Outdoor Music City Challenge Schedule of Events
By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech outdoor track and field program wraps up the 2023 regular season with an in-state trip to Nashville and Vanderbilt's Outdoor Music City Challenge. Competition will take place Friday and Saturday at the Vanderbilt Outdoor Track Complex.
Outdoor Music City Challenge Information
Apr. 28-29, 2023 – Located at the Vanderbilt Outdoor Track Complex in Nashville, Tenn. Friday's action will begin with field events at 1:00 p.m. CT and runnings events at 6:00 p.m. Saturday's action will begin with field events at 11:00 a.m. CT and running events at 1:00 p.m.
What to Watch For
The purple and gold continued to show improvement while competing at the Georgia Tech Invitational, with number of Golden Eagles delivering personal best marks and strong finishes.
Veteran distance runner Rahab Sawe provided the top showing on the first day, placing sixth overall in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. The senior clocked in with a time of 11:19.32 to secure her top-10 finish. Joining the fun on the distance side of the track was Helel Pacurariu-Nagy, locking down her own top-10 performance in the 5,000-meter run. The junior delivered a time of 17:18.44 to register a new personal best in the event.
Moving over to the sprinters, Trenia Stephens also enjoyed a fantastic showing, producing a new PR in the 100-meter dash. The senior raced to a time of 12.41 for the new career mark. Headlining the group was Paris Bowles, erupting for a huge PR in the 800-meter dash. The freshman blasted out of the gate for a new record of 2:15.77.
Rounding the PR performances was Cayla Johnson, powering to a new career mark in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 15.02. She also put forth an outdoor PR in the high jump. The junior put forth a seventh-place finish, clearing 1.60 meters (5'3").
Competing in the triple jump, veteran Jalena Curbeam rocked out to a seventh-place finish with a season-best mark of 11.64 meters (38'2.25"). Amara Nwajagu continued her strong second season in the purple and gold, turning in a top-15 finish in the 400-meter dash. The sophomore raced to a time of 56.14 seconds before helping the 4x100-meter relay squad to an impressive performance.
Up Next
The Golden Eagles will head to postseason action, competing at the Ohio Valley Conference Outdoor Championships in Edwardsville, Ill. from Thursday, May 11 through Saturday, May 13.
Photo by Thomas Corhern
