WHAT TO WATCH FOR A number of Cougars will be in action on Saturday and carry nationally ranked times into the competition.
Sophomore Cameron Prejean and freshman Sierra Smith hold two of the nation’s fastest 100-meter dash times this season. Prejean, a triple jumper by trade, enters the men’s race with the 60th fastest time in the NCAA at 10.41, while Smith will compete for the women with a season best of 11.52 which ranks 63rd.
Also in the sprints, sophomore Jacarias Martin makes his return to the 200-meter dash at the cross-town meet. Martin has a season best of 20.75 in the 200 which ranks him No. 27 nationally.
Houston had an exceptional final day at the Mt. SAC Relays, where both the men’s 4x100- and 4x400-meter relays ran top-10 times nationally. The men will enter a 4x1 squad on Saturday, having posted a seasonal-best 38.59 (No. 2 in the NCAA), while the 4x4 squad’s best time this season is 10th in the nation at a school-record 3:04.38.
Antwan Dickerson enters Saturday’s long jump competition with the No. 61 mark in the nation this season. Dickerson jumped 24-5.0 (7.44m) at the Houston Alumni Invitational to finish second in the event.
A pair of Houston hammer throwers will also be in action at Rice. Senior Damon Thompson moved up the national list to 73rd after winning the hammer throw at the Long Beach Invitational with a top mark of 198-0 (60.36m). In the women’s ring, sophomore Taylor Scaife climbed to No. 2 in school history and No. 93 in the NCAA after a top throw of 183-1 (55.80m) at the Mt. SAC Relays.
J. FRED DUCKETT TWILIGHT INVITATIONAL Back home in Houston, a pair of Cougar sprinters won their events at the Twilight Invitational, hosted by Rice. On the straight track, freshman Sierra Smith picked up a victory in the 100-meter dash. Smith crossed the line in 11.66 to win the race.
Freshman Birexus Hawkins set a new personal best on Saturday en route to winning the 400-meter dash. Hawkins finished the quarter mile in 54.07 to climb to No. 73 on the NCAA rankings list this season.
A duo of Houston jumpers took home runner-up finishes at Rice on Saturday. In the men’s long jump, junior Antwan Dickerson leapt 24-1.5 (7.35m) to take second, while in the pole vault, sophomore Haley Houston went up-and-over the bar at 12-1.25 (3.69m).
With one of its top legs competing internationally in Burke, the Cougar men’s 4x100-meter relay team took silver at Rice. The squad of John Lewis III, Daniel Ford, Colin George and Jared Kerr crossed the line second in 39.90.
Jennifer Dunlap picked up a podium for the distance crew while competing in the 1,500-meter run. Dunlap finished the nearly 4-lap race in 4:35.50 to place third.
In the men’s pole vault, Hayden Flores picked up another bronze performance for the Cougars. Flores went up-and-over the bar at 14-11.0 (4.55m) to set a new season best.
Sophomore Cameron Prejean tallied Houston’s final podium finish of the night. A triple jumper by trade, Prejean took third in the 100-meter dash, when he crossed the line in 10.58.