By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – It was another strong slew of performances for the Tennessee Tech outdoor track & field team, as the Golden Eagles completed action at the UAB Spring Invite in Birmingham, Ala. Saturday afternoon.
"It was a big step forward across the board for our athletes," Tech head coach Peter Dalton expressed. "There is still so much more to come from our talented and determined team."
Leading the way for the purple and gold was veteran Jalena Curbeam and her outstanding performance in the triple jump. She captured top honors in the event, delivering a leap of 11.46 meters (37'7.25").
A trio of Golden Eagles turned in runner-up finishes on the day, including Britnie Dixon in the 800-meter run. The Northern Illinois transfer produced an outdoor personal record with a time of 2:16.54. Nyla Armand also earned a PR in the event, placing sixth with a mark of 2:19.33.
Youngster Diamond Rush collected her own career-best showing for her second-place finish, racing to a time of 1:06.92 in the 400-meter hurdles. In the high jump, Kendall Medders also notched a runner-up performance, clearing 1.57 meters (5'1.75").
Two more members of the purple and gold had big days in the 400-meter dash, paced by Amara Nwajagu. The rookie placed fifth overall after clocking in with a PR of 58.52. Right behind her teammate was Trenia Stephens, finishing sixth with a personal-best time of 58.99.
In the 200-meter dash, Anya Akili just missed out on her own career-best mark, producing a time of 25.80. Kategie Casseus completed the 100-meter dash in personal-record time, finishing with a time of 12.67 seconds.
Samaria Allen and Trenia Stephens teamed up with Casseus and Nwajagu to complete the 4x100-meter relay fifth overall. The Tech team turned in a time of 48.27 seconds.
A couple members of the men's cross country team turned in work as individuals on the day as well, with Clayton Kirkus impressing with a sub-two-minute showing in the 800-meter run with a time of 1:58.86. Jackson Burns made his debuts in both the 100-meter dash and 200-meter dash, clocking in with marks of 11.10 and 22.49 seconds, respectively.
Up Next
The Golden Eagles will compete next at the Flames Invitational, hosted by Lee University in Cleveland, Tenn. from Friday, Apr. 8 through Saturday, Apr. 9.
Photo by TTU Track & Field
