COLUMBIA, S.C. – The Converse University track and field teams had their final tune-up meet before the Conference Carolinas Outdoor Championships as they competed at the Gamecock Invite hosted by the University of South Carolina.

The Valkyrie men set eight new season-best marks and the women did even better, setting 10 season-bests.

Women's Notes:

• Junior Madison Griffin ran a season-best 12.38 in the 100 meters, placing her 16th at the meet. She also PRed in the 200 meters with a time of 25.56. She ranks 18th in Conference Carolinas in both events.
• Sophomore Jermyra Bethel ran a season-best 57.16 in the 400 meters, ranking her fourth Conference Carolinas this season.
• Freshman Kennedy Wright improved her season-best in the 100 meter hurdles with a time of 15.04, a performance for which she ranks seventh in Conference Carolinas.
• In long distance competition, sophomores Paisley Stepp and Mackenzie Crandell both hit season-best marks with times of 12:15.30 and 12:28.66 in the 3,000 meter steeplechase respectively. They rank third and fourth in Conference Carolinas.
• The Valkyries 4x400 relay team now ranks second in conference with a time of 4:01.03. They rank fourth in the southeast region and are ahead of all Peach Belt teams.
• Senior Janyia Pinckney hit a season-best in the triple jump with a mark of 11.43 meters, putting her fourth on the Conference Carolinas leaderboard. She is just inside of the top 10 in the southeast region.
• Freshman Asha Curry hit a mark of 11.23 meters in the shot put. She now ranks seventh in Conference Carolinas in the event. She also hit a season-best in the discus with a mark of 30.95 meters.

Men's Notes:

• Graduate student Zephaniah Cox Jr. set a new season-best in the 200 meters with a time of 21.71. He now ranks 15th in Conference Carolinas.
• Freshman Jacob Wren moved himself up to third place in Conference Carolinas in the 800 meters with a time of 1:54.20. Distance teammate DreQuan Guyton also set a season best in the event with a time of 1:58.82.
• Freshman Ander Vera Moleres set a new collegiate PR in the 5,000 meters with a time of 15:29.73. He ranks 11th in Conference Carolinas.
• Fellow freshman Kyan Sapko hit a season-best in the 400 meter hurdles with a time of 54.66. He now sits atop the Conference Carolinas rankings in the event and ranks fourth in the southeast region.
• Senior Luis Rios Brena and freshman Marti Ruiz Barreda set season-bests in the 3,000 meter steeplechase. Rios Brena ran a time of 10:12.55 and Ruiz Barreda ran a time of 10:25.44.
• Junior Kaden Gamble hit a mark of 6.83 meters in the long jump. He ranks ninth in Conference Carolinas.

The Converse track and field teams return to the track one final time for the 2025 outdoor season as they head to Myrtle Beach for the Conference Carolinas Outdoor Championships from Thursday, April 24 to Saturday, April 26.
 
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