TUCSON, Ariz. (UNLVRebels.com) – The UNLV track & field wrapped up its stay at Arizona's Desert Heat Classic with wins in the 100m, 200m, 800m and 4x400m relay and a total of 21 top-eight finishes Saturday evening. The one-day meet, which was held at Roy P. Drachman Stadium, featured participants from Arizona State, Grand Canyon, New Mexico State, Northern Arizona, Oklahoma, Oregon, Utah Valley and UTEP as well as UNLV and Arizona.
Sprinter
Cassondra Hall played a major role in three of the team's event victories, claiming the 100m (11.29) and 200m (23.03), while running the anchor leg of the 4x400m relay (3:36.25), which also featured
Alexis Surrell,
Avi'Tal Wilson-Perteete and Amari Prude.
Besides the three aforementioned wins, Hall was also part of the second-place 4x100m relay – with
Kaysha Love,
DeAndra Greer and
Tianna Randle – that recorded the second-fastest outdoor performance in program history, running a time of 43.91 – just .10 behind the record set in 2018 (43.81).
Pole vaulter
Gaby Palmer recorded a height of 13-1.50 (4.00m) to rewrite the program's top mark in the event for the fourth time this season.
In addition to running legs of the 4x400m relay, Wilson-Perteete ran a time of 2:05.28 to win the 800m, while Prude and Surrell took third (54.88 PB) and fourth (55.20) in the 400m, respectively. Love, who ran the second leg of the 4x100m relay, was fifth in the 100m (11.61).
UNLV's foursome of Nami Wilson,
Azaria Hill,
Taylor Shorter and Prude took sixth (45.95) in the 100m relay, while
Alia Scott, Hill,
Emma Wahlenmaier and
Rachel Seeley were seventh (3:55.37) in the 400m relay.
Individually, Shorter also ran in the 100m hurdles and 400m hurdles, claiming seventh (13.96) in the former and eighth (1:01.84) in the latter. Scott was fifth (1:00.38) in the 400m hurdles and Hill was seventh (11.70) in the 100m.
Jazlynn Shearer took third (13.63 PB) in the 100m hurdles and eighth (39-2.50/11.95) in the triple jump.
Both
Elisa Rovere and
Tenia Landrum took seventh in their respective events, as the former ran 2:09.75 in the 800m, while the latter recorded a distance of 19-1.25 (5.82m) in the long jump.
QUOTEABLE: "I am really proud of how our Rebels competed today. We have been working through some challenges, but they stayed focused and were ready to compete this weekend. It was a great opportunity to line up with some good competition and push themselves a bit." –
Yvonne Wade, the Director of UNLV Track & Field and Cross Country.
NEXT TIME OUT: UNLV will return to action in two weekends (May 13-15) at the 2021 Mountain West Outdoor Championships in Clovis, California.
