Sophomore Kayla Pratt now has won three Southland Conference Indoor Championships during her two-year career.
NORMAN, Okla. — Sophomore Kayla Pratt won the 5,000 meters and anchored the distance medley relay to gold to highlight day-one action for the UTSA women’s track & field team at the Southland Conference Indoor Championships.
Pratt covered the Mosier Indoor Facility 220-yard flat track surface in a time of 17:17.76 to capture her first individual league crown Friday evening. The Del Rio native, who was runner-up in the event last year as a freshman, bettered her own school record she set earlier this season by nearly six seconds and beat runner-up Joyce Cheriuyot of Lamar to the line by more than 11 ticks (17:28.98).
Meanwhile, the DMR foursome of senior Pernilla Savestrand, freshman Briony Miller, junior Jayde James and Pratt passed the baton to a time of 12:12.29, the second-best performance in school history, to successfully defend ahead of UT Arlington (12:16.65). James and Pratt both ran on last year’s quartet that posted a 12:15.90 in Houston and it marked the fifth title in the event (fourth since 2002).
“The DMR was outstanding tonight,” director of track and field/cross country Aaron Fox said. “Every leg did an amazing job of getting out with the leaders and staying in the race. It’s just a great accomplishment for this program to win back-to-back titles in this event.
“Kayla turned in an incredible performance for the second year in a row. We didn’t originally plan for her to run the anchor leg tonight, but we made the change and she delivered in a huge way.”
The two championships give UTSA 48 all-time, while Pratt’s win is just the second in the 5,000m, as she joined former school record-holder and 1996 champion Meg Harris.
The Roadrunners have tallied 28 points and are in third place after six events. Defending champion Stephen F. Austin leads with 62.5, while Texas State is second with 34.
In other finals action in the field, junior Aimee Jonas and freshman Shartanae Swearengin combined for five points in the pentathlon. Jonas, a La Vernia product, nearly matched her personal best of 3,295 points with 3,280 to place fifth, while Swearengin tallied 3,162 to scratch a point for eighth.
Freshman Jessica Edwards leaped to a seventh-place mark of 18-4 ½ in the long jump, while fellow freshman Katie Bragg, the school record-holder, registered an eighth-place finish in the weight throw with a 53-11 measurement.
UTSA pushed eight runners through to Saturday’s finals, highlighted by seniors Jessica Jones and Dana Mecke.
Jones began her quest for back-to-back conference crowns in the 60m hurdles by speeding to the top qualifying time of the evening, a season-best 8.58. Jones will aim for a repeat at 1:50 p.m. Saturday.
Meanwhile, Mecke cruised to the top preliminary time in the mile, a 5:10.74 clocking and she also advanced in the 800m with a 2:18.74 effort. She will attempt to pull off the middle distance double for the second year in a row at 1:30 (mile) and 2:45 (800m) p.m. Saturday.
The freshman duo of Amanda McGill and Porshia Fobbs will join Jones in the 60m hurdles finals. McGill crossed with the fifth-best time of the day, a season-best 8.80, while Fobbs also produced a season best by stopping the clock in 9.02.
James will team up with Mecke in the 800m after clocking the fifth-fastest time in the prelims, a season-best 2:17.93, while Savestrand will run with Mecke in the mile final after posting a 5:11.28, also the fifth-best time of the day.
Freshman Nicole Washington moved through in the 60m with the 10th-fastest time, a season-best 7.79.
“We had a solid first day,” Fox said. “For the most part, things went our way and we're set up to have a good day tomorrow.”
The meet concludes Saturday.