Trinity University announces Tiger Track & Field Makes Final Push for Nationals at Augustana Twilight
ROCK ISLAND, Ill. – Nine members of the Trinity men's and women's track & field teams competed at the Augustana Midway Twilight on Thursday, seeking one final mark to qualify for the NCAA III Championships next week.
The final event of the night for the Tigers was one of the most successful, as the women's 4x400-meter relay team of Taylor Kotfas (Blanco, Texas / Blanco), CC Gray (Scottsdale, Ariz. / Notre Dame Prep), Aliya Jackson (Houston, Texas / Shadow Creek), and Hayley Huck (Prosper, Texas / Prosper) broke the school record by more than two seconds. The Trinity quartet finished in 3:53.99 and that time would put them 36th in the nation heading into this week's action.
Justin Johnson (Houston, Texas / Manvel) broke his personal record in the 400-meter hurdles, finishing in 53.41 seconds to take third place in tonight's race – the highest finish for Trinity on Thursday. Johnson also moved up to a tie for 26th in the nation prior to tonight's results.
Cooper Tyler (Austin, Texas / Anderson) was fourth in the javelin with a throw of 53.80 meters, marking the seventh time in his career that he has surpassed 53 meters – all of which came this season.
Will Salony (Dallas, Texas / JJ Pearce) finished ninth in the 1500-meter run with the second-fastest time in his career. His 3:49.04 race is the third time this season that he surpassed the school-record time he set in 2022.
Casey Hampton (Houston, Texas / Westbury Christian) was fifth in the long jump with a mark of 6.96 meters in tonight's meet. He came into the meet ranked 22nd nationally after reaching 7.22 meters at the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championships.
Joy Areola (Tomball, Texas / Rosehill Christian) competed in both the long jump and the high jump for the Tiger women. She was eighth in the long jump with a leap of 5.33 meters, which is her second-best distance this season. She was also fifth in the triple jump after reaching 11.75 meters, which is the third-best mark of her career.
Up Next
The NCAA is scheduled to announce the qualifiers for the NCAA III Outdoor Track & Field Championships tomorrow, while the meet is scheduled for Thursday-Saturday, May 25-27, in Rochester, New York.
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