Bernard Lagat, Jordan Young and Lawi Lalang had record-breaking performances this weekend as the Arizona track and field teams competed at three different meets.
Lalang competed in Millrose Games in New York and the senior from Kenya earned a second-place finish overall with a personal-best time of 3:52.88. That time is marked as a school record and a collegiate record.
“Things went as planned and today the main thing I told him, was that he should not feel like an underdog to anybody,” associate head coach James Li said in a press release. “He broke the collegiate record but how he did it, he led about 95% of the race excluding the rabbit. This is a big step forward for him. To be able to go in there and take charge, it was great, it was great day today.”
Arizona volunteer assistant coach, Lagat, set his eighth American record, winning the 2K at The Armory, with a time of 4:54.74. It is the third-straight year Lagat has set an American record at the Millrose Games.
“It was a great race,” Li said. “I’ve learned a couple years ago not to worry about his age, he’s still looks good, he’s still motivated and he still does it. I’m not going to speculate how much longer he will do it. He’s still doing great.”
The jumpers, sprinters and throwers competed in the Don Kirby Elite in Albuquerque, N.M.
Freshman Jordan Young set the school record in the weight throw for the third time this season. His fifth toss was his best of the day, 71-6.75 (21.81m). That mark currently ranks as the No. 7 throw in the country. He earned a first-place finish overall.
“I figured out that it’s not how hard I throw, it’s how precise I throw,” Young said in a press release. “It was just staying relaxed, staying focused and getting ready for each throw. I’m feeling great, I got a few more feet left in me this year so hopefully I’m going to throw big there.”
In the women’s shot put, senior Alyssa Hasslen had a season-best mark of 55-2.25 (16.82m). She took third place overall and has the No. 9 throw country.
In the men’s 400-meter sprint, freshman Miles Parish clocked a time of 47.07, the second-best time of his career. He took first place in heat one and finished in third place overall.
Senior Shapri Romero clocked a time of 23.61 in the 200-meter sprint, which is a personal best and ranked No. 17 in the U.S. In the women’s 60-meter dash, senior Germe Poston finished in third place overall with a time of 7.36, a new personal best and is tied for No. 22 in the country.
In the women’s 4×400-meter relay, the quartet of Nnenya Hailey, Gray, Morgan Struble and Romero clocked a season-best time of 3:37.56 and took fourth place overall. On the men’s side, Houston, Parish, Avery Mickens and Neil Houlihan clocked a season-best time of 3:14.75 and took ninth place overall.
“One of the things I wanted to see was how we competed heading into the conference championships,” head coach Fred Harvey said in a press release. “The level of competition is so high right now throughout the country that each weekend we have to step up more and more, and we’re doing so. We should have a great opportunity to do well at the MPSF Championships, the athletes are excited about it and ready to get it done.”
The distance runners represented the Wildcats at the Husky Classic in Seattle, Wash. Sophomore Sam Willis clocked a personal-best time of 4:18.03 in the mile, good for third place. Junior Dylan Hopper also ran the mile and he took fifth place with a time of 4:19.35.
—Follow Zoe Wolkowitz @zowolko
