Alabama track and field enjoyed a big showing as hosts of the Crimson Tide Invitational this weekend, finishing strong on Saturday at the Sam Bailey Track Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala., with marks that rank several UA student-athletes in the national top-10 in their events.
On a weekend that looked like it might get rained out early on, the Crimson Tide shone brightly on all three days, working around inclement weather on Friday and starting after the weather moved out Saturday morning. Overall, Alabama broke two school records, three Sam Bailey Track Stadium records, won 13 events and earned 25 medals over the meet’s three days.
Tamara Clark posted the second-fastest 100-meters time in school history on Saturday, crossing the line with an 11.07, which ranks her No. 1 in the nation and puts her just .05 off her own school record. She posted the fastest time in the nation in the 200 meters at last weekend’s Florida Relays.
Ryan Lipe soared over a height of 5.60 meters to set a new school record in the pole vault. A personal best, Lipe’s height ranks him in the top-10 nationally.
After a lengthy weather delay, Alabama won both the men’s and women’s 1,500 meters under the lights, with Eliud Kipsang winning the men’s race with a school-record and national leading 3:36.00, while Amarais Tyynismaa won the women’s race with a PR and national-leading time of 4:12.72.
Head Coach Dan Waters Said
“We went from thinking the weather was going to put a major crimp in our schedule to have an amazing track and field weekend. Starting with Eliud, Amaris and Jake on Friday through a really strong showing throughout today, this was certainly a great home event for us. Not only did we pick up several wins, but we broke school and stadium records and posted marks that put us at the top of the national leader board in a number of events. There’s still a lot of season left, but I’m really happy with the way we’ve gotten outdoors going. Today also gave us a chance to celebrate our seniors, and that is always super special. This group has meant so much to our program, helping us continue to build on our tradition of excellence. I also want to thank all the officials, event staff and coaches who worked so hard to make this weekend a success and to our administration for making it possible.”
Alabama Highlights at the Crimson Tide Invitational
- Jacob Spotswood won his first-ever attempt at the men’s decathlon scoring 7,259 points, putting him at fifth on Alabama’s all-time top-10 list
- In the women’s 1,500-meter run, Amaris Tyynismaa finished first with a 4:12.72 to give her the second-best time in Alabama history
- Esther Gitahi and Mercy Chelangat finished in third and fourth place, respectively, to round out the Tide’s top-5 finishers in the 1,500-meter run
- Eliud Kipsang set a program and Sam Bailey Track Stadium record with a time of 3:36.00 the men’s 1,500-meter run
- Finishing second, Taylor Gorum threw for 54.92m in the discus
- Christian Edwards jumped 15.96m in the men’s triple jump to place third
- The Alabama women’s 4×100-meter relay team, with Daija Lampkin, Tamara Clark, D’Jai Baker and Natassha McDonald, was awarded silver with a time of 43.47
- Recording a personal-best time (13.42) in the 110-meter hurdles, senior Robert Dunning placed first in the event
- D’Jai Baker took home hardware in the women’s 400-meter dash with a first-place time of 54.77
- The Alabama men had three athletes record personal-best times and place in the top-5 for the men’s 400-meter dash with Gabriel Serrano (46.88) taking second, Joshua St. Clair (47.26) finishing in third and Jonathan Martin (47.65) completing the run in fourth
- Tamara Clark ran the nation’s current top time and the fourth-fastest Alabama time in the women’s 100-meter dash with a 11.07
- Esther Gitahi placed third in the women’s 800-meter run with a 2:07.92 and Margot Dooley recorded a personal-best time of 2:10.72 to place fifth
- Freshman Eliud Kipsang ran his first 800-meter event, placing first with a time of 1:47.20
- Ryan Lipe shattered the Alabama school record and his personal-best record in pole vault with a jump of 5.60m
- Alabama’s Isaac Odugbesan threw for 19.12m in the men’s shot put recording a second-place finish
- Sydney Milani took home the silver medal in the women’s 400-meter hurdles with a 1:00.96
- The Alabama women had three athletes place in the top-5 for the 200-meter dash with Natassha McDonald (PB 23.33) being awarded silver, Katie Funcheon (23.76) coming in fourth and Daija Lampkin (24.01) placing fifth
- Leah Hanle broke her personal-best record, ran the school’s second-best time and placed first in the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase run with a 10:03.79
- Taylor Gorum recorded a personal-best mark of 15.87 to finish as the best collegiate athlete in the women’s shot put
- The Alabama women secured the top spot in the 4×400-meter relay with a time of 3:36.39, winning by seven seconds
- Champion Allison, Robert Dunning, Demetrius Jackson and Joshua St. Clair took gold in the men’s 4×400-meter relay (3:07.95) to close out the running events for the meet
- Alabama thrower Samantha Kunza recorded a mark of 61.15m to place third in the hammer throw
- Bobby Colantonio finished with a personal-best and top collegiate mark of 69.55m and Kieran McKeag rounded out the Alabama medals following Colantonio with a mark of 67.16m in the men’s hammer throw.
-
We want to hear from you, but before you do, HIT the share buttons below to share this and other stories with friends.
Join our lively discussion by leaving a comment below. Also, join OUR Message Boards (FORUM) for more discussions —- Please remember to follow us on social media – subscribe to our social media pages –
Trackalertstv 
Trackalerts 
Trackalerts 
Trackalerts
So, is Tamara Clarke jamaican? caribbean????/