By Lindsay Cash
Reporter
The track and field squad split into two groups to compete for the second weekend in outdoors fashion. The distance runners headed to Stanford in Palo Alto, Calif., while the rest of the crew took Tempe, Ariz., by storm.
Sophomore Skylar White and freshman Tiffani McReynolds both set school records and propelled Baylor toward seven wins at the Arizona State Invitational.
White broke her own school shot put record with a toss of 56 feet, 3.75 inches and gained the win, while McReynolds won the 100-meter hurdles at 13.17. McReynolds shattered a 15-year-old Baylor record. Meet after meet, coach Todd Harbour said he is amazed at the athletic ability in McReynolds.
“It’s so fun to go to meets and talk to the coaches who didn’t offer her a spot because of her [petite] size. There’s a coach at every single meet who spends time wishing now they would have taken her,” Harbour said.
Along with her honor, McReynolds also came in second in a few events as well. She finished behind senior Tiffany Townsend in the 100 at 11.53, and finished right behind Texas A&M in the 4-x-100 relay with Townsend, Brittany Bruce and Diamond Richardson.
Also representing the women, senior Tiffany Townsend finished first in the 100 meters at 11.44.
And for the men, senior Marcus Boyd and freshman Gabriel El Hanbli were victorious. Boyd won the 400 meters at 46.51 and El Hanbli won the 400-meter hurdles at 51.65.
“This win for me was just a measuring stick of where I’m at, essentially,” Boyd said. “It shows I’m in pretty good shape right now.”
Juniors Woodrow Randall and James Gilreath also each landed in the top five on the track.
Both the men and women won relays as well. Boyd, Randall, junior Whitney Prevost and sophomore Marcus Thompson took the 4-x-100-meter victory, while Townsend, junior Brittany OgunMokun, senior Brittany Bruce and junior Diamond Richardson grabbed the 4-x-400-meter title.
With each passing weekend, the Bears are inching toward the outdoor championships. The competition is quality – the Arizona State Invitational featured a couple of former championship-winning universities – and Baylor consistently continues to earn titles, which Harbour said is huge.
“ASU and A&M are both former national champs, so this was a great meet with quality performances on our end,” Harbour said.
On Saturday, the teams will travel to Arlington for the Bobby Lane UTA Invitational. Harbour is expecting to see consistencies through his relay squads, in both the men and women.
“We had the No. 1 men’s relay team last year, and our relays keep getting represented well in the 4-x-100 and 4-x-400. We’re at the point of building up the reputation of being a tough relay opponent,” Harbour said.
The invitational in Arlington this weekend will host an array of Texas schools along with Baylor – Dallas Baptist University, Tarleton State University, TCU and the University of North Texas.
