Meet Results / WT Performance Chart
 
Photo Gallery (Courtesy of Brian Barrett)
 
TFRRS.org (qualifying standards)
 
*All times stand with possibility of altitude and/or track size conversion when considered for national qualification (Lubbock, Texas 3,256 ft.)
 
LUBBOCK, Texas – The West Texas A&M No. 22 men's and No. 12 women's track & field teams opened up their 2015 indoor campaigns in record fashion this weekend at the Texas Tech Open in Lubbock, Texas. The meet would provide the best results for the Buffs and Lady Buffs in a season opening competition since the program was reinstated in 2009, especially on Friday, the first day of the meet.
 
WT rewrote three school records, set seven provisional qualifying marks, and walked away with three event winners on Friday evening. Today, the teams added three more provisionals and one additional event winner.
 
"All we can ever ask for is great effort from everyone and I felt like we did a great job of that," commented head coach Darren Flowers. "It will take us a few weeks to get in full swing but I think this weekend was a great start."
 
Saturday began with two provisional results in field events for the Lady Buffs set by junior Libby Strickland and sophomore Malika Ouedraogo. Ouedraogo finished third in the women's triple jump competition with a 12.12m mark. In last year's Indoor National Championship, Ouedraogo was the National Runner-Up in the field with a 12.76m mark, a WT school record. Strickland cleared 1.66m in the high jump field, placing fourth among all competitors.
 
Senior Josh Helom grabbed a provisional time on the men's side with a second place finish in the men's 400m with a time of 48.75*. That time will convert to 48.86 in qualification standards due to altitude. He is the school's record holder in the indoor event with a 48.44, a time he set in last year's LSC Championship, also held at Athletic Training Center (ATC)/"The Bubble".
 
Making his WT debut on Saturday, freshman Geoffrey Kipchumba took the title in the men's 3000m, running a time of 8:43.55.
 
Finishing off the day was the 4x400m relays where both the Buffs' and the Lady Buffs' top squads placed sixth overall. The men's team, consisting of sophomore Trevor Dennis, freshman Michael Schaefer, and juniors Triedecio Davis and Helom, crossed the line at 3:21.58. For the women, Strickland, along with juniors Alba Casanovas and Shanice Cameron and senior Rhemecka Graham, finished with a time of 3:53.55.
 
Friday – Day One
 
Friday's events started off on the 55m short track on the lower level of "The Bubble", a straightaway which provided impressive season-opening marks for both the WT sprinters and hurdlers. Senior Sharon Kwarula started things off in the 55m hurdles with strong provisional mark in just the preliminaries, running an 8.02*, nearly cracking her own school record set last year (8.01*). She would end up placing sixth in the finals and has nearly cemented her return trip to indoor nationals with a converted 60mH time of 8.65.
 
On the men's side of the 55m hurdles, Lorenzo Johnson had a stellar WT debut, breaking the school record with a 7.41*, a time he ran in both the semi-finals and finals. That provisional mark would secure the first-place finish in the event for Johnson while the time converts to 8.00 for the 60mH. Senior Arnau Erta also hit provisional with a 7.51*, a new PR, in the preliminaries. His time converts to an 8.11 in the 60mH. Erta finished fifth in the event's finals with a 7.71.
 
On the sprints side, Shanice Cameron would grab a new school record for the Lady Buffs with a 7.14* in the 55m preliminaries. She would finish fifth in the finals. Cameron's time converts to a 7.71 in the 60m. For the men, senior Tommy Curry placed fifth in the finals with a time of 6.48 in his return to the Buffs' squad.
 
The final three provisional marks on Friday were set by WT in field events. Junior Zach Weatherly took home the title in the men's shot put competition as he placed first with a 15.82m throw. Then junior Paul Alongo hit a 7.13m mark in the men's long jump, placing him third overall. Alongo was an All-American in the event at last year's indoor nationals after finishing seventh in the nation. Finally, sophomore Holly Cunigan wrote her name in the record books, setting a new school mark and hitting provisional as she placed fourth in the women's shot put field, throwing 13.62m.
 
Finally, freshman Michael Schaefer made some noise in his first meet with the Buffs as well. He won the 1000m event with a time of 2:31.62.
 
"Friday was a really great start to the weekend," added Flowers. "I want this season to be about these students finding joy in what they do and giving great effort every time out. This weekend was about setting that tone."
 
This weekend's trip to Lubbock was the first of four during the indoor season and first of five for the entire track & field season (indoor & outdoor combined) for WT.
 
Additional teams competing alongside WT this weekend were Colby Community College, Clarendon College, Hardin Simmons, McMurry, Midwestern State, New Mexico Highlands, New Mexico Junior College, New Mexico State, South Plains College, Southern Nazarene, Tarleton State, Texas Tech, Texas Tyler, Wayland Baptist, and Western Texas College.
 
Complete meet results and a WT performance chart for all events can be found by utilizing the links at the top of the page. The Buffs and Lady Buffs will return to action next Saturday, Jan. 24 as they compete in the Lobo Collegiate Open, hosted by the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, N.M. Check back with www.GoBuffsGo.com next week for more information in the days leading up to the meet. For additional updates, follow @WTAMUTrackXC on Twitter.