Competition Heats Up at New Mexico Team Invite

The Nebraska track and field team hits the road for the first time this season with the New Mexico Team Invitational at the Albuquerque Convention Center on Saturday.

The meet will be a scored meet with nine teams in the field - Air Force, California, Colorado State, Kansas State, Nebraska, New Mexico, Texas Tech, TCU and Utah State.

The one-day meet begins on Saturday at 10 a.m. (CT), with the final event running at 5:30 p.m. (CT). Live results can be found at LiveRunningResults.com.

Noting the Husker Men
• Malcolm White ran 21.07 in the 200 meters to win the event at the Mark Colligan Memorial with the sixth-fastest time in NU indoor history and the sixth-fastest time in Division I this season last Saturday. White, now the Big Ten leader in the 200, was second in the 60 meters earlier in the day, setting a PR in the prelims of 6.73 to move to No. 10 in school history and third in the Big Ten.
• Landon Bartel ranks tied for first in the Big Ten and tied for eighth nationally in the high jump after clearing 7-1 1/2 (2.17m). Grant Anderson is fourth in the Big Ten at 7-0 1/4 (2.14m).
• Antoine Lloyd has started off 2016 with personal bests in both the 60 meters and 60-meter hurdles. In his strongest event - the 60-meter hurdles - Lloyd’s 7.78 ranks sixth nationally and first in the Big Ten. It’s a strong event all-around for the Husker men, as Oladpo Akinmoladun (7.82) and Sean Pille (7.87) rank 10th and 15th, respectively, in the nation. The Huskers possess three of the top-four 60-meter hurdles marks in the Big Ten.
• Craig Driver continues to lead the Big Ten in the pole vault, increasing his season best to 17-1 (5.21m) at the Mark Colligan Memorial. Beau Simmons and Tyler Loontjer, both at 16-7 1/4 (5.06m) rank tied for fourth in the conference.
• Kaiwan Culmer and Davon Clark rank second and third in the Big Ten in the triple jump. Culmer matched his indoor PR of 50-6 1/4 (15.40m), while Clark set a PR of 49-8 1/2 (15.15m).
• Mate Koroknai ranks fourth in the Big Ten after his 400-meter personal best of 47.50 at the Mark Colligan Memorial.

Noting the Husker Women
• Tierra Williams is off to a fantastic start to her junior season. A second-team All-America long jumper, Williams has been the top collegiate in all four events she’s competed in this season. She took up triple jump this season for the first time ever and her personal-best 42-3 1/2 (12.89m) on Jan. 22 ranks 10th nationally and second in the Big Ten. Williams’ long jump of 20-1 1/2 (6.13m) at the Holiday Inn Invitational ranks second in the Big Ten and 17th in the nation. She also won a 60-meters title at the Holiday Inn Invite.
• Paula Andrie is 18th nationally and second in the Big Ten in the pole vault at 13-6 1/2 (4.13m).
• The Huskers have four triple jumpers ranked in the top 10 of the Big Ten: Williams (second, 42-3 1/2), Mollie Gribbin (eighth, 39-5 3/4), Angela Mercurio (ninth, 39-3 3/4) and Danielle Jones (10th, 39-1 1/4).
• The Husker women are building with a young and talented crop of athletes. On Nebraska’s indoor performance list, nine of the 15 individual events are led by freshmen or sophomores.
• Sophomore Reka Czuth, the 2015 Big Ten Outdoor long jump champion, is seventh in the Big Ten at 19-6 3/4 (5.96m). She also leads the Huskers in the high jump, clearing 5-8 1/2 (1.74m) this season.
• Freshman Lakayla Harris, from Miami, Fla., is the top Husker in both the 60 meters (7.58) and 200 meters (24.32) after two meets. Fellow freshman from Miami, Chanel Freeman, holds the top 60-meter hurdles time of 8.49, while freshman Jasmine Barge is right behind at 8.54.
• Redshirt freshman Toni Tupper’s shot put PR of 49-2 1/4 (14.99m) is eighth in the Big Ten.