The University of Mississippi Athletics
Friday, January 18
Nashville, Tenn.
All Day
Ole Miss
at
Vanderbilt Invite
Rebel Distance Crew Leads Way at Conclusion of Vanderbilt Invite
1/19/2019 | Track and Field
Sophomore Waleed Suliman Ran the NCAA’s No. 2 Time in the 800-Meter
*NCAA rankings are from the TFRRS national descending lists at the time of publication. Rankings may change after results are reported from around the nation. The national list is finalized every Monday morning.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Ole Miss track & field wrapped up the Vanderbilt Invite with a series of impressive season-opening performances from the Rebel distance crew on Saturday.
The Rebel men's distance squad – fresh off the first SEC Cross Country Championship in program history and another top-25 national team finish this past fall – clocked several times high on the national descending list at this early juncture in the indoor season.
Sophomore Waleed Suliman – an All-American in cross country back in November – opened his second year on the track with a bang, winning the men's 800-meter at a time of 1:49.19. Suliman's winning time puts him at No. 2 on the NCAA list this year. Suliman earned SEC All-Freshman honors indoors in 2018 before also garnering Second-Team All-American status as a part of the men's distance medley relay.
Fellow sophomore John Rivera Jr. ran a great race as well, taking third place at a PR of 1:50.17, putting him 12th in Ole Miss history and No. 4 on the NCAA season list. Three more Rebels finished within the top-15: sophomore Griffin Riley (fourth, 1:50.64; PR, 14th all-time, T-13th NCAA), sophomore Everett Smulders (seventh, 1:51.93; 26th NCAA) and freshman Baylor Franklin (13th, 1:54.88).
The Rebel men also had great success in the 3K, highlighted by a first-place finish for junior Michael Coccia in his first 3K race at Ole Miss. He finished in 8:11.52, which puts him eighth all-time at Ole Miss and No. 10 in the NCAA this year. He was followed by freshman Mario Garcia Romo, who finished in 8:15.30, the 13th-best time in school history.
Ole Miss put five men within the top-15 of the 3K as well, with junior Farah Abdulkarim (fourth, 8:16.35; 12-second PR, No. 14 all-time), freshman Dalton Hengst (sixth, 8:18.01; No. 16 all-time), sophomore Cade Bethmann (10th, 8:24.54) and senior Mark Robertson (15th, 8:30.85) all joining the pack.
The women's 3K proved successful as well, with four Rebels placing within the top-15. Sophomore Maddie King clocked a 13-second PR to lead the way, finishing third at 9:40.36 to put her ninth all-time and No. 21 in the NCAA. Sophomore Anna Elkin finished close behind in sixth place, running a 10-second PR at 9:43.40 to put her No. 12 in Rebel history and No. 32 in the NCAA. Freshmen Courtney Hopkins (12th, 9:58.03) and Victoria Simmons (13th, 10:00.77) also ran well in their first career races.
Senior Derek Gutierrez finished as the top collegian in the mile, finishing fourth after running a PR of 4:03.23 – good for eighth all-time at Ole Miss and No. 5 on the NCAA descending list this season. Gutierrez ran a sub 4-minute mile outdoors last year at the St. Louis Festival of Miles on May 31, clocking a 3:59.48 to become the 517th American to join the sub-4 club. This was his second race of the season after running a 5K of 13:58.82 at the Hoosier Open on Dec. 7, currently No. 9 in the nation.
After a fantastic cross country season, sophomore Clio Ozanne-Jaques opened her track season with a 4:55.09 in her first collegiate mile race to finish in fifth place. Ozanne-Jaques' time from today launches her up to No. 11 all-time at Ole Miss.
Saturday also featured several impressive performances in non-distance events as well. Junior Kieshonna Brooks put together another excellent day on the track, finishing third overall in the women's 60-meter hurdles finals at a career-best time of 8.47. Brooks also ran a PR in the prelims at 8.49, both of which improved on her standing in fourth all-time at Ole Miss. Next week will see Brooks and the rest of the Rebel multi athletes compete in their first pentathlon at the Indiana Relays.
Junior Jeanette Paul came close to a career-best herself, finishing sixth in the final at a season-best 8.59 – which is one-hundredth of a second off her PR.
Underclassmen sprinters Orianna Shaw and Jayda Eckford continued their momentum in the 400-meter dash. Shaw finished in seventh place at 56.41, while Eckford finished close behind in 12th place at 57.04.
Ole Miss had another solid day in both versions of the 60-meter dash as well. On the women's side, Kelly Rowe finished in eighth at 7.59 and T'Aja Cameron came in 12th at 7.69. In the men's 60-meter, sophomore Elijah Dryer represented the men well, finishing in eighth place at 6.86.
The Rebels hit the road north once again next week for the Indiana Relays, held at IU's Gladstein Fieldhouse on Jan. 25-26.
Other Notable Performances:
Men's 60-Meter Dash:
17. Andrew Raspo – 6.93
24. Jaqaun Webb – 7.00
31. Manny Foster – 7.03
Men's 400-Meter Dash:
16. Alvin Westbrook – 49.09
Women's 800-Meter:
14. Maddie McHugh – 2:17.12
Women's Mile:
12. Shelby Brown – 5:01.09
Women's Pole Vault:
T-10. Sandra Brown – 3.69m (12-01.25) – SB
Women's Triple Jump:
16. Kaira Simmons – 11.60m (38-00.75) – Ties PR
Women's Shot Put:
11. Tedreauna Britt – 14.30m (46-11.00)
For more information on Ole Miss Track & Field and Cross Country, follow the Rebels on Twitter (@OleMissTrack), Facebook and Instagram.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Ole Miss track & field wrapped up the Vanderbilt Invite with a series of impressive season-opening performances from the Rebel distance crew on Saturday.
