Track and field competes in Indiana

Story by Blake Sandlin, Staff writer

With Murray State’s indoor track and field team’s season in full swing, the Racers made the trek to Bloomington, Indiana, to compete in the 2017 Gladstein Invitational.

The two-day invitational, hosted by Indiana University, consisted of 19 NCAA teams, including Butler University, the University of Cincinnati and Saint Louis University.

The Racers recently returned from competing in the Commodore Invitational at Vanderbilt University and looked to carry their momentum into their meet at the Harry Gladstein Fieldhouse.

On day one of competition for the sprinters, sophomore Jabreuna Brimlett finished second in the preliminary round of 60-meter hurdles out of 30 runners, finishing in 8.66 seconds. Brimlett was followed by junior Taylor McCammon, who finished fourth in preliminaries, running an 8.77. Brimlett went on to finish third in the finals with an 8.65. McCammon ran a 8.67 to follow shortly after her teammate in fourth.

In the 60-meter dash, sophomore Tamdra Lawrence finished second with 7.60 seconds to qualify for the finals, where she finished fourth place out of eight runners with another 7.60.

In distance, junior Meagan Smith took sixth place out of 18 runners in the 3000-meter run, finishing in 10:21.69. Freshman Norma Abdur-Rafia had a 16th place finish out of 24 runners in the 400-meter with a time of 58.81.

On day two of the Gladstein Invitational, senior distance runner Tia Weston took first place out of 15 runners in the 600-meter run, finishing in 1:35.93. For the sprinters, Lawrence placed fifth out of eight runners in the 200-meter dash fast section, finishing with a time of 24.55. Her teammate, Abdur-Rafia, finished seventh with a 24.85.

Notable finishes in field events included McCammon finishing third in flight two of long jump among 11 participants, while her teammate Brimlett placed sixth.

In relay, the team of junior Anna Curlin, sophomore Jocelyn Payne, Lawrence and Abdur-Rafia placed ninth out of 15 schools in the 4×400 relay, finishing in 3:55.85.

Head Coach Jenny Swieton showed pride in her team’s improved performance over the weekend.

“This weekend showed that we are moving in the right direction,” Swieton said. “I am happy with how the team is shaping up and excited to see continued progress.”

The Racers next meet will kick off at 2:30 p.m. on Jan. 27 at Marshall University for the Thundering Herd Invitational.

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