ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — First meet of the year? No problem for these Lobos.
The University of New Mexico’s track and field team registered a strong season debut this weekend at the Cherry & Silver Invitational at the Albuquerque Convention Center, recording a number of personal bests in its first of five straight meets at home.
Facing off against a competitive field, the Lobos received strong performances across the board, including 26 top-10 finishes and numerous personal records. as most athletes continue to gear up for the season.
“This was pretty darn good for a season opener,” head coach Joe Franklin said. “We had some athletes do some really good things, and next weekend when we have almost everybody competing, we’ll have a better idea.”
With New Mexico just embarking on its challenging indoor schedule — which features the Mountain West Championships the end February — season openers typically don’t carry the same expectations as later meets, once athletes have gotten into a rhythm.
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| Katherine Whiting |
But the Lobos exceeded expectations Friday and Saturday, posting solid marks in a number of events despite starting the spring semester earlier in the week.
“There was a lot of positives for being here for literally four days and them coming out and racing,” Franklin said. “That’s great. … It’s much better than I thought it would be.”
Senior Jannell Hadnot registered one of the top marks of the weekend, winning the women’s triple jump with a leap of 42 feet, nine inches. The best season debut of her UNM career, Hadnot claimed the triple jump title at the Cherry & Silver for the second straight year.
“I’m really excited about the season,” Hadnot said. “My jump was pretty good so I’m looking forward to the next few track meets. I’m happy with my performance.”
Hadnot was one of a number of Lobo women to shine, including Katherine Whiting, who logged a huge PR in the pole vault.
Whiting broke the 13-foot mark in the vault, clearing 13-1 ½ to place third overall. The junior, whose old indoor PR was 12-5 ½, now ranks sixth in New Mexico history in the event.
On Friday, Amaris Blount and Shannon Fritz also notched top-10 marks, with Blount finishing fifth in the weight throw (toss of 56-1 ½) and Fritz taking sixth in the high jump (5-3).
Out on the track, Hannah Riker-Urrutia (third place, time of 1:35.37) and Larimar Rodriguez (fifth, 1:37.05) moved to fifth and sixth in UNM history in the 600-meter run before teaming up with Abigail Smith and Kyra Mohns to run a fifth-place time of 3:55.94 in the 4×400 meter relay.
For the men, Josh Kerr led a strong overall performance on the track, as he took runner-up honors in the 800 with a PR time of 1:51.37. Alexander Palm (fifth, 1:52.92) and Emil Danielsson (ninth, 1:56.07) also placed in the top 10.
In the 400, Carlos Salcido nabbed eighth place in 49.22.
The 600 also produced some strong times on Friday, as Mark Haywood (fourth, 1:19.31), Gavin Sleeter (fifth, 1:20.36) and Kristian Uldbjerg Hansen (seventh, 1:20.94) all climbed into the all-time top-10 ranking for the event.
Haywood, Salcido, Cheyne Dorsey and Isaac Gonzales also teamed up to place third in the 4×400, clocking a time of 3:15.34.
Out in the field events, the Lobos earned a haul of superlative marks on Friday.
Ryan Chase led three top-10 finishers in the long jump, leaping a new PR of 23-10 ¾ to place third. Freshmen Tanner Battikha (fourth place, mark of 23-8 ¼) and Alejandro Goldston (sixth, 23-6 ¼) also notched solid marks in their UNM debuts.
In the pole vault, Daniel Lam cleared a PR of 16-6 ¾ to place fourth, moving a quarter inch from breaking into the program’s all-time top-10 list. Freshman Nathan Burnett also logged a PR, clearing 16 ¾ for eighth place, while Jason Atencio and John Harari (who PR’d) both reached 15-7 to place ninth and 10th, respectively.
New Mexico returns to action next week as they host the New Mexico Team Invitational, a scored team meet, next Saturday.
Fans can follow the Lobos on Twitter (@lobo_track) and Instagram (@lobo_xc_tf) for information and updates on the team!