Complete WAC Women's Outdoor Track & Field Championship Results
EDINBURG, Texas - A pair of NM State women's outdoor track & field relay teams were two of the four Aggie champions on the final day of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Women's Outdoor Track & Field Championships, but the Aggies had to settle for a runner-up finish Saturday at the UTRGV Soccer and Track & Field Complex.
With action delayed until the early evening due to a dangerous string of thunderstorms moving through the area, the Aggies wrapped up their 2021 outdoor track & field campaign as league second-placers. GCU won the team title by racking up 208 team points while the Aggies' 163.5 team points were nearly 30 better than third-place UTRGV (136). NM State entered the day trailing GCU by 44 team points.
IN THE LANES
• Starting the process of making up points right from the opening event, the Aggies' foursome of Brianna Gayle, Terice Steen, Asjah Wallace and Madelin Whelpley eked out Utah Valley's top quartet for a championship finish in the 4x100-meter relay. NM State's foursome was clocked in a time of 46.15 seconds - just two one-hundredths of a second faster than UVU's time of 46.17.
• One of the biggest opportunities for the Aggies to make up ground came in the 100-meter hurdles. NM State did so in a big way, getting a total of 18 team points from their four performers in the event. Valissa Brown (13.63) posted a runner-up finish in the sprint while Wallace (13.65) was just behind for third place. Aliyah Logan (14.09) and Israel Swanson (14.28) generated sixth and eighth-place finishes respectively, helping NM State cut GCU's lead to just 23 points (136.5-113.5).
• Whelpley earned a podium finish with her third-place time of 55.83 seconds in the 400-meter dash. NM State's lone competitor in the 400 gave her team another six team points with her third-place finish.
• Gayle was back in action in the 100-meter dash finals as the Aggies' only potential point producer in the event. The freshman posted a sixth-place finish of 12.24 seconds.
• Sheyenne Drake lined up in the lanes as the Aggies' only student-athlete in the 800-meter run finals. Her time of 2:14.72 was good for fifth place.
• Wallace's strong showing in the sprints continued in the 200-meter dash. NM State's lone competitor in the finals of that event, she collected a runner-up finish in a time of 24.14 seconds.
• Steen shined in the 400-meter hurdles finals, establishing a new facility record with her championship time. Steen was clocked in a time of 1:00.57 - one one-hundredth of a second faster than the five-year-old facility record - to capture the league's crown in the event. Swanson (1:03.55) grabbed another four points for NM State with her fifth-place finish in the event.
• Just two of the fifth NM State competitors in the 5,000-meter run found themselves able to come up with top-eight finishes. Corinne Hanson was clocked in a fifth-place time of 17:02.08 while Emily Stutesman finished seventh in a time of 17:17.95.
• To cap off the night, Drake, Steen, Wallace and Whelpley claimed the WAC Outdoor Track & Field Championship's final event title by standing atop the podium in the 4x400-meter relay. NM State's quartet took the title in a time of 3:48.28.
FIELD EVENTS
• Two of the top three finishers in the triple jump sported NM State uniforms. Dascha Robinson locked on to the WAC title in the event, putting forth a leap of 12.83 meters to give her team 10 points. Down in third place, Brown's jump of 11.94 meters yielded another six points for NM State.
• Brown did not record in a height in the high jump finals.
• Another potential opportunity for the Aggies to cut into the Lopes' lead by a substantial margin came in the discus. Though Makiya Moore impressed with a runner-up finish of 46.75 meters in the event, she was the only Aggie who finished in the top 10 in the event.
COMING UP NEXT
• Various NM State student-athletes will see where their times from the WAC Championships stack up with the hopes of moving on to the NCAA Regionals. If no Aggies are selected for the regionals, NM State will turn its attention to the 2021-22 indoor track & field season.
2021 WAC Women's Outdoor Track & Field Championships | Final Standings
1. Grand Canyon | 208
2. NM State | 163.50
3. UTRGV | 136
4. Utah Valley | 130.50
5. California Baptist | 60
6. Tarleton | 57
7. Seattle U | 41
8. Dixie State | 15
9. Chicago State | 4
++NM State++
