Completed Event: Track and Field at Texas Relays on March 26, 2025 ,
Track & Field
at Texas Relays
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Photo by: Loren Orr
1st day positions Lopes for titles
2/22/2019 9:22:00 PM | Track and Field
GCU gets 2 school records, 2 individual titles on Friday at WAC
NAMPA, Idaho – Two Grand Canyon track and field records fell and two Lopes won WAC Indoor Championships titles on Friday, the first day of the conference meet.
As the Lopes look to do what just three schools have done in WAC history, both teams will be chasing opponents when the meet concludes Saturday.
The men's team sits in third place, trailing Utah Valley by 12 points and UT Rio Grande Valley by one point. The men's long jump, the Lopes' strongest event, and a deep shot put squad will compete Saturday, as well as the men's high jump and the running finals.
The women's team trails New Mexico State by nine points with the Lopes' strongest field events -- the pole vault, long jump and shot put -- to be completed Saturday, as well as every running final.
The Lopes started Friday's competition with two personal records in the pentathlon's 60-meter hurdles, with sophomore Symone Wright-Flowers and junior Niki Xydona running personal-best times.
Xydona, a junior, carried the momentum from the first event to the final four events and won the pentathlon with a score of 3,599 points. Wright-Flowers finished third with 3,431 points and freshman Rae Queener took ninth in her first WAC Championships appearance.
Juniors Grant Carpenter, Adam Turner and Karl Zuber sit in first, second and fourth in the heptathlon entering the final three events.
Freshman Jorden Okyere had a big day in the weight throw. The Lopes had never won a men's indoor throwing title since joining the WAC but Okyere uncorked a 16.68-meter throw on the final throw to win gold.
Both distance medley relays broke school records at the end of the first day. The women's relay of junior Elizabeth Balsan, senior Paeden Jackson, freshman Desiree Martinez and senior Lindy Jacobson took second with a time of 12 minutes, 15.74 seconds, beating the school record by two seconds.
The men's relay of freshman Landon Rast, senior Guillermo Matesanz, freshman Jacob Lewis and freshman Blake Bennett crushed the school record by 17 seconds, finishing second with a time of 10:19.27.
The heptathlon will open the final day of competition Saturday morning as the Lopes look to close strongly to win more team titles.
As the Lopes look to do what just three schools have done in WAC history, both teams will be chasing opponents when the meet concludes Saturday.
The men's team sits in third place, trailing Utah Valley by 12 points and UT Rio Grande Valley by one point. The men's long jump, the Lopes' strongest event, and a deep shot put squad will compete Saturday, as well as the men's high jump and the running finals.
The women's team trails New Mexico State by nine points with the Lopes' strongest field events -- the pole vault, long jump and shot put -- to be completed Saturday, as well as every running final.
The Lopes started Friday's competition with two personal records in the pentathlon's 60-meter hurdles, with sophomore Symone Wright-Flowers and junior Niki Xydona running personal-best times.
Xydona, a junior, carried the momentum from the first event to the final four events and won the pentathlon with a score of 3,599 points. Wright-Flowers finished third with 3,431 points and freshman Rae Queener took ninth in her first WAC Championships appearance.
Juniors Grant Carpenter, Adam Turner and Karl Zuber sit in first, second and fourth in the heptathlon entering the final three events.
Freshman Jorden Okyere had a big day in the weight throw. The Lopes had never won a men's indoor throwing title since joining the WAC but Okyere uncorked a 16.68-meter throw on the final throw to win gold.
Both distance medley relays broke school records at the end of the first day. The women's relay of junior Elizabeth Balsan, senior Paeden Jackson, freshman Desiree Martinez and senior Lindy Jacobson took second with a time of 12 minutes, 15.74 seconds, beating the school record by two seconds.
The men's relay of freshman Landon Rast, senior Guillermo Matesanz, freshman Jacob Lewis and freshman Blake Bennett crushed the school record by 17 seconds, finishing second with a time of 10:19.27.
The heptathlon will open the final day of competition Saturday morning as the Lopes look to close strongly to win more team titles.
Players Mentioned
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/ Track and Field
/ Track and Field
/ Track and Field
/ Track and Field
/ Track and Field
/ Track and Field
/ Track and Field
/ Track and Field
/ Track and Field
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