Cowgirls Break Indoor 4x400-Relay School Record on Day Two of Razorback Invitational

Friday, January 31

Fayetteville, AR

12:00 p.m.

Oklahoma State University

Razorback Invitational

Photo by: OSU Athletics

Cowgirls Break Indoor 4x400-Relay School Record on Day Two of Razorback Invitational

February 01, 2020 | Cowboy Cross Country & Track, Cowgirl Cross Country & Track

FAYETTEVILLE – The Oklahoma State track and field teams wrapped up competition at the Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville, Arkansas, on Saturday evening, saving the best for last as the Cowgirls' 4x400-meter relay team broke the indoor school record that was set in 1997.

The quartet of Aaliyah Birmingham, Christina Ollison, Kalaya Ali and Nicolette Dixon ran a time of 3:39.86 to break the previous record by 1.44 seconds. Three of the four record-breaking Cowgirls hale from McKinney Boyd High School in McKinney, Texas; only Birmingham, a Tulsa native, does not.

"The four women that ran today obviously did a great job and I even think there are others who could fill in and run strong," head coach Dave Smith said. "The women's sprint group is really rolling right now. Coach McDonnell has them running well and I think that's just the start and that they have the ability to run a lot faster as the year goes on."

Birmingham and Ollison also had nice showings as individuals. The senior sprinter ran 7.37 in the 60-meter prelims to qualify for the final sixth-fastest. The Cowgirl went on to slightly improve her time in a very fast final, finishing sixth place in 7.35. Ollison ran a time of 54.91 to finish fifth place in the 400 meters.

"Birmingham is a very unique person on and off of the track. She is soft-spoken, but her actions on the track exemplify the leadership a good program needs," assistant sprints coach Magnus Scott said. "She's a quiet leader that gives the other women confidence. Her 60-meter time is very consistent and she's running at a pace that is a little faster than where she was leading into Big 12's a year ago."

Freshmen Taylor Roe and Heidi Demeo had standout performances for the Cowgirls in the mile, finishing third and fourth places, respectively. Demeo was making her Oklahoma State debut while Roe was running in her second indoor meet for the Cowgirls after putting together a strong cross country season in the fall.

For the Cowboys, Juan Diego Castro finished third in the mile invitational, finishing in a time of 4:03.35. That time by Castro, a native of San Jose, Costa Rica, was the fastest time ever for a Costa Rican athlete in the mile.

"Juan did a good job. We were hoping he was going to have a chance to go sub-four, but I'm not sure the race was really there for that," Smith said. "He led most of the race and ran by himself until the very end there, but he'll take another shot at it in two weeks and I think he'll run faster."

Sophomores Ashton Hicks and LaKyron Mays each competed in the 400 meters invitational. Hicks put down a time of 47.08 to finish fourth place while Mays cracked the top-10 with a ninth-place finish.

In the mile, orange dominated the top-10. Last year's NCAA steeplechase runner-up Ryan Smeeton finished fourth place for the Pokes and was followed closely by a pack of his Cowboy teammates. Ayrton Ledesma Fuentes finished fifth, Isaiah Priddey was sixth, Alex Maier placed seventh, Alec Haines crossed in eighth and Victor Shitsama rounded out the top-10.

William Edmonds and Jack Fling finished up the heptathlon action on a high note. Edmonds moved up four spots on the day to finish the competition in 11^th place with a total of 4,825 points, good enough for the fourth-highest point total in OSU history. Fling, a freshman, finished 15^th in his first heptathlon.

Other notable performances for the Cowboys included Torrey Hickel's eighth-place finish in the shot put and Garrett Calhoun's sixth-place run of 1:51.35 in the 800 meters. Calhoun was less than one tenth of a second from running a new personal-best time.

The Pokes will be back on the track next weekend in Norman, Oklahoma, as they compete at the J.D. Martin Invitational.

Men's Individual Results

Heptathlon
11. William Edmonds – 4,825 points
            13. 60 Meters – 7.16
            14. Long Jump – 6.57m
            16. Shot Put – 12.26m
            18. High Jump – 1.78m
            14. 60-Meter Hurdles – 8.97
            12. Pole Vault – 3.50m
            7. 1,000 Meters – 2:44.89

15. Jack Fling – 3,839 points
            21. 60 Meters – 7.47
            20. Long Jump – 6.21m
            21. Shot Put – 9.81m
            14. High Jump – 1.84m
            16. 60-Meter Hurdles – 9.59
            -- Pole Vault – NH
            10. 1,000 Meters – 2:53.64

Shot Put
8. Torrey Hickel – 16.55m

60 Meters – qualifying
21. Wyatt Duvall – 6.98
32. Martino Falls – 7.26

400 Meters
16. Justin Long – 49.15

400 Meters – Invite
4. Ashton Hicks – 47.08
9. LaKyron Mays – 47.95

800 Meters
6. Garrett Calhoun – 1:51.35
16. Andrew Merutka – 1:53.31
20. Tanner Blackmore – 1:54.34
21. Kobe Christiansen – 1:54.67

Mile
4. Ryan Smeeton – 4:10.70
5. Ayrton Ledesma Fuentes – 4:10.77
6. Isaiah Priddey – 4:10.84
7. Alex Maier – 4:10.90
8. Alec Haines – 4:11.09
10. Victor Shitsama – 4:11.74

Mile – Invite
3. Juan Diego Castro – 4:03.35

3,000 Meters
27. Nicholas Kenville – 8:36.72

4x400-Meter Relay
8. Oklahoma State 'B' – 3:14.26
(Andrew Merutka, LaKyron Mays, Kobe Christiansen, Garrett Calhoun)

Women's Individual Results

Triple Jump
14. Saara Hakanen – 12.18m
15. Ryan Roane – 12.06m

60 Meters – qualifying
12. Kira White 7.72q
19. Brooke Givens – 7.76
24. Sanye Ford – 7.88

60 Meters – prelims
6. Aaliyah Birmingham – 7.37q
20. Kira White – 7.71

60 Meters - final
6. Aaliyah Birmingham – 7.35

400 Meters
5. Christina Ollison – 54.91
12. Nicolette Dixon – 55.81
18. Kalaya Ali – 56.62

800 Meters
12. Kaytlyn Larson – 2:09.55
13. Maddie Salek – 2:09.91
14. Gabija Galvydyte – 2:10.02
17. Ariane Ballner – 2:11.79
22. Gabby Hentemann – 2:14.29
23. Jayden Fiebiger – 2:14.68
25. Michaela Travers – 2:16.02
28. Rilee Rigdon – 2:16.41

Mile
3. Taylor Roe – 4:53.20
4. Heidi Demeo – 4:53.77
32. Michelle Magnani – 5:17.31

3,000 Meters
11. Kami Hankins – 10:05.48
12. Katherine Ruck – 10:08.78

4x400-Meter Relay
5. Oklahoma State – 3:39.86
(Aaliyah Birmingham, Christina Ollison, Kalaya Ali, Nicolette Dixon
13. Oklahoma State 'B' – 3:51.73
(Gabija Galvydyte, Brooke Givens, Maddie Salek, Kaytlyn Larson)

Men's Team Scores
1. Texas - 79
2. Oregon - 75
3. Arkansas - 73
12. Oklahoma State – 15

Women's Team Scores
1. LSU - 96
2. Florida - 80
3. Texas – 70
12. Oklahoma State – 9.5