After winning the Sun Belt women’s indoor and men’s outdoor championships, Texas State’s track and field season came to a close over the weekend at the NCAA West preliminaries in Sacramento, California.
Only the top 12 from each event move on to the NCAA Championships. Eleven Bobcats competed at the meet and many came close, but none were able to advance to the final rounds.
"We had a great year," head coach Jody Stewart said in a statement. "Sure, we all wanted more this weekend. The battle to the NCAA championships is a different fight and our student-athletes competed tough to the end. Our seniors fought unbelievably hard throughout this year and over the last two weeks. We are so proud of what they've overcome and accomplished."
Senior sprinter Tramesha Hardy finished just 0.09 seconds short of a qualifying spot in the women’s 200-meter dash finals, coming in 15th place in the semi-final round with a time of 23.16 seconds. The 17-time Sun Belt gold medalist also placed 27th in the first round of the women’s 100-meter dash, clocking in at 11.71 seconds.
T’Mond Johnson advanced to the NCAA championships last year after tossing for 18.55 meters in the men’s shot put, but missed the cut this year despite throwing for more distance. The senior thrower finished 17th in the final event of his career, launching for 18.74 meters.
Seniors Kyle Denomme and Kylah Smith also saw their collegiate careers come to an end at the meet. Denomme crossed the finish line in the first round of the men’s 800 meters in 1:50.40, good for 29th place overall but fifth in his heat. Five competitors with slower times received automatic spots in the second round for finishing third or higher in their respective heats. Smith ran a 13.74-second 100-meter hurdles, placing 38th.
Texas State also saw strong performances from its younger student-athletes. Sophomores Ronnie Briscoe and Noah Herring both finished in the top-24 of the men’s long and triple jump, respectively. Briscoe took 22nd place, leaping for 7.32 meters while Herring sprung for 15.10 meters, taking 24th place.
Junior Naomi Ferdinand and freshman Live Hilton finished 27th and 39th in the women’s long jump, landing at 5.91 and 5.70 meters, respectively. Sophomore Brandon Busby threw for 51.78 meters in the men’s discus, taking 36th place. Sophomore Jaylen Allen ran the men’s 400 meters in 47.54 seconds, good for 34th. Freshman Sadi Giles came just six spots behind Hardy in the women’s 100-meter dash at 11.80 seconds
"This weekend was a great learning moment for our underclassmen," Stewart said. "We are a young team and we are excited about our youth, the incoming recruiting class and the future years to come!"
Texas State will begin cross country season this fall.
