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Razorback Invitational
K-State Wraps Up Final Day of Razorback Invitational
Feb 01, 2020 | Track & Field
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Competing with some of the best programs in the country over a two-day stretch, the Kansas State men's and women's track and field teams closed out their stay at the Razorback Invitational inside the Randal Tyson Track Center on Saturday.
Over the two-day period, both teams earned seventh-place finishes as the women's team finished with 44 points to tie with Stanford, while the men finished with 39 points. LSU took home the team title on the women's side, while Texas grabbed the victory in the men's field.
"It is great for us to compete against strong programs like those that were in Fayetteville," said Director of Track and Field Cliff Rovelto. "These are the programs that you measure yourself against and strive to achieve the same level of success."
K-State duo of Edgaras Benkunskas and Aaron Booth embarked on the second leg of the men's heptathlon on Saturday morning. Benkunskas finished his seven-event slate with 5,631 points to clinch the sixth spot, while Booth captured 5,614 points to earn a spot at seventh on the leaderboard. A native of Auckland, New Zealand, Booth finished the latter part of the heptathlon on a strong note with a second-place finish in the pole vault, leaping over a mark of 4.80m/15-9 while bolstering his position with a spot in sixth place in the 1,000-meter race.
Benkunskas' 5,631 points places him in the all-time performance list at K-State, moving to No. 8 for the indoor season.
"The guys in the heptathlon finished up strong and took care of business," said Rovelto.
Many events for the second part of the invitational were on the track, which included the men's and women's 60-meter race and 60-meter hurdle events.
Blazing through the track in the preliminary rounds during the 60-meter hurdles, the Wildcats were represented by freshman Oscar Smith and senior Kimisha Chambers in the final heat. Smith posted a personal best time of 7.86 seconds in the final sprint, claiming the eighth spot. Chambers blasted out the gates during her 60-meter hurdles final race and crossed the line at seventh place at a time of 8.39, which tied her personal best.
In the long-distance events, K-State witnessed many athletes capture top-10 performances in the 3,000 meter and mile races. Freshman Jaybe Shufelberger fought off Big 10 and SEC opponents to enter the top-10 with a spot at ninth place during her 3,000-meter race. In the men's 3,000-meter trek, Ethan Powell saw another top-three finish come his way after crossing the finish line at 8:19.56.
Junior Cara Melgares finished in ninth place at time of 4:57.91. Other Wildcats rounding out the women's mile run included freshman Hannah Stewart and senior Emma Wren, who took home top-15 performances with Stewart finishing in 11th place at a time of 4:59.15, and Wren following with a pace of 4:58.71, earning the No. 14 spot.
On the men's mile, freshman Hadley Splechter had one of his best performances for the indoor season as the Yates Center, Kansas native earned himself a third-place finish with a time of 4:10.56, which shattered his personal record by more than six seconds. Rounding out the top-20 in the race was senior Noah Stevenson and freshman Mike Rohlinger, who crossed the line in 14th and 17th place, respectively.
Senior Travis Hodge showed up once again in the 800-meter race, posting another top-five performance with an efficient time of 1:50.28 to claim a podium spot at fourth place.
Sophomore Kassidy Johnson and junior Macy Heinz nearly finished with identical times again in the women's 800-meter race, as Johnson edged out Heinz by a tenth of a second, earning the seventh spot at a pace of 2:07.45. Heinz improved her personal best in the race for the fourth-consecutive meet.
Field events took place during the second day with the shot put and weight throw events taking place inside the Randal Tyson Track Center. Senior Cameron Lewis kept impressing in the shot put as he launched a throw of 17.97m to finish in fifth place. Junior Taishia Pryce and senior Konstantina Romaiou both squeezed into the top-10 for the triple jump competition as Pryce leaped herself to eighth-place finish and a personal best at a mark of 12.86m/42-02.25, while Romaiou claimed the No. 10 spot with a jump of 12.60m/41-04.25.
"Cam (Cameron) Lewis had a PR in the shot," Rovelto said. "The 400's were generally ok. For a few, it was their first time running a 400 on a banked track. It was Tim's (Lambert) first open 400 he has ever run. The relay folks did a solid job. Many of them had already done a number of events. Oscar (Smith) ran two races faster than his previous best. He is doing a good job for a freshman. The middle-distance guys and girls had some good efforts against strong fields."
The Wildcats now prepare for a trip to Columbia, South Carolina on February 7-8 as both teams will compete in the South Carolina Invitational.
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.
