Taubert Takes Charge in Opening Day of Razorback Invitational
Jan 31, 2020 | Track & Field
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Senior Lauren Taubert knew she needed to perform well in the last two events of the pentathlon in order to obtain the victory. After placing second in back-to-back events, Taubert held off the pack and secured the sixth highest score for any pentathlon participant in the meet's history during the first day of the Razorback Invitational in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
"I've been looking to PR in the long jump for a while now," said Taubert. "It felt really good to do it at this meet. In the 800, it was a talented field and there were girls that really pushed me. It was a very competitive race and the girls went out fast."
Leading by 24 points after two events in the pentathlon, Taubert would gradually increase her margin of victory after each event for the next three competitions.
Her 4,352 points places her in fourth place all-time for school history in the pentathlon while also eclipsing her own personal record set back at the NCAA Indoor Championships last year.
"Staying focused on one event at a time and paying attention to the small technical things in each event along with focusing on myself and not the competition really had an impact on how I performed today," said Taubert.
Taubert was not the only one to perform well at the national meet on Friday as junior Colin Echols nabbed the top spot during the men's weight throw competition with a personal best mark of 20.57m. Fellow teammate Cameron Lewis earned a spot at eighth, launching a throw of 18.23m.
During the pentathlon, senior Ariel Okorie obtained top-three performances in the long jump and 60-meter hurdles events, helping her earn a spot at seventh for the entirety of the competition, which gave her 3,940 points to close her day in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
K-State saw success again from the high jump participants on both sides with junior Tejaswin Shankar earning a fourth-place finish at 2.19m/7-03.25 on the men's side while senior Shanae McKenzie finished second in the women's field with a leap of 1.78m/5-10.
Others who placed in the high jump for the Wildcats included freshman Kyle Alcine and senior Taylor Smith, who grabbed the sixth and eighth spots in the men's field while freshman Janique Burgher finished in eighth as well for the women's leaderboard.
The men's heptathlon competition completed its first round of events on Friday with senior Aaron Booth and freshman Edgaras Benkunskas competing for K-State.
Benkunskas performed well in the shot put and high jump events, helping him leap up to No. 7 (3,171 points) in scoring for the heptathlon moving to the second day while Booth sits right behind at No. 8 (3,124 points).
In the women's weight throw event, the Wildcats packed the top-10 on the day with three athletes securing spots at No. 3, 5 and 9. Senior Helene Ingvaldsen finished with the highest placing at third with a mark of 20.60m/67-7 while senior Ashley Petr and junior Shaelyn Ward finished at fifth and ninth place, respectively.
Seniors Jullane Walker and Kimisha Chambers competed against fast crowds during the 200-meter events, but could not obtain a spot inside the top-10 with Walker finishing in 13th place at a time of 21.36 while Chambers posted a time of 24.24 to cross the line at 18th place.
"I thought the girls did a very nice job," said Director of Track and Field Cliff Rovelto. "Lauren (Taubert) had PR's in her first four events and was just off her pentathlon PR in the 800. Obviously total was a significant personal best. Ariel (Okorie) was just eight points or so off her personal best. She was solid throughout. The guys are doing what they need to do to post a good score. Edgaras (Benkunskas) did a good job in his first heptathlon competition. We had a number of solid performances in the finals today as well. Good start to the weekend."
The Wildcats finish up the last day of the Razorback Invitational tomorrow, which begins at 10:40 a.m. CT. Multiple running events as well as the second day of the men's heptathlon will take place on day two inside the Randal Tyson Track Center.
For the latest on K-State track and field, follow @kstatesports and @KStateTFXC on Twitter or Kansas State Track & Field/Cross Country on Facebook.
Razorback Invitational
Randal Tyson Track Center
Fayetteville, Ark.
Men's 200 Meter
13. Jullane Walker, 21.36
Women's 200 Meter
18. Kimisha Chambers, 24.24
Women's High Jump
2. Shanae McKenzie, 1.78m
8. Janique Burgher, 1.70m
Women's Long Jump
4. Taishia Pryce, 6.24m
Women's Weight Throw
2. Helene Ingvaldsen, 20.60m
5. Ashley Petr, 19.99m
7. Shaelyn Ward, 18.60m
Women's Pentathlon 800 Meter
4. Lauren Taubert, 2:14.29
7. Ariel Okorie, 2:26.01
Women's Pentathlon 60-Meter Hurdles
2. Lauren Taubert, 8.42
3. Ariel Okorie, 8.51
Women's Pentathlon High Jump
4. Lauren Taubert, 1.75m/5-08.75
9. Ariel Okorie, 1.66m/5-05.25
Women's Pentathlon Long Jump
2. Lauren Taubert, 6.00m
3 Ariel Okorie, 5.85m
Women's Pentathlon Shot Put
3. Lauren Taubert, 11.80m
12. Ariel Okorie, 10.64m
Men's High Jump
4. Tejaswin Shankar, 2.19m
6. Kyle Alcine, 2.06m
8. Taylor Smith, 2.01m
Men's Weight Throw
1. Colin Echols, 20.57m
8. Cameron Lewis, 18.23m
Men's Heptathlon 60 Meter Dash
11. Aaron Booth, 7.11
19. Edgaras Benkunskas, 7.35
Men's Heptathlon High Jump
2. Edgaras Benkunskas, 2.05m
6. Aaron Booth, 1.96m
Men's Heptathlon Long Jump
7. Aaron Booth, 7.14m/23-05.25
8. Edgaras Benkunskas, 7.05m/23-01.75
Men's Heptathlon Shot Put
6. Edgaras Benkunskas, 14.08m/46-02.50
11. Aaron Booth, 13.05m/42-09.75
Women's Pentathlon Scores
1. Lauren Taubert, 4352 points
7. Ariel Okorie, 3940 points
"I've been looking to PR in the long jump for a while now," said Taubert. "It felt really good to do it at this meet. In the 800, it was a talented field and there were girls that really pushed me. It was a very competitive race and the girls went out fast."
