Bison Earn Multiple Wins and Qualifications in Texas

DENTON, Texas – The Oklahoma Baptist men's and women's track and field teams made the short drive down I-35 to compete in the North Texas Classic. The meet was hosted by the University of North Texas and featured NCAA Division I teams such as the University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma State University, Southern Methodist, and the University of Texas at Arlington. The Bison finished well with three first-place finishes, multiple top three finishes, and two NCAA Division II Qualifying Standards.
 
In the relay events, the OBU men's 4x400 meter relay team, consisting of Shirvante Knauls, Zachary Coak, Tarees Rhoden, and Jax Holland, won the event with a time of 3:13.22. This finish gave them an NCAA Division II provisional mark, besting the 3:13.73 time needed to qualify. The men's 4x100 meter relay team (Mahcoe Smith, Holland, Marcus Petersen, and Knauls) also earned their qualifying standard, running the relay in 40.99 seconds. On the women's side, Tizhane Brooks, Adeline O'Connor, Mary McKey, and Taylor James placed second in the 4x400 meter relay with a time of 3:50.55.
 
In the women's individual events, Tesa Potter earned a win in the 1500 meter run. She finished with a time of 4:41.87, beating out Leoni Mierswa of SMU by two seconds. Coak also earned an individual win, on the men's side, taking the 800 meter run with a time of 1:54.39.
 
Other top finishes for the Bison include Holland (long jump), Knauls (400 meter dash), Rhoden (400 meter hurdles), Emma Downing (800 meter run), and McKey (400 meter hurdles).
 
"OBU had a good day competing at an all NCAA Division I Track meet at UNT," said head coach Ford Mastin. "We won three events, and placed 2^nd and 3^rd in several other events. We are looking forward to the Great American Conference meet this next weekend and the teams are prepared to represent OBU well," said Mastin.
 
Up next, the Bison will travel to Magnolia, Ark. to participate in the 2021 GAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The meet is scheduled to begin on Friday, April 16 and will conclude on Saturday, April 17.