K-State Returns Home for DeLoss Dodds Invitational Beginning Friday

MANHATTAN, Kan. – The Kansas State track and field teams will host the DeLoss Dodds Invitational on Friday, January 29 through Saturday, January 30 at Ahearn Field House. Five programs will be in attendance with William Carey, Langston, Texas State, Tulane and Little Rock participating in the two-day meet.

Friday's schedule will kick off at 10 a.m., CT, and then Saturday's events will begin at 8:30 a.m., CT. Both days will begin with combined events.

The invitational features a long list of combined eventers each year, as Friday's and Saturday's slates will include the Austra Skujyte Women's Pentathlon and the Steve Fritz Men's Heptathlon. Senior Kyle Parr is the reigning champion in the heptathlon event, as he collected 4,962 points in the 2020 event.

"This should be a nice competition for us," said Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Cliff Rovelto. "This will be TJ's (Tejaswin Shankar) first heptathlon of his life. Matas (Adamonis) has not done one in quite some time. It will be the first pentathlon in a while for the other girls. Some competed in December, but they really have not done much technical work by that time. We have some folks doing events that are more in their wheelhouse this weekend, so it will be interesting to see how they perform."

Tuning into the DeLoss Dodds Invitational

Fans wanting to follow along with meet on Friday and Saturday can use the live results link provided by Heartland Timing. For more information on the DeLoss Dodds Invitational, including a full schedule of events, records and more can be found on kstatesports.com by clicking here.

Under COVID-19 guidelines, no fans or spectators will be allowed inside Ahearn Field House this weekend.

National Recognition

Earlier this week, K-State broke into the USTFCCCA Men's Indoor Track and Field Rating Index at the No. 20 spot. This is the first time since March 4, 2019 that the men's group has acquired a ranking inside the coveted national poll. The Wildcats sit with four other Big 12 foes in the national rating index, as Texas Tech (No. 6), Oklahoma (No. 13), Texas (No. 15) and Baylor (No. 25) all occupy the top 25 rankings for their respective teams.

NCAA Leaderboard

The Wildcats hold a firm grip at the top of the NCAA leaderboard with the indoor season kicking into high gear. With five meets under the team's belt, K-State remains heavily involved inside the top 15 nationally for a multitude of events. Some of those athletes who have contributed to the recent success includes freshman Kyle Gale (No. 8, 400 Meters), senior Tejaswin Shankar (No. 1 High Jump; No. 5, Triple Jump), junior Anigbata Grace Chinonyelum (No. 8, Triple Jump), junior Chantoba Bright (No. 14, Triple Jump), junior Vitoria Alves (No. 9, 60m Hurdles) and sophomore Maddie Righter (No. 11, High Jump).

USTFCCCA Top-10 Marks of the Week (Jan. 19-25)

After recording a victory in the women's 600 yards at the Jayhawk Classic, junior Kassidy Johnson garnered a spot amongst the nation's best in the USTFCCCA Top-10 Marks of the Week for the dates of January 19-25, as the Wichita, Kansas, native earned the No. 7 position in the 600 yards category with a time of 2:16.06. Her time also broke a personal record in the event.

K-State Plows Through Jayhawk Classic

Last week in Lawrence, the Wildcats sent a small group of athletes to compete inside Anschultz Pavilion for the Jayhawk Classic, and the team captured multiple top-three performances. Those outings included four victories from Johnson in the 600-yards race, sophomore Devon Richardson (2.10m, High Jump), senior Shaelyn Ward (20.11m, Weight Throw) and sophomore Sean Wilson (50.75, 400 Meters). K-State compiled seven runner-up finishes against Kansas and Wichita State opponents, with two of those coming from senior All-American Taylor Latimer in the throws.

Up Next

K-State will hit the road once again with a chance to compete against the nation's best, as both teams travel to Fayetteville, Arkansas, for the Arkansas Invitational on Friday, February 6 at 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.

K-State Returns Home for DeLoss Dodds Invitational Beginning Friday

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Chantoba Bright

Kyle Gale

Kassidy Johnson

Taylor Latimer

Kyle Parr

Devon Richardson

Tejaswin Shankar

Shaelyn Ward

Sean Wilson

Kansas State University Athletics