Miami track and field ended the season on a high note at the UNF East Coast Relays. Over the two days of the weekend, the Hurricanes set new records, personal bests and took home big victories.
This weekend included four new record holders in the Miami history books, two of which were entirely new. For starters, in his first ever appearance in the 3000m steeplechase, junior Austen Cannon broke the school record by five seconds. His mark of 9:02.22 broke the 23-year-old record set by Dan Boniface back in 2001. Along with him was the men’s 4x400m team, made up of seniors Jalen Gordon and Solomon Strader, sophomore Robert Joseph and freshman Ace Malone, who broke the record set back in 2019. For Strader, this is his fourth appearance in the top five. He was a part of three other top-five squads before this.
With them were a couple of members who pushed themselves further ahead in Miami history. Junior Damphnee Lavassas in the 5000m race at 16:08.90 broke her own record from last year and beat out the competition by 49 seconds. Senior Milton Ingraham II, while securing two first-place finishes, also continued to reach new heights. In the discus, he recorded a throw of 61.66m, breaking his own record he set a month ago and moving him to seventh in the nation in the event. In the shot put. he put up a throw of 18.08m, good for fifth all-time for Miami and fifth in the ACC.
Miami also had several other first-place finishes throughout its dominant weekend. Senior Natalie Varela took first place in the 800m with a time of 2:07.48 while also taking home a fourth-place finish in the 1500m. She was joined by freshman Maddie Scheier, who set a new personal best in eighth place.
Sophomore Enrique Borrego set a new personal best while taking home first place honors by a margin of eight seconds in the 5000m. Junior Deisiane Teixeira took home first in the javelin with a throw of 48.29m. Lastly, sophomore Kennedy Sauder’s mark of 2.15m in the high jump put him at the top for the day.
Rounding it out, there were some other nice performances from the weekend. Junior Erikka Hill doubled down in events and impressed with second-place finishes for shotput and fifth in the hammer throw. Senior Russell Robinson, participating in the long jump, took home a second-place finish with 7.82m, a season high for him. In the 800m, Oskars Bambals placed second. Senior Christina Warren hit the 13m mark, setting a new personal best and placing in third, and senior Kennedy Brace came in fifth place for the 400m, setting a new personal record at 53.00 seconds.
With a strong end to the season for the ‘Canes, they hope to carry that momentum into the postseason. They will travel to Atlanta for the ACC outdoor championships from May 9–11.