MT. BERRY, Ga. — The Columbus State University Women's Track & Field team opened the outdoor season with a strong performance, finishing third overall at the Victor Icebreaker Duals, hosted by Berry College on Saturday.
The Cougars produced several standout performances across both track and field events, highlighted by a victory in the long jump and a first-place finish in the 4x400-meter relay.
Jayda Smith delivered one of the top performances of the meet for Columbus State, capturing the long jump title with a mark of 5.63 meters (18' 5.75"), setting a new school record. Smith also contributed on the track, finishing seventh in the 200 meters with a time of 26.02 seconds and helping lead the Cougars' relay squad.
Columbus State's 4x400-meter relay team of
Liza Varnum, Jayda Smith, Zahara Walker, and
Faith Brown secured a first-place finish with a time of 4:09.60, closing the meet on a high note for the Cougars.
In the sprint events, freshman
Faith Brown turned in a strong debut, finishing second in both the 100 meters (12.21) and the 200 meters (25.25). Teammate Zahara Walker also posted impressive results, placing third in the 100 meters (12.39) and fourth in the 200 meters (25.81).
Additional sprint performances came from
Chassidy Lock, who finished ninth in both the 100 meters (12.87) and 200 meters (26.27), while Candace Harris placed 17th in the 200 meters with a time of 26.89.
In the hurdles,
Liza Varnum led the Cougars with a fourth-place finish in the 100-meter hurdles, posting a time of 15.39 seconds, and set a new school record with that time.
Columbus State also saw solid performances in the middle-distance events. Emmalee Johnson placed fifth in the 800 meters (2:28.11), followed by Anna Norton, who finished ninth in 2:30.15. Bailey Morrison, Zoie Mertz, and Arianah Edens added depth for the Cougars in the event.
In distance competition,
Layla Albright led the Cougars in the 1500 meters with a time of 5:19.22, while Reese Moss paced Columbus State in the 5000 meters with a time of 21:49.94.
In the field events, Columbus State continued to collect points throughout the day. Molly Rickard finished fourth in the pole vault with a clearance of 2.92 meters (9' 7"), while teammate Taylor High placed fifth with a mark of 2.62 meters (8' 7").
The Cougars also posted strong performances in the throws.
Dana McDaniel recorded a fifth-place finish in the discus with a throw of 32.36 meters (106' 2") and added a sixth-place finish in the hammer throw with a mark of 34.99 meters (114' 9").
Kayli Miller added a ninth-place finish in the hammer throw (33.51 meters) and 13th in the shot put (10.09 meters).
Up Next
The Lady Cougars will continue their outdoor season at the Falcon Track & Field Classic on Friday, March 13, and Saturday, March 14, hosted by the University of Montevallo in Montevallo, Ