Lone Star Conference Outdoor Track and Field athletes have recorded 11 NCAA Division II Automatic qualifying marks (8 men, 3 women) and 60 provisional efforts (37 men, 23 women). See the LSC performance list here:
https://www.tfrrs.org/lists/3340.html.
The 2021 LSC Outdoor Track and Field Championships will be held at West Texas A&M in Canyon, Texas on May 6-7-8.
ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
MEN’S TRACK
Benjamin Azamati, West Texas A&M, R-FR, Animal Science, Akim Oda, Ghana
Azamati had an incredible weekend as he broke the NCAA Division II, Ghana National, Lone Star Conference and program record in the 100-meter dash at the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays in Austin. Azamati became the first DII runner to go under 10 seconds as he ran a wind-legal 9.97 to finish first in the prelims and qualify for the Olympics. That is also the second-fastest time in the world this year. "
CO-MEN’S FIELD
Deoux Deysel, Angelo State, FR, Computer Science, Pretoria, South Africa, Garsfontein
Deysel continues to dominate the javelin throw in Division II as he hit an automatic qualifying mark for at the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays with a throw of 242-2 (73.82m). Deysel competed against multiple Division I competitors, placing fifth overall. He currently leads the Lone Star Conference and the nation in Division II.
Ushan Perera, Texas A&M-Commerce, FR, Construction Engineering, Mahabage, Sri Lanka, Stella Maris College
Perera cleared the highest bar in the collegiate ranks this season with an automatic qualifying mark of 7-5.75 (2.28m), which is also the third-highest in the world this season and a Sri Lankan national record in all conditions. He has re-set the Sri Lankan national record both indoor and outdoor in the last three weeks. It is the sixth-best high jump cleared in Division II history and gave the Lions their second Texas Relays championship of the weekend after 61 years without one.
Dhanushka Sandaruwan, West Texas A&M, SR, Sports and exercise science, Sri Lanka, Sri Jayewardenaparo
Sandaruwan ranks first in the nation in the long jump following his victory in the 'B' section of the event at the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays in Austin. The senior is the only Division II jumper over 25 feet so far this season as the leaped 25-4 (7.72m) on his second jump of the competition to punch his ticket to the outdoor championships.
WOMEN’S TRACK
Minna Svaerd, Texas A&M-Commerce, JR, Sport & Recreation Management, Karlstad, Sweden
Svaerd recorded two provisional qualifying marks at the Texas Relays this weekend. She opened with a 1:00.18 in the 400m hurdles in her first running of that event since the 2019 National Championships meet. This is the third-fastest time in Division II this season. She then anchored the 4x400m relay team with a time of 3:43.26. The Lions were one of two Division II teams in the Texas Relays finals for this event and ran the fastest time in the nation this season.
WOMEN’S FIELD
Zada Swoopes, West Texas A&M, SR, Sports and exercise science, Whitewright, Texas, Whitewright HS
Swoopes tied her own school and Lone Star Conference record in the shot put this past weekend at the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays in Austin. The senior finished fourth in the 'A' section the event with a toss of 55-0 (16.76m).on her third attempt. She also finished sixth in the discus with a toss of 173-8 (52.94m).
WEEKLY AWARDS
Men’s Track
M-17 James Majenge, Cameron
M-24 Ezekiel Kipchirchir, West Texas A&M
M-31 Benjamin Azamati, West Texas A&M
Men’s Field
M-17 No nominees
M-24 Decio Andrade, Angelo State
M-31 Deoux Deysel, Angelo State
Ushan Perera, Texas A&M-Commerce
Dhanushka Sandaruwan, West Texas A&M
Women’s Track
M-17 Summer Grubbs, UT Tyler
M-24 DeOndra Green, West Texas A&M
M-31 Minna Svaerd, Texas A&M-Commerce
Women’s Field
M-17 Mya Tovar, UT Tyler
M-24 Zada Swoopes, West Texas A&M
M-31 Zada Swoopes, West Texas A&M (2)
SELECTED NOTABLE PERFORMANCES
Eric Rodriguez, St. Edward's, was the highest male finisher in any event at the Bobcat Invitational, taking sixth place in the 1500 with a time of 3:56.94.
Nicodemus Rotich, Texas A&M-Commerce, won the steeplechase at the Texas Relays with an automatic qualifying time, the second-fastest in Division II, and top 25 world mark in the men's 3,000-meter steeplechase, winning the title at 8:50.48.The race is only his second collegiate steeplechase race, as he won the title at last week's Wes Kittley Invitational at Abilene Christian. He improved on that time by over 16 seconds on Thursday. Rotich's win is the Lions' ninth all-time Texas Relays championship, the first in 61 years, and the first in a track event. He followed that up by winning the 5,000-meters at the Bobcat Invitational in San Marcos at 14:20.08, the 11th-fastest in Division II this season."
Verrell McBride, Oklahoma Christian, ran a 21.80 in the 200 meters on Friday at the Texas Relays in Austin, finishing ahead of the other six NCAA Division II runners in the event (five of which were from LSC schools). He also posted a career-best 100-meter time of 10.81 seconds in the 100 meters on Saturday.
James Majenge, Cameron, SR had a busy week for the Aggie track and field program, competing in two meets and recording both a runner-up and first place finish during a three-day span. The senior opened the week with a strong showing at the Texas Relays, where he finished second in the 5000-meter event with a personal best time of 14:12.86, less than a second behind Texas’ Yusuf Brizimana. Majenge followed that up with a first place finish in the 1500-meter event at the Oklahoma Baptist Invite with another personal best time of 3:54.87 for his third event win of the spring.
Antonio Chavez, UT Tyler, ran a school-record 14:57.34 in the men's 5,000 meters at the Bobcat Invitational hosted by Texas State on March 26 to set the school record in the event. Chavez first set the men's 5,000-meter school record two weeks earlier at the UT Tyler Icebreaker Classic, but his teammate Landon Thornton established a new mark in the event at last week's Wes Kittley Invitational in Abilene. On Friday, Chavez reclaimed the mark with UT Tyler's first-ever sub-15:00 time in the event.
Jonathan Olsson, Oklahoma Christian, posted his first event wins in a meet since April 2019, taking top honors in both the javelin and hammer in the Oklahoma Baptist Invitational in Shawnee, Okla. On Friday, he unleashed a javelin throw of 159-10 (48.72m) to top a seven-man field, and on Saturday, he recorded a career-best throw of 47-3 (14.40m) in the shot put, winning the nine-man event. He also placed fourth in the hammer with a throw of 139-0 (42.36m).
4x100-meter relay, West Texas A&M, the quartet of DeOndra Green, Leah Belfield, Alana Wilson and Valda Kabia finished third in the 4x100-meter relay at the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays. After running 45.79 in the prelims, they ran 45.69 in the final to defeat Division I programs TCU, North Texas, Liberty and Abilene Christian.
Kelsey Castillo, Oklahoma Christian, finished fourth in a 35-woman field in the 1,500 meters on Friday at Texas State’s Bobcat Invitational in San Marcos, Texas, with a time of 4:38.49, an improvement of more than seven seconds over her previous collegiate best in that event. On Saturday, she won her heat in the 800 meters in another career-best time of 2:16.81 and finished fifth among 26 runners (and tops among the eight NCAA Division II runners in the race).
Prisca Kouao, Cameron, was one of the top runners for Cameron at the Oklahoma Baptist Invitational this past weekend. The junior recorded two top-5 finishes with a time of 26.05 in the 200-meter dash, good for fourth place and a third place finish at in the 400-meter dash with a time of 1:00.83. Both performances by Koauo were top-20 times in the LSC this spring.
Ellie Hovre, St. Edward's, won the 3000m steeplechase at the Bobcat Invitational on Saturday, posting a time of 11:14.94, winning by over 15 seconds.
Kyra Winn, UT Tyler, broke one of the oldest school records at UT Tyler with a time of 2:18.55 in the women's 800 meters at the Bobcat Invitational hosted by Texas State on March 27. Winn, a rookie in the 800 meters who only began competing at that distance this season, improved on her previous career best by nearly four seconds, and she broke the previous record which was set in 2012 by a margin of 33-hundredths of a second.
Mia Van Oudsthoorn, Angelo State, competed well in the discus throw as she threw for a distance of 152-2 (46.38m). The junior from South Africa hit a provisional qualifying mark for NCAA Division II national meet with that throw and is currently ranked fourth in the conference and tenth in the nation thanks to her performance in the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays.
Nikkita Addy, Oklahoma Christian, a freshman, took top honors in the discus at the Oklahoma Baptist Invitational in Shawnee, Okla., with a career-best throw of 125-1 (38.12m). She also posted a career-best throw in the hammer of 116-3 (35.44m).
Brooklyn House, UT Tyler, shattered the school-record in the women's discus with a mark of 153-1 (46.66m) at the Bobcat Invitational hosted by Texas State on March 26. She shattered the previous school record by over 12 feet, and it currently ranks 10th among NCAA Division II women's performances this season. Although UT Tyler is still in transition and not yet eligible to compete at NCAA Division II championship events, House's throw met the NCAA Division II provisional qualifying standards.