HOUSTON — The UTSA men's track & field team received winning and school-record performances from sophomore throwers Richard Garrett Jr. (shot put) and Phil Steinert (weight throw) to highlight Friday's season-opening Leonard Hilton Memorial.
Garrett Jr. put the shot 59-11 ¼ (18.27m) and easily won the event by nearly six-and-a-half feet. That mark shattered the standard the Garland native established at this same meet a year ago (58-3 ¼/17.76m) and it currently ranks seventh in the nation.
Meanwhile, Steinert got his second campaign off to a successful start after tossing the 35-pound implement 56-4 (17.17m). The Round Rock native bested the two-year-old mark held by Luke Johnson (56-4/17.16m) by just one centimeter. Garrett Jr. finished behind his teammate with a personal-best heave of 51-9 (15.77m).
However, the outstanding performances did not stop there.
Sophomore Keith Benford won the high jump with a leap of 6-10 ¼ (2.09m). A second-place finisher at the meet last season (school-record 7-2 ¼/2.19m), he tied with Cedric Norman (unattached) and Pierre Shepherd (Prairie View A&M) with the top mark of the afternoon but was the winner due to the fewest amount of misses. The Pflugerville native passed on the competition's first four heights before clearing 6-6 ¼ (1.99m) on his first attempt. After skipping 6-8 ¼ (2.04m), he again was successful in his initial try, this time at 6-10 ¼. Benford was unable to clear the following height of 7-0 ¼ (2.14m).
Senior Devon Bond also was victorious, as he claimed gold in the triple jump with a season-opening mark of 49-4 ½ (15.01m). The Trenton, N.J., native also competed in the long jump, breaking the sand in 22-2 ¼ (6.76m), which was good for seventh place.
Junior Cole Reveal claimed gold in the mile in 4:16.38, which ranks third on UTSA's performers chart, and the victory came nearly two hours after he placed third in the 5,000 meters (15:33.95). Fellow third-year teammate Albert Cardenas edged him by one-hundredth of second in the 5k to finish as the top collegian. Warren Brown (unattached) won the distance event in 15:24.35.
Freshman Crisshun Jamerson won the 800m in 1:56.70, while fellow frosh Brady Hand was third (1:57.36).
Sophomore transfer Taylor Reed made a successful debut with his second-place effort in the pole vault. Reed, a 2010 All-American at UT Tyler, soared 16-0 ¾ (4.90m) in his first meet as a Roadrunner. That mark is good for second on the program's all-time performers list. Houston's Alex Bentley won the event with a 16-6 ¾ (5.05m).
Sophomore Nate Brunette, meanwhile, circled the Bill Yeoman Fieldhouse 200m oval in 22.57 in the deuce and that was good for third place in the field of 23 sprinters.
Freshman Keyunta Hayes skimmed the 60m hurdles in 8.05, which was good for fourth (No. 2 collegian). His time places him third on the program's performers list. The Tyler native qualified for the two-section final with an 8.21 in the first of four preliminary heats.
The Roadrunners cruised to the team title with 153.5 points and now have finished at least second the last three years. Houston (112) and Louisiana Tech (52) rounded out the top three.
"I was happy with how we opened the season today," head coach Aaron Fox said. "We had several great performances, including two new school records, and winning the team championship sets a positive tone for the rest of the season. We definitely can build on this next weekend in Lubbock."
UTSA, the Southland Conference's five-time defending indoor champion, is back in action at next weekend's Texas Tech Invitational. The two-day meet begins on Friday, Jan. 21, in Lubbock.
