STANFORD, Calif. — Heading into this weekend, the Lobos were looking to get into lifetime-best mode out in California.
Coming back, they accomplished that and very much more.
The University of New Mexico track & field team captured four new school records and a new world-leading mark as it put together a stellar team performance Sunday at the Payton Jordan Invitational.
Behind Courtney Frerichs’ world-leading run in the 3,000-meter steeplechase and additional school records from Sophie Connor, Calli Thackery and the men’s 4×100 meter relay team, the Lobos shined against some of the best in the world at Cobb Track & Angell Field.
“We had lots of lifetime bests,” head coach Joe Franklin said. “Great, great performances. … They might not have placed high in their races, but they’re ran against some of the best in the world. And for them to come out here and do what they did and not quit, that’s very positive.”
| Courtney Frerichs | |
As New Mexico gets progressively closer to the postseason — which kicks off in two weeks with the Mountain West Outdoor Championships — the Lobos emphatically made their case for the NCAAs, competing with the top athletes in the nation and the world en route to strong marks.
A number of athletes, including Frerichs, Connor and Thackery, rose significantly in the national rankings via their lifetime-best performances Sunday to put them in contention to advance to the NCAAs.
Frerichs now holds the NCAA lead, while Thackery ranks second and Connor fourth in the nation after this weekend’s action.
“Going into the postseason, it’s very positive to get all these PRs,” Franklin said. “We’ve got our conference championships in a couple of weeks and then the NCAA meets, so our athletes can do very well.”
But the story on Sunday was the dismantling of four New Mexico school records, including a masterful showing from Frerichs in her first steeplechase of the season.
Frerichs won the top section of the women’s 3000 steeplechase in 9 minutes, 29.31 seconds, which not only broke the New Mexico record, but also eclipsed the Mountain West record and came in as the fifth-fastest time in NCAA Division I history.
“Last year, I had a big goal of breaking 9:30 and came just short,” she said. “So today it’s a really great feeling that I was able to open my steeple with a PR and get that big goal I’ve had for the last year.”
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| Sophie Connor | |
Frerichs also took over the world lead in the event in 2016, and became the third fastest collegian in NCAA history.
A transfer from UMKC finishing her collegiate career at New Mexico, Frerichs now owns three of the eight fastest times in NCAA history between her time at UMKC and UNM.
The Lobos added another pair of new school records in the distance events, with Sophie Connor in the 1500 and Calli Thackery in the 5000.
In the 1500, Connor ran 4:14.03 for a new school record, clipping the previous best of 4:14.44 set three years ago. Connor now ranks third in MW history and placed sixth overall in her section of the metric mile.
Thackery added a record of her own, running to a time of 15:37.44 in the 5000. Her time just edged the previous standard of 15:37.49, but was still good enough to finish as the top collegiate mark (and 18th overall) in a deep professional field.
The men also tallied a new school record, as Allan Hamilton, Scott Bajere, Carlos Salcido and Ridge Jones combined to run a winning time of 40.20 in the 4×100 meter relay, breaking the 50-year record of 40.24 set in 1966.
“The men ran a great race,” Franklin said. “To break a record that’s stood for 50 years is a quite an accomplishment.”
New Mexico almost posted one final record, as Alice Wright barely missed setting a new benchmark in the 10,000.
Wright finished second collegiately in the top section of the event with a time of 32:36.11, falling 0.05 seconds short of a new record. Sarah Waldron, who lost her school record in the 5K to Thackery, holds the current standard at 32:36.07.
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| Calli Thackery |
Elsewhere, the Lobos posted a bevy of strong performances during the two-part meet. The opening portion featured a more traditional college track meet, while the second part included the top-notch distances races.
In the first part, UNM captured four wins, with Mark Haywood in the 400 (time of 48.13), Sam Trigg in the men’s triple jump (50 feet, 1 ¼), Jannell Hadnot in the women’s triple jump (42 ¾) and the women’s 4×400 team of Haley Sanner, Zoe Howell, Holly Van Grinsven and Hannah Riker-Urrutia (3:50.35).
Howell also added a four-second PR in the 800, running 2:08.34 for fourth place, while Sanner ran to a season best of 56.09 in the 400, Marler registered second in the long jump (20 ½) and Van Grinsven ran to third in the 100 hurdles (13.85).
The men picked up some strong times from Jones in the 100 (third, 10.56) and 200 (fourth, 21.59) and Bajere in the 100 (eighth, 10.74). The men’s 4×400 team of Cheyne Dorsey, Salcido, Isaac Gonzales and Haywood ran to second in 3:16.21 and Allan Hamilton took runner-up honors in the long jump (24-9).
In the distance-event portion, the Lobos continued to add strong times, including Natasha Bernal running the third-best steeplechase time ever at UNM (10:19.54) and Emily Hosker-Thornhill running to eighth all-time in the 1500 (4:19.88).
For the men, Graham Thomas shaved about a second off his PR, finishing with a 10th-place clocking of 8:48.07, while Josh Kerr just missed a new PR, running 3:42.39 for fourth in his section of the 1500.
The Lobos will take the next week off and will return to action for the Mountain West Outdoor Championships in Clovis, California, on May 11-14.