Leading by 24 points after two events in the pentathlon, Taubert would gradually increase her margin of victory after each event for the next three competitions.
Her 4,352 points places her in fourth place all-time for school history in the pentathlon while also eclipsing her own personal record set back at the NCAA Indoor Championships last year.
"Staying focused on one event at a time and paying attention to the small technical things in each event along with focusing on myself and not the competition really had an impact on how I performed today," said Taubert.
Taubert was not the only one to perform well at the national meet on Friday as junior Colin Echols nabbed the top spot during the men's weight throw competition with a personal best mark of 20.57m. Fellow teammate Cameron Lewis earned a spot at eighth, launching a throw of 18.23m.
During the pentathlon, senior Ariel Okorie obtained top-three performances in the long jump and 60-meter hurdles events, helping her earn a spot at seventh for the entirety of the competition, which gave her 3,940 points to close her day in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
K-State saw success again from the high jump participants on both sides with junior Tejaswin Shankar earning a fourth-place finish at 2.19m/7-03.25 on the men's side while senior Shanae McKenzie finished second in the women's field with a leap of 1.78m/5-10.
Others who placed in the high jump for the Wildcats included freshman Kyle Alcine and senior Taylor Smith, who grabbed the sixth and eighth spots in the men's field while freshman Janique Burgher finished in eighth as well for the women's leaderboard.
The men's heptathlon competition completed its first round of events on Friday with senior Aaron Booth and freshman Edgaras Benkunskas competing for K-State.
Benkunskas performed well in the shot put and high jump events, helping him leap up to No. 7 (3,171 points) in scoring for the heptathlon moving to the second day while Booth sits right behind at No. 8 (3,124 points).
In the women's weight throw event, the Wildcats packed the top-10 on the day with three athletes securing spots at No. 3, 5 and 9. Senior Helene Ingvaldsen finished with the highest placing at third with a mark of 20.60m/67-7 while senior Ashley Petr and junior Shaelyn Ward finished at fifth and ninth place, respectively.
Seniors Jullane Walker and Kimisha Chambers competed against fast crowds during the 200-meter events, but could not obtain a spot inside the top-10 with Walker finishing in 13th place at a time of 21.36 while Chambers posted a time of 24.24 to cross the line at 18th place.
"I thought the girls did a very nice job," said Director of Track and Field Cliff Rovelto. "Lauren (Taubert) had PR's in her first four events and was just off her pentathlon PR in the 800. Obviously total was a significant personal best. Ariel (Okorie) was just eight points or so off her personal best. She was solid throughout. The guys are doing what they need to do to post a good score. Edgaras (Benkunskas) did a good job in his first heptathlon competition. We had a number of solid performances in the finals today as well. Good start to the weekend."
The Wildcats finish up the last day of the Razorback Invitational tomorrow, which begins at 10:40 a.m. CT. Multiple running events as well as the second day of the men's heptathlon will take place on day two inside the Randal Tyson Track Center.
For the latest on K-State track and field, follow @kstatesports and @KStateTFXC on Twitter or Kansas State Track & Field/Cross Country on Facebook.
Razorback Invitational
Randal Tyson Track Center
Fayetteville, Ark.
Men's 200 Meter
13. Jullane Walker, 21.36
Women's 200 Meter
18. Kimisha Chambers, 24.24
Women's High Jump
2. Shanae McKenzie, 1.78m
8. Janique Burgher, 1.70m
Women's Long Jump
4. Taishia Pryce, 6.24m
Women's Weight Throw
2. Helene Ingvaldsen, 20.60m
5. Ashley Petr, 19.99m
7. Shaelyn Ward, 18.60m
Women's Pentathlon 800 Meter
4. Lauren Taubert, 2:14.29
7. Ariel Okorie, 2:26.01
Women's Pentathlon 60-Meter Hurdles
2. Lauren Taubert, 8.42
3. Ariel Okorie, 8.51
Women's Pentathlon High Jump
4. Lauren Taubert, 1.75m/5-08.75
9. Ariel Okorie, 1.66m/5-05.25
Women's Pentathlon Long Jump
2. Lauren Taubert, 6.00m
3 Ariel Okorie, 5.85m
Women's Pentathlon Shot Put
3. Lauren Taubert, 11.80m
12. Ariel Okorie, 10.64m
Men's High Jump
4. Tejaswin Shankar, 2.19m
6. Kyle Alcine, 2.06m
8. Taylor Smith, 2.01m
Men's Weight Throw
1. Colin Echols, 20.57m
8. Cameron Lewis, 18.23m
Men's Heptathlon 60 Meter Dash
11. Aaron Booth, 7.11
19. Edgaras Benkunskas, 7.35
Men's Heptathlon High Jump
2. Edgaras Benkunskas, 2.05m
6. Aaron Booth, 1.96m
Men's Heptathlon Long Jump
7. Aaron Booth, 7.14m/23-05.25
8. Edgaras Benkunskas, 7.05m/23-01.75
Men's Heptathlon Shot Put
6. Edgaras Benkunskas, 14.08m/46-02.50
11. Aaron Booth, 13.05m/42-09.75
Women's Pentathlon Scores
1. Lauren Taubert, 4352 points
7. Ariel Okorie, 3940 points
Players Mentioned
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