SAN ANTONIO — Four members of this year's UTSA women's track & field team forged a special bond with a group of Roadrunners from a quarter century ago and their newfound relationship this spring helped lead to some historic performances throughout the 2017 campaign.
Sophomore Sierra Andres, junior Jennifer Arinze and seniors Paige Patterson and Chelsea Taylor spent their season chasing the program's 25-year-old record held by Lisa Addison, Tamny Booker, Rosalyn King and Portia Matthews in the 1,600-meter relay.
Addison, Booker, King and Matthews passed the baton in a record time of 3:34.05 en route to a fourth-place finish at the 1992 NCAA Championships in Austin, a mark that has been engraved in UTSA's record book for a quarter century.
Three members of this year's quartet — Andres, Arinze and Patterson — came close to breaking the record in 2016 after clocking a 3:38.18, which was the second-best time in program annals.
Fast-forward to this spring and the foursome made it a mission to take down its predecessors' record.
The two groups had the opportunity to meet and get acquainted back at March's season-opening UTSA Invitational at Park West Athletics Complex.
The 1992 Roadrunners were very supportive throughout the year, as they attended both home meets and the Texas Relays to cheer on this year's group while inspiring them to greatness.
This year's quartet began to find its groove in mid-April at the Mt. SAC Relays when it topped last year's time and posted what was then the second-best time in school history, 3:37.52.
Following an uncharacteristic and surprising ninth-place finish at the Conference USA Championships in El Paso, the group knew its chances were dwindling heading into the NCAA Championships Preliminary Rounds in Austin.
With the record coming in the capital city of Texas 25 years ago, there would not be a more fitting place for it to be broken.
Andres, Arinze, Patterson and Taylor were confident heading into the final day of the national prelims. They knew what happened at conference was an aberration and were determined to finish with a bang in what was the last event of the three-day meet.
"It's bittersweet to know that my college track career is almost over, but I'm blessed that I was given this opportunity to be part of such a great team," Patterson said prior to last Saturday's race. "I'm happy knowing that I left everything on the track for my last regional meet and while giving it my all. Although I was unable to qualify for nationals in the open 400, I'm going to give everything I have left for tomorrow's relay."
After four laps around the Mike A. Myers Stadium oval, the time on the scoreboard showed their top performance of the year, a 3:36.98. Even though they fell a few seconds short of their ultimate goal and did not advance to the next round of nationals, they left the track with their heads held high because they knew they had given their all.
"This is a bittersweet moment, as I just finished my last race ever," Taylor said after the race. "I am so blessed to have been a runner on this relay for the last four years and so proud that we finished the season and my career with a personal record."
At the end of the day, the relationship between two generations of student-athletes is what mattered most and that it drove a group of four women to heights it never had seen before was just an added bonus to what turned out to be a memorable year.