Women's 60-Meter Hurdles (Pre-lims)
3. Kimisha Chambers, 8.47
7. Vitora Alves, DQ
Women's 60-Meter Hurdles (Finals)
7. Kimisha Chambers, 8.39
Women's 400 Meter
8. Lavaun Stephenson, 55.49
14. Akia Guerrier, 56.18
Women's 800 Meter
7. Kassidy Johnson, 2:07.45
8. Macy Heinz, 2:07.46
10. Alex Ferguson, 2:08.62
26. Cayli Hume, 2:16.08
Women's Mile Run
9. Cara Melgares, 4:57.91
11. Hannah Stewart, 4:59.15
14. Emma Wren, 4:59.71
Women's 3000 Meter
15. Emma Lucas, 10:03.95
Women's Triple Jump
5. Taishia Pryce, 12.86m/42-06.25
10. Konstantina Romaiou, 12.60m/41-04.25
Men's 400 Meter
13. Tim Lambert, 48.84
Men's 400 Meter Invitational
10. Antoni Hoyte-Small, 48.28
11. Justin Davis, 48.30
Men's 800 Meter
4. Travis Hodge, 1:50.28
19. Dylan Brenneman, 1:54.11
25. Kyle Johnston, 1:56.39
Men's Mile Run
3. Hadley Splechter, 4:10.56
14. Noah Stevenson, 4:13.03
17. Mike Rohlinger, 4:15.44
Men's 3000 Meter
3. Ethan Powell, 8:19.56
14. Cooper Schroeder, 8:28.13
17. David Lutgen, 8:30.38
18. Jack Thomas, 8:31.65
31. Jack Moore, 8:44.64
32. Kerby Depenbusch, 8:44.83
Men's 60 Meter Hurdles (Pre-Lims)
3. Oscar Smith, 7.81
Men's 60 Meter Hurdles (Finals)
7. Oscar Smith, 7.86
Men's Shot Put
5. Cameron Lewis, 17.97m/58-11.50
Men's 4x400 Relay
5. Kansas State, 3:12.29
Women's 4x400 Relay
7. Kansas State A, 3:41.37
Men's Heptathlon 1000 Meter
6. Aaron Booth, 2:44.64
9. Edgaras Benkunskas, 2:48.40
Men's Heptathlon 60-Meter Hurdles
7. Edgaras Benkunskas, 8.38
11. Aaron Booth, 8.68
Men's Heptathlon Pole Vault
2. Aaron Booth, 4.80m/15-9
5. Edgaras Benkunskas, 4.60m/15-1
Men's Pentathlon Score
6. Edgaras Benkunskas, 5631 points
7. Aaron Booth, 5614 points
Over the two-day period, both teams earned seventh-place finishes as the women's team finished with 44 points to tie with Stanford, while the men finished with 39 points. LSU took home the team title on the women's side, while Texas grabbed the victory in the men's field.
"It is great for us to compete against strong programs like those that were in Fayetteville," said Director of Track and Field Cliff Rovelto. "These are the programs that you measure yourself against and strive to achieve the same level of success."
K-State duo of Edgaras Benkunskas and Aaron Booth embarked on the second leg of the men's heptathlon on Saturday morning. Benkunskas finished his seven-event slate with 5,631 points to clinch the sixth spot, while Booth captured 5,614 points to earn a spot at seventh on the leaderboard. A native of Auckland, New Zealand, Booth finished the latter part of the heptathlon on a strong note with a second-place finish in the pole vault, leaping over a mark of 4.80m/15-9 while bolstering his position with a spot in sixth place in the 1,000-meter race.
Benkunskas' 5,631 points places him in the all-time performance list at K-State, moving to No. 8 for the indoor season.
"The guys in the heptathlon finished up strong and took care of business," said Rovelto.
Many events for the second part of the invitational were on the track, which included the men's and women's 60-meter race and 60-meter hurdle events.
Blazing through the track in the preliminary rounds during the 60-meter hurdles, the Wildcats were represented by freshman Oscar Smith and senior Kimisha Chambers in the final heat. Smith posted a personal best time of 7.86 seconds in the final sprint, claiming the eighth spot. Chambers blasted out the gates during her 60-meter hurdles final race and crossed the line at seventh place at a time of 8.39, which tied her personal best.
In the long-distance events, K-State witnessed many athletes capture top-10 performances in the 3,000 meter and mile races. Freshman Jaybe Shufelberger fought off Big 10 and SEC opponents to enter the top-10 with a spot at ninth place during her 3,000-meter race. In the men's 3,000-meter trek, Ethan Powell saw another top-three finish come his way after crossing the finish line at 8:19.56.
Junior Cara Melgares finished in ninth place at time of 4:57.91. Other Wildcats rounding out the women's mile run included freshman Hannah Stewart and senior Emma Wren, who took home top-15 performances with Stewart finishing in 11th place at a time of 4:59.15, and Wren following with a pace of 4:58.71, earning the No. 14 spot.
On the men's mile, freshman Hadley Splechter had one of his best performances for the indoor season as the Yates Center, Kansas native earned himself a third-place finish with a time of 4:10.56, which shattered his personal record by more than six seconds. Rounding out the top-20 in the race was senior Noah Stevenson and freshman Mike Rohlinger, who crossed the line in 14th and 17th place, respectively.
Senior Travis Hodge showed up once again in the 800-meter race, posting another top-five performance with an efficient time of 1:50.28 to claim a podium spot at fourth place.
Sophomore Kassidy Johnson and junior Macy Heinz nearly finished with identical times again in the women's 800-meter race, as Johnson edged out Heinz by a tenth of a second, earning the seventh spot at a pace of 2:07.45. Heinz improved her personal best in the race for the fourth-consecutive meet.
Field events took place during the second day with the shot put and weight throw events taking place inside the Randal Tyson Track Center. Senior Cameron Lewis kept impressing in the shot put as he launched a throw of 17.97m to finish in fifth place. Junior Taishia Pryce and senior Konstantina Romaiou both squeezed into the top-10 for the triple jump competition as Pryce leaped herself to eighth-place finish and a personal best at a mark of 12.86m/42-02.25, while Romaiou claimed the No. 10 spot with a jump of 12.60m/41-04.25.
"Cam (Cameron) Lewis had a PR in the shot," Rovelto said. "The 400's were generally ok. For a few, it was their first time running a 400 on a banked track. It was Tim's (Lambert) first open 400 he has ever run. The relay folks did a solid job. Many of them had already done a number of events. Oscar (Smith) ran two races faster than his previous best. He is doing a good job for a freshman. The middle-distance guys and girls had some good efforts against strong fields."
The Wildcats now prepare for a trip to Columbia, South Carolina on February 7-8 as both teams will compete in the South Carolina Invitational.
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.
Women's 60-Meter Hurdles (Pre-lims)
3. Kimisha Chambers, 8.47
7. Vitora Alves, DQ
Women's 60-Meter Hurdles (Finals)
7. Kimisha Chambers, 8.39
Women's 400 Meter
8. Lavaun Stephenson, 55.49
14. Akia Guerrier, 56.18
Women's 800 Meter
7. Kassidy Johnson, 2:07.45
8. Macy Heinz, 2:07.46
10. Alex Ferguson, 2:08.62
26. Cayli Hume, 2:16.08
Women's Mile Run
9. Cara Melgares, 4:57.91
11. Hannah Stewart, 4:59.15
14. Emma Wren, 4:59.71
Women's 3000 Meter
15. Emma Lucas, 10:03.95
Women's Triple Jump
5. Taishia Pryce, 12.86m/42-06.25
10. Konstantina Romaiou, 12.60m/41-04.25
Men's 400 Meter
13. Tim Lambert, 48.84
Men's 400 Meter Invitational
10. Antoni Hoyte-Small, 48.28
11. Justin Davis, 48.30
Men's 800 Meter
4. Travis Hodge, 1:50.28
19. Dylan Brenneman, 1:54.11
25. Kyle Johnston, 1:56.39
Men's Mile Run
3. Hadley Splechter, 4:10.56
14. Noah Stevenson, 4:13.03
17. Mike Rohlinger, 4:15.44
Men's 3000 Meter
3. Ethan Powell, 8:19.56
14. Cooper Schroeder, 8:28.13
17. David Lutgen, 8:30.38
18. Jack Thomas, 8:31.65
31. Jack Moore, 8:44.64
32. Kerby Depenbusch, 8:44.83
Men's 60 Meter Hurdles (Pre-Lims)
3. Oscar Smith, 7.81
Men's 60 Meter Hurdles (Finals)
7. Oscar Smith, 7.86
Men's Shot Put
5. Cameron Lewis, 17.97m/58-11.50
Men's 4x400 Relay
5. Kansas State, 3:12.29
Women's 4x400 Relay
7. Kansas State A, 3:41.37
Men's Heptathlon 1000 Meter
6. Aaron Booth, 2:44.64
9. Edgaras Benkunskas, 2:48.40
Men's Heptathlon 60-Meter Hurdles
7. Edgaras Benkunskas, 8.38
11. Aaron Booth, 8.68
Men's Heptathlon Pole Vault
2. Aaron Booth, 4.80m/15-9
5. Edgaras Benkunskas, 4.60m/15-1
Men's Pentathlon Score
6. Edgaras Benkunskas, 5631 points
7. Aaron Booth, 5614 points
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