SOUTH BEND, Ind.—Arizona State track and field’s seniors Brianna Tate and Cameron Taylor set personal bests as they won the 400m dash and the 60m hurdles, respectively, on Saturday at Notre Dame’s Alex Wilson Invite at the Loftus Sports Center.
“I thought Cam Taylor had an outstanding race,” sprints coach Ronnie Williams said. “Any time you can travel a long way, coming all the way to South Bend, and get the opportunity to get another rep in, not only to run two races, but to also win the meet, I’m very satisfied. He did a lot of good things technically, and definitely set us up well to go into the MPSF meet and run under 7.80. He’s made a lot of improvements over the last week and I look forward to seeing what he has for us in the future.”
Tate ran an indoor best of 52.87 in the win, and her time remains at No. 3 in the indoor record book, while Taylor won both the prelims and finals of the 60m hurdles with times of 7.84 and 7.80, respectively. 7.80 also remains the No. 2 mark in the indoor record book.
“I thought Brianna Tate did an excellent job,” Williams said. “One of our goals all year indoors has been to qualify for the NCAA meet and to run under 53 seconds. It was definitely a tremendous run for Brianna today. I’m proud of the way she stuck to the plan and really executed.”
In the men’s 3000m, redshirt junior Ryan Herson was the top collegiate finisher as he took third with a season best time of 8:03.75, while redshirt sophomore CJ Albertson finished in eighth at 8:25.50, and senior Maxwell Groves took ninth at 8:40.58.
“The men’s 3000m was good,” distance coach Louie Quintana said. “Ryan Herson ran 8:03 in a pretty low-key atmosphere, it was a pretty run that puts him in position to be in the fast heat at next week’s MPSF meet, which is always what we want.”
The women’s 4x400m relay team of senior Sara McDonald, freshman Melese Crozier, junior Kiera Bulluck, and senior Brianna Tate placed third at 3:38.48.
Redshirt junior Daniel Wong won his section as he ran a season best 4:13.17 in the mile, finishing 12th, while redshirt sophomore Cody Brazeal took 15th at 4:16.14. In the women’s race, senior Payton Schutte ran 5:02.68, for 20th overall.
In the men’s 800m run, junior Michael Julian placed second in his heat and eighth overall at 1:52.47, while redshirt junior Trevor Landry ran a personal best 1:52.58, finishing right after Julian for third in the heat and ninth overall.
“Our guys in the men’s 800m competed very well, finishing second and third in their section and ultimately they were high up even with the faster heat, running season bests in non-altitude adjusted times, which is really good,” Quintana said. “They’re running their best going into next week’s conference meet, so I’m happy with that, and hopefully we can get them running closer to that 1:50 barrier.”
Up next, the Sun Devils will compete together for the first time since the end of January as ASU travels to Seattle, Wash., for the MPSF Indoor Championships at the Dempsey Indoor, on Feb. 27-28.
More Quotes:
Sprints Coach Ronnie Williams:
“Our girls were also third overall in the 4x400m relay, running out second fastest time of the year. We were able to move our order around and give some of our younger athletes the chance to get experience in the relay and in this type of competition. It’s only going to pay dividends as we move into the MPSF meet and to both the indoor and outdoor NCAA meets. For the small squad we brought out here, everyone did an excellent job, put a lot of positive momentum going into next week.”
Distance Coach Louie Quintana:
“We started off the day with the women’s mile and Payton Schutte ran in the fast heat, it was probably the fastest race she’s been in all year. She got a little disconnected early on, and it’s certainly a race she can learn and build from for the future and outdoor, as she moves into her specialty event, gets more reps and gets more comfortable at that pace. Daniel Wong and Cody Brazeal were in the slower section of the men’s mile, competed very well. Daniel won the section, and any time you get a win, it’s a big confidence builder. Cody was right there with him and really competed very well in a very tactical race, and that’s what you’re looking for when you come to a meet like this.”
“All in all, we had some ups and some downs, like you have at every track meet you go to. We’re excited to get back home, get back to some good weather, and get in a solid week of training before we head up to Seattle.”
Arizona State Results
Women’s 400m Dash
1. Brianna Tate – 52.87 (Indoor PR, remains No. 3 in ASU record book)
Women’s Mile
20. Payton Schutte – 5:02.68
Women’s 4x400m Relay
3. McDonald, Crozier, Bulluck, Tate – 3:38.48
Men’s 800m Run
8. Michael Julian – 1:52.47
9. Trevor Landry – 1:52.58 (PR)
Men’s Mile
12. Daniel Wong – 4:13.17 (season best, won section)
15. Cody Brazeal – 4:16.14
Men’s 3000m Run
3. Ryan Herson – 8:03.75 (top collegiate finisher, season best)
8. CJ Albertson – 8:25.50
9. Maxwell Groves – 8:40.58
Men’s 60m Hurdles Prelims
1. Cameron Taylor – 7.84
Men’s 60m Hurdles Finals
1. Cameron Taylor – 7.80 (PR, remains at No. 2 in record book)