The Rebel men's distance squad – fresh off the first SEC Cross Country Championship in program history and another top-25 national team finish this past fall – clocked several times high on the national descending list at this early juncture in the indoor season.
Sophomore Waleed Suliman – an All-American in cross country back in November – opened his second year on the track with a bang, winning the men's 800-meter at a time of 1:49.19. Suliman's winning time puts him at No. 2 on the NCAA list this year. Suliman earned SEC All-Freshman honors indoors in 2018 before also garnering Second-Team All-American status as a part of the men's distance medley relay.
Fellow sophomore John Rivera Jr. ran a great race as well, taking third place at a PR of 1:50.17, putting him 12th in Ole Miss history and No. 4 on the NCAA season list. Three more Rebels finished within the top-15: sophomore Griffin Riley (fourth, 1:50.64; PR, 14th all-time, T-13th NCAA), sophomore Everett Smulders (seventh, 1:51.93; 26th NCAA) and freshman Baylor Franklin (13th, 1:54.88).
The Rebel men also had great success in the 3K, highlighted by a first-place finish for junior Michael Coccia in his first 3K race at Ole Miss. He finished in 8:11.52, which puts him eighth all-time at Ole Miss and No. 10 in the NCAA this year. He was followed by freshman Mario Garcia Romo, who finished in 8:15.30, the 13th-best time in school history.
Ole Miss put five men within the top-15 of the 3K as well, with junior Farah Abdulkarim (fourth, 8:16.35; 12-second PR, No. 14 all-time), freshman Dalton Hengst (sixth, 8:18.01; No. 16 all-time), sophomore Cade Bethmann (10th, 8:24.54) and senior Mark Robertson (15th, 8:30.85) all joining the pack.
The women's 3K proved successful as well, with four Rebels placing within the top-15. Sophomore Maddie King clocked a 13-second PR to lead the way, finishing third at 9:40.36 to put her ninth all-time and No. 21 in the NCAA. Sophomore Anna Elkin finished close behind in sixth place, running a 10-second PR at 9:43.40 to put her No. 12 in Rebel history and No. 32 in the NCAA. Freshmen Courtney Hopkins (12th, 9:58.03) and Victoria Simmons (13th, 10:00.77) also ran well in their first career races.
Senior Derek Gutierrez finished as the top collegian in the mile, finishing fourth after running a PR of 4:03.23 – good for eighth all-time at Ole Miss and No. 5 on the NCAA descending list this season. Gutierrez ran a sub 4-minute mile outdoors last year at the St. Louis Festival of Miles on May 31, clocking a 3:59.48 to become the 517th American to join the sub-4 club. This was his second race of the season after running a 5K of 13:58.82 at the Hoosier Open on Dec. 7, currently No. 9 in the nation.
After a fantastic cross country season, sophomore Clio Ozanne-Jaques opened her track season with a 4:55.09 in her first collegiate mile race to finish in fifth place. Ozanne-Jaques' time from today launches her up to No. 11 all-time at Ole Miss.
Saturday also featured several impressive performances in non-distance events as well. Junior Kieshonna Brooks put together another excellent day on the track, finishing third overall in the women's 60-meter hurdles finals at a career-best time of 8.47. Brooks also ran a PR in the prelims at 8.49, both of which improved on her standing in fourth all-time at Ole Miss. Next week will see Brooks and the rest of the Rebel multi athletes compete in their first pentathlon at the Indiana Relays.
Junior Jeanette Paul came close to a career-best herself, finishing sixth in the final at a season-best 8.59 – which is one-hundredth of a second off her PR.
Underclassmen sprinters Orianna Shaw and Jayda Eckford continued their momentum in the 400-meter dash. Shaw finished in seventh place at 56.41, while Eckford finished close behind in 12th place at 57.04.
Ole Miss had another solid day in both versions of the 60-meter dash as well. On the women's side, Kelly Rowe finished in eighth at 7.59 and T'Aja Cameron came in 12th at 7.69. In the men's 60-meter, sophomore Elijah Dryer represented the men well, finishing in eighth place at 6.86.
The Rebels hit the road north once again next week for the Indiana Relays, held at IU's Gladstein Fieldhouse on Jan. 25-26.
Other Notable Performances:
Men's 60-Meter Dash:
17. Andrew Raspo – 6.93
24. Jaqaun Webb – 7.00
31. Manny Foster – 7.03
Men's 400-Meter Dash:
16. Alvin Westbrook – 49.09
Women's 800-Meter:
14. Maddie McHugh – 2:17.12
Women's Mile:
12. Shelby Brown – 5:01.09
Women's Pole Vault:
T-10. Sandra Brown – 3.69m (12-01.25) – SB
Women's Triple Jump:
16. Kaira Simmons – 11.60m (38-00.75) – Ties PR
Women's Shot Put:
11. Tedreauna Britt – 14.30m (46-11.00)
For more information on Ole Miss Track & Field and Cross Country, follow the Rebels on Twitter (@OleMissTrack), Facebook and Instagram.
Players Mentioned
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Throws
/ Track and Field
Multi
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Jumps
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Sprints/Hurdles
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Jumps
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and FieldSprints
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and FieldThe Season: New Heights (2025)
Friday, August 01
From Walk-On to National Champ: Arvesta Troupe (T&F)
Monday, June 23
HIGHLIGHTS: Arvesta Troupe Makes History as NCAA High Jump Champ
Friday, June 13
PRESSER: Arvesta Troupe Talks Historic NCAA High Jump Win
Friday, June 13