Bison Stand Tall Against Division One Competition

LUBBOCK, Texas – The Oklahoma Baptist men's and women's track and field teams traveled to Lubbock, Texas, to participate in the Texas Tech Matador Qualifier. The Bison competed well against very stiff competition, compiling eight top-five finishes. OBU was up against Arizona, New Mexico, the University of Southern California, Washington State, and host Texas Tech, all of which are Division I programs.
 
Zachary Coak was the day's top individual finisher. He placed second in the 600 yard run, posting a time of 1:11.68. He beat TTU's Reece Skinner by 1.60 seconds.
 
The men's 4x400 meter relay team, comprised of Coak, Shirvante Knauls, Jax Holland, and Tarees Rhoden, gave Arizona all it could handle but fell to the Wildcats by only 1.15 seconds.  
 
Other top finishers on the men's team were Zane Nutter, who placed third in the high jump with a height of 2.07 meters, and Blake Rayner, who placed third in the 800 meter run with a time of 1:57.21. Mahcoe Smith (60 meter dash) and Rhoden (400 meter run) both finished fifth in their respective events.  
 
On the women's side, Dawnnae Chatman was the top individual finisher, placing third in the 200 meter run with a time of 25.65. Emily Julian rounded out the top performers on the women's team, placing fifth in the pole vault.
 
"We had an unusual meet at Texas Tech today," said OBU head coach Ford Mastin. "We got to compete against USC, WSU, UNM, Arizona, and TTU. It was a good challenge.

"Our athletes are just weary of all the drama, uncertainty, and bad weather. We competed decent but wanted to do better," said Mastin.
 
Up next for the Bison is the Steve Miller Open hosted by Kansas State on Saturday, Feb. 20. The meet is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. with field events and 1 p.m. for track events.