by Steven Fernandez
Daily Lobo
Track coach Matt Henry called Saturday's home meet at the Great Friends of UNM Track Stadium the team's best meet since he took over.
There was no official scoring, but the Lobos managed to win 15 of 46 track and field events.
In the men's distance events, freshman Shadrack Kiptoo-Biwott had a memorable performance as he won both the 1,500- and 800-meter races. The 1,500 was a close race, but Kiptoo-Biwott held off the competition with a time of 3:46.53.
A few events later, he was back on the track in the 800 and passed a handful of runners in the last 100 meters to win. Kiptoo-Biwott finished with a time of 1:51.39, a stunning upset over three-time Mountain West Conference champion Jeremiah Johnson of Wyoming.
"It was pretty impressive," Henry said. "For his confidence, it's going to help him tremendously."
The running events started with the 5,000-meter race. On the women's side, junior Jacquelyne Gallegos won easily, finishing with a time of 17:05.41.
"It felt all right," Gallegos said. "It was fun to run a race with my teammates."
Henry said Gallegos' performance was even more impressive because of how she felt before the race.
"Jackie hadn't been feeling well, but she ran great," Henry said. "You're going to see some good things out of her."
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In the men's 5,000-meter race, freshman Joseph Garcia finished third with a time of 15:50. He was the only UNM man to finish in the top 10.
In the next running event, the Lobos swept the men's and women's 4 x 100 meter relays. The men finished first with a time of 41:56.
Jeramie White, who ran the first leg in the men's 4 x 100, said he wasn't satisfied with the win.
"It feels good to win, but there's still improvements that need to be made," White said.
The women's relay team crossed the line in 46.38 as freshman Kristan Matison surged past two runners in the final stretch to help secure the victory. The time was the fastest recorded under sprint coach Mark Henry.
The day began with field events. Junior Jamie Fishencord finished second overall in the women's hammer throw with an improvement over her school record of 192-06.
Senior Amanda Barnes finished ninth with a throw of 167-05. The throw was the farthest Barnes has recorded.
She had just gotten started however, as she went on to win the shot put with a toss of 51-4 1/2. Barnes also broke the school record in the discus with a throw of 166-11 in her final competition in front of a home crowd.
"She did a good job," Henry said. "Amanda is always ready to go."
In the men's hammer throw, junior Dan Feltman notched the farthest throw for UNM, finishing second with a distance of 187-07. The only competitor to throw farther was Luke Marrs, a former All-American at Texas, who threw 220-08.
The Lobos racked up victories throughout the day as freshman Whitney Johnson won the pole vault with a height of 12-00 3/4.
Senior Veronica Gonzales took the victory in javelin with a throw of 144-5.
The women's sprinters continued to perform well as freshman Ariel Burr flew across the track in the 400-meter to win with a personal best of 55-19.
Matison also recorded a personal best in the 100 with a time of 11.86, gathering another win for UNM.
Junior Kamilia Davis finished second in the 200 with a time of 24.38, just .07 seconds behind the winner.
In the men's 200-meter race, senior Ahmed Raji stopped the clock in 21.59 to win. Raji was UNM's top 100-meter runner, finishing third in 10.82. Freshman Jarrin Solomon finished second in the 400.
The final running event was the 4 x 400 meter relay, and the women grabbed yet another victory as they cruised to a 3:48.92 win. The men fell short, finishing second with 3:14.71.
Closing out the meet with field events, the Lobos kept their momentum going.
Junior Derek Mackel won the pole vault, clearing the pole at 17-00 3/4. Freshman Tiyana Peters won the women's high jump with a 5-5 3/4 leap. Senior Willie Yuen won the men's triple jump with a distance 46-10 1/2 and senior Jordan Parker threw a career best 171-00 in discus to put a finish to the Lobos' memorable day.
