Markel Sets Pole Vault Record Again; Tulane Posts Nine PRs in Two Meets

Friday, February 8

Albuquerque, N.M.

Tulane University

Don Kirby Elite Invitational

Photo by: Milton Lau

Markel Sets Pole Vault Record Again; Tulane Posts Nine PRs in Two Meets

Feb 9, 2019 | Track & Field

Don Kirby Elite Results | Music City Challenge Results

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Another week, another school record for Rebekah Markel.

Just eight days after setting a new school record in the pole vault, the Tulane senior broke her own school best by .01 meters at the Don Kirby Elite Invitational against a talented field of pole vaulters on Saturday

Markel cleared 4.33 meters (14-2.5) after setting the bar for Tulane pole vaulters at 4.32 meters just last week.

Her performance Saturday was one of six new entries into the Tulane all-time top 10 and one of nine personal bests this weekend during the team's time in New Mexico and in Nashville, Tennessee, at the Music City Challenge.

Markel had a tremendous day in the pole vault, clearing heights of 4.03 meters, 4.13 meters and 4.23 meters all on her first try. She then broke her own record that she set last week in Baton Rouge with that clearance of 4.33 on her second attempt at that height. Markel went for one more school record at 4.38 meters, but she could not clear that height in three attempts and finished fourth in the event.

Still, her 4.33 meters would move her up to sole possession of the 11th-best height in the nation this year entering the weekend.

Also in the pole vault, Alex Potts came in 12th place with a height of 3.88 meters (12-8.75). Nastja Modic also cleared that height but took two extra tries to do so, earning a 20th-place finish. Rose Brutkiewicz set a new personal best in the event when she cleared 3.73 meters (12-2.75) on her first attempt and placed 22nd. Megan Fitzgerald took 30th when she cleared 3.43 meters (11-3).

Emmanuel Rotich ran one of the fastest miles of his career Saturday, winning the event with a time of 4:09.18. Rotich was two full seconds ahead of the second-place finisher and four seconds faster than his previous indoor best. His outdoor personal best in the event is 4:08.21.

Trina Malej had a great day in the triple jump, setting a new personal best and taking sixth place overall with a distance of 12.49 meters (40-11.75). Malej started her day with 12.35 meters, a mark good enough to give her three extra jumps. In her fifth jump, she hit that 12.49-meter mark and also go a 12.47-meter distance on her final jump that also would have been a personal record. Malej's new distance is now the seventh-longest triple jump in school history.

One new top-10 time in school history was also set in the 400 as Maya Harewood ran a 55.32 to better her previous personal best by nearly four tenths of a second. She placed ninth in the field, and that time was good for seventh all-time at Tulane. Tahja Mitchell was the another Tulanian who performed very well in the 400 as she placed 11th with a time of 55.70. That time is just .01 shy of the school's top 10.

Former Tulane sprinter Jasmine Blocker ran in the 400 as well for her professional team Oiselle, taking second in 53.10 seconds.

Brandi Hughes made the finals of the 60-meter hurdles where she placed sixth overall with a time of 8.39 seconds. That time is just .05 shy of her own school record. In the prelims, Hughes ran an 8.40 to qualify seventh. Kyah Loyd was 15th in the prelims with a time of 8.62 seconds. In the earlier qualifying round, Loyd won with a time of 8.63 seconds to put her into the prelims. Pauline Helm was 25th in that round in 9.27 seconds.

The prelims of the 60-meter dash saw Aldrianna Dupree take 19th with a time of 7.70 seconds.

On Friday night in New Mexico, Rotich blazed his way to a win in the 3K, crossing the finish line in 8:24.36 in his first event of the indoor season. Though Tulane does not keep top marks for men's indoor times, that mark is just three seconds shy of Rotich's outdoor 3K school record. His personal best indoors took place last year in Nashville with a time of 8:03.17.

Tahja Mitchell and Hunter Robinson had tremendous performances in the 200 Friday night as well, with Mitchell running a 24.44-second race to establish the new fourth-best time in school history. Robinson wasn't far behind with a time of 24.63 seconds, the new sixth-best performance ever at Tulane. The pair placed 20th and 27th, respectively, in a very crowded field. Maya Harewood also ran the 200, taking 44th place in 22.87 seconds. Pauline Helm was 116th in 26.91.

Running for Oiselle again, Blocker placed second in the 200 with a time of 23.60.

In the high jump, Olivia Hicks cleared 1.57 meters on her first try, then got over 1.62 meters (5-3.75) on her second try. She could not clear the next height of 1.67 meters, though, and took 12th place. Helm also competed in the event, clearing 1.52 meters (4-11.75) on her third and final attempt for 19th place.

MUSIC CITY CHALLENGE

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Tulane had four distance runners competing in Nashville, Tennessee, at the Music City Challenge on Saturday.

Emma Newton posted a time of 9:53.80 in the 3K to finish 17th overall, just one second short of her indoor personal best. Mckenzie Melius did set a new personal best with a time of 10:01.64 for 24th place, beating out her old best time of 10:11.95 by more than 10 full seconds and moving into ninth place all-time in team history.

In the men's 3K, Evans Kipchumba took 23rd place in his first competitive race of the season with a time of 8:37.72, a mark that would put him sixth all-time in Tulane history if he recorded it outdoors.

And in the men's mile, Tom Coe was 22nd overall in 4:15.59, placing fifth in his heat.

Next up for the Green Wave will be a return to Louisiana as the team takes part in the LSU Twilight meet in Baton Rouge on Friday.