TEMPE, Ariz. -- The Arizona State track and field program enter their first true test of the indoor season on Saturday, Jan. 23 as they travel to College Station, Texas for the Texas A&M Quadrangular.
The Sun Devils will join Oklahoma, Texas Tech and the Aggies at the Gilliam Indoor Track Stadium at the McFerrin Athletic Center.
Texas A&M holds the men's No. 9 ranking while the women sit just inside the top 25 at No. 21. The Red Raiders' men's team is the only other ranked squad in the meet, as they sit at No. 17.
"This weekend at College Station you're running against arguably the best team in the SEC and a perennial program competing for national power in Texas A&M," head coach Greg Kraft said. "Texas Tech and Oklahoma have each had their moments in the Big 12, and most recently Texas Tech has won a couple of Big 12 titles.
While expectations are always high for the squad, Kraft wants the team to come together and use these national meets as a learning tool as they inch closer to the championship season.
"The main thing with such a young group is bringing the team together and seeing how they respond," Kraft said. "It's learning what your role is and what your obligation is. Hopefully those things will show some synergy and translate into the championship season.
Two women on his young squad that he expects big things from week in and week out are redshirt sophomore thrower Magdalyn Ewen and junior jumper Keyasia Tibbs.
Ewen turned in a second-place finish in the shot put while throwing for third place in the weight throw at NAU a week ago.
"Maggie has been someone that came in here with a lot of accolades and is someone that like young throwers, they try to be perfect," Kraft said. "I would say that's true with a number of women on our team. They're looking for perfection, but it's really about competing and just executing."
Kraft says the same thing goes for Tibbs, but her recent success shows a sign of perfection for what she is capable of. She broke her own triple jump record at NAU with a leap of 12.78m (41-11.25), beating the one she set last season of 12.56 (41-02.50).
But there's more to accomplish and a higher end-goal for Tibbs.
"When you go to a meet like this, it's a way for both of those ladies to take another step in their development," Kraft said. "When you look at where they were last year, for Keyasia, that was a foot and a half better jump than she had last year at the NAU meet. We're going to need both of those ladies to be the spirit for our team because I expect both of them to be scorers at the National Indoor Championships."
As for the men, redshirt junior Tim White showed he's someone to watch off the football field as well. After finishing the football season with the second-most receptions by a wide receiver and tied for the most touchdown receptions, White seemed to have no problem making the transition to track.
In his first two events, White earned first place in the triple jump with a leap of 15.44m (50-08.00) -- good enough for 10th best in ASU history. He also finished in third in the long jump at 7.02m (23-00.50).
His end goal is qualifying for the U.S. Olympic Trials and potentially the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Graduate transfer Reggie Lewis also performed well in his first meet as a Sun Devil, taking second place in the 60-meter dash with a time of 6.80.
Texas A&M Quadrangular Sat., Jan. 23FIELD EVENTS
Men’s Weight Throw (Noon CT/11 a.m. PT)
Kyle Long
Women’s Shot Put
Magdalyn Ewen, Ashley Weber
Men’s High Jump
Mason Ford
Men’s Pole Vault
Matthew Eckles, Nathan Hiett
Women’s Long Jump
Keyasia Tibbs, Darreyl Woodson, Jessica Barreira
Men’s Long Jump
Josh Dixon, Tim White
Women’s Pole Vault (12:50 p.m. CT/11:50 a.m. PT)
Vanessa Davis, Haleigh Fritts, Kristiana Warth
Women’s Weight Throw (1:15 p.m. CT/12:15 p.m. PT)
Magdalyn Ewen, Ginger Jarchow, Ashley Weber
Men’s Shot Put
Thomas Anderson, Ahmed Hassan, Kyle Long
Women’s Triple Jump (1:30 p.m. CT/12:30 p.m. PT)
Keyasia Tibbs, Darreyl Woodson, Jessica Barreira
Men’s Triple Jump
Josh Dixon, Tim White
TRACK EVENTS
Women’s Mile (Noon CT/11 a.m. PT)
Jen Owen, Chelsey Totten
Men’s Mile (12:05 p.m. CT/11:05 a.m. PT)
Ryan Herson, Bernie Montoya, Cody Brazeal
Women’s 60m Hurdles (12:10 p.m. CT/11:10 a.m. PT)
Sydney Mosley
Women’s 400m (12:25 p.m. CT/11:25 a.m. PT)
Melese Crozier, Sierra Irvin
Men’s 400m (12:35 p.m. CT/11:35 a.m. PT)
Jeremy Wright
Women’s 60m Dash (12:43 p.m. CT/11:43 a.m. PT)
LaTroya Franklin, Jasmine Gibbs
Men’s 60m Dash (12:50 p.m. CT/11:50 a.m. PT)
Reggie Lewis, Ben Trotter, Isaiah Underwood
Women’s 800m (12:55 p.m. CT/11:55 a.m. PT)
Sydney Mosley, Alexandra Williams
Men’s 800m (1 p.m. CT/Noon PT)
Michael Julian, Trevor Landry
Women’s 200m Dash (1:05 p.m. CT/12:05 p.m. PT)
LaTroya Franklin, Jasmine Gibbs
Men’s 200m Dash (1:15 p.m. CT/12:15 p.m. PT)
Reggie Lewis, Isaiah Underwood, Ben Trotter
Women’s 3,000m (1:25 p.m. CT/12:25 p.m. PT)
Adriana Olivas, Samantha Ortega, Shaina Corbin
Men’s 3,000m Dash (1:40 p.m. CT/12:40 p.m. PT)
Ryan Norton
Men’s Distance Medley (2:10 p.m. CT/1:10 p.m. PT)
Bernie Montoya, Michael Julian, Trevor Landry, Cody Brazea
Women’s 4x400 Relay (2:25 p.m. CT/1:25 p.m. PT)
Melese Crozier, LaTroya Franklin, Sydney Mosley, Sierra Irvin
Men’s 4x400 Relay (2:35 p.m. CT/1:35 p.m. PT)
Herbert Polk, Isaiah Underwood, Brandon Hasson, Jeremy Wright