be able to walk away from each event and know I did something well in it,” she said.
Bikembo placed ninth, followed by Elmore in 13th, creating a baseline for Elmore.
Throws
John Luke Witte continued his strong start to the indoor season. At the indoor season opener, he performed with a first-place finish in the weight throw at 21.10 meters. Then, in the Razorback Invitational, with a throw of 20.97 meters, he secured another first-place mark.
“Focus on what we did in practice to get us to this point,” Gators throws coach Eric Werskey said before the meet., “Let’s just execute that. Lock it in, whether it’s good, bad or indifferent. Just do that, and so that’s the standard, in my opinion, for the Gator track and field.”
Jumps
The Gators produced a strong performance in the men’s long jump with three athletes representing the orange and blue. Freshman Temoso Masikane made his collegiate debut two weeks ago at the Jimmy Carnes Invitational, where he placed third in the triple jump. On Friday, he performed in the men’s long jump and took second with a 7.71 meter leap. Sophomore Nicholas Crosswhite placed fifth, followed by Luke Stradley in 13th. Asia Phillips represented the women’s long jump and placed fifth with a personal-best mark of 6.33 meters.
Sprints
Senior Wanya McCoy took first place overall in the 200 meters with a time of 20.50 seconds. Last year, he won the 200 meters with a time of 20.45 seconds, which ranked as the second-fastest time in the world.
Relays
The distance medley team entered as No.4 for an all-time school record with a time of 10:55.88. This team included Claire Stegall, Malia Campbell, Layla Haynes and Hilda Olemomoi.
Up Next
Florida will continue the invitational Saturday in Fayetteville, Arkansas, with the Gators’ first event starting at 9:55 a.m.
Category: Gator Sports, Gators Track and Field
