Lobo T&F Hosts UNM Team Open This Weekend

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – New Mexico Track & Field hosts the UNM Team Open this weekend (Jan. 26-27), with the Lobos set to welcome 66 teams to the state-of-the-art facilities at the Albuquerque Convention Center.

This weekend’s events – as well as all of UNM’s collegiate home meets this season – will be exclusively live streamed via FloTrack, with live results available via the schedule tab at GoLobos.com. Heat sheets will be posted to the Home Meet Information tab on the UNM Track & Field page as well as on the 2023-24 Track Schedule.

The Cherry & Silver Open — exclusively for open/community competition – will also take place at the ABQ Convention Center on Saturday. Meet information for open competitors and spectator tickets are available here.

New Mexico Team Open
Jan. 26-27 | Albuquerque, N.M. | Albuquerque Convention Center

A PREMIER SURFACE
The current surface – the same WSTY Mondo used at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo – at the ABCC was unveiled in March 2021 and cost $3 million in total, with renovations that helped solidify the city’s ability to attract and keep hosting national meets that bring the best competition to Albuquerque. Since 2005, 102 indoor track meets have been hosted at the ABCC — 16 being national championship events at either the collegiate or national level — and indoor track has generated over $30 million in revenue for the city of Albuquerque in that span.

SO FAR THIS SEASON / ENTRIES
In the USTFCCCA’s initial TFRI team ranking, the UNM men clocked in at No. 12 in the nation — their highest team ranking in history. A total of seven distance times (Mile, 3K, 5K) from male Lobo athletes rank among the Top 25 in the nation.

Through four meets so far this indoor season – two before the break – UNM athletes have produced nine marks that rank among the top 10 in program history in their respective  events.

Habtom Samuel was named MW Freshman & Athlete of the Week for back-to-back weeks after putting down the second-fastest mile time in the nation (3:53.92 with elevation conversions) at the MLK Jr. Invitational last Saturday — the fastest collegiate performance in ABQ Convention Center history and his third UNM program record. He previously broke the school record in the 3,000m at the UW Indoor Preview on Saturday with a 7:45.61 time that ranks No. 6 in the nation. Samuel also holds the school indoor record in the 5,000m after posting a 13:14.85 time in his debut at the Sharon Danville-Colyear Opener in Boston on Dec. 2 – that time ranks fourth in the nation.

LAST TIME OUT
Led by Samuel’s big mile performance, five UNM athletes posted new personal bests at the MLK Jr. Invitational last Saturday.

• In the unseeded women’s 3,000m, Maleah Goldie (10:57.26) and Camille Jackson (11:02.85) both posted new personal bests while finishing seventh and eighth, respectively.
• In her UNM debut, Lou-Anne Pouzancre Hoyer finished ninth in the 300m while posting a 38.44 time that stands as the fastest indoor 300m time in program history.
• Victor Akhalu led the way in the 300m, finishing sixth with a 33.76 finish – a new personal best – while Brodie Young (eighth, 34.28) and Levente Soos (10th, 34.87) both finished in the Top 10.

TOP NCAA MARKS
On the men’s side, Samuel leads five UNM men that rank in the Top 50 on the 3,000m qualifying list – more than any other D-I program in the nation heading into this weekend’s events. A total of 10 male UNM athletes and four female athletes have all posted times or marks that rank in the Top 50 on the most recent NCAA Indoor D-I Qualifying List.

The top 16 competitors in the nation in individual events and the top 12 in relays at the end of the indoor season will earn berths to the NCAA Indoor Championship Meet, set to take place in Boston at The TRACK at New Balance from March 8-9.

MEN’S 3,000M D-I INDOOR QUALIFYING LIST

In other events, Samuel and Field lead UNM’s milers, with Samuel and Kiplagat both cracking the Top 20 in the 5K.

MEN’S MILE D-I INDOOR QUALIFYING LIST

MEN’S 5,000M D-I INDOOR QUALIFYING LIST

Gabriella K. Szabo’s elevation-modified 2:09.93 800m time in her UNM debut last Saturday ranks No. 44 in the nation, with Semira Mebrahtu Firezghi’s 9:27.89 personal best from Dec. 2 ranking 49th. Maja Gebauer – whose 4.10m pole vault mark from an event win at the Air Force Holiday Opener sits at No. 2 on the UNM indoor all-time list – ranks 40rd in the event, and Mikyla Harkley’s 12.42m TJ mark from last Saturday bumped her up to No. 46 in that event.

WOMEN’S 800M D-I INDOOR QUALIFYING LIST

WOMEN’S 3,000M D-I INDOOR QUALIFYING LIST

WOMEN’S POLE VAULT D-I INDOOR QUALIFYING LIST

WOMEN’S TRIPLE JUMP D-I INDOOR QUALIFYING LIST

UPCOMING SLATE
Saturday is the seconnd of four consecutive weekends with meets at the Albuquerque Convention Center, NCAA Indoor Championships last season. Next up are the New Mexico Collegiate Classic Feb. 2-3 and the Don Kirby Invitational on Feb. 9-10.

After two more meets in Boston, the Albuquerque Convention Center will also be the host site for the 2024 USATF Indoor Championships on Feb. 16-17 and the Mountain West Championships from Feb. 22-24. All home meet info, including schedules, parking, media coverage and more, will be available via golobos.com/home-track-info.
The Lobos have been the host of the MW Indoor Championship in each season that it has been held since 2014. USATF Indoor Championships will be held in Albuquerque for the third consecutive year.

The top 16 competitors in the nation in individual events and the top 12 in relays will earn berths to the NCAA Indoor Championship Meet, set to take place in Boston at The TRACK at New Balance from March 8-9. Opened last year, the state-of-the-art facility touts a 200-meter hydraulically banked track, a 24,000 square-foot warmup area with a capacity for 5,000 attendees.