Three Claim Titles for Cajuns
The University of Louisiana men and women's track & field teams showed a strong effort on Saturday as three individual Cajuns claimed titles and six others earned podium finishes in the final day of the annual Louisiana Classics held at the Ragin' Cajuns Track/Soccer Facility.
The Cajuns fared well in their first home meet of the 2011 season. 33 total athletes notched top-10 performances as UL competed against 16 other programs across the region.
"This was a good meet for us to continue to train hard against solid competition," said interim head coach Paula Ogunbanjo. "We can use this meet as a measuring stick to help us push forward and improve going ahead."
Kenneth Bellard claimed his first outdoor title this season, leaping a personal-best 23-04 (7.11m) in the long jump.
Also notching a title was Zachary France. The sophomore ran the men's 5,000-meter in 16:06.07, while teammate Cody Tilley placed seventh in 17:30.13. France placed third in the 10,000-meter race on Friday with a mark of 33:33.43.
Jenna Picou set a personal record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, claiming the Louisiana Classics title crown.
In the shot put, Myles Melancon finished runner-up, throwing a distance of 54-4 ¾. Placing third was teammate Jacob Domingue at 54-3 ¼ feet. Tyler Guidry (7th, 50-10 ¾) and Albert Fournette III (8th, 49-11 ¼) also made it inside the top-10 for Louisiana.
Garrett Harkless earned a podium finish, notching 159-6 in the discus throw. Domingue placed ninth with a toss of 141-5.
Saturday proved to be another solid performance for freshman Tarvia Conway in the triple jump. The Monroe native finished third, leaping a season-best distance of 38-7. In the high jump, Antwain Keyes cleared 6-10 ¾ to claim third.
Jasmine Anderson ran the 200-meter dash in 24.09 (4th overall), claiming a new outdoor personal record.
Placing fourth in the pole vault was Amber Laurent. The junior cleared a personal-best 11-5 ¾.
The Cajuns javelin throwers had a solid day, placing three inside the top-10. Marc Malespin threw a career-long 201-10 feet (4th) and Casey Comeaux finished fifth with a distance of 200-09. Billy Christian tied for sixth, notching a mark of 197-9.
Senior Taryn Simmons ran 1:03.63 to claim fourth in the women's 400-meter hurdles. Freshman Abi Brown notched 10th in a time of 1:07.50.
Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns track & field will visit Baton Rouge next weekend for the LSU Relays on Friday and Saturday, March 25-26.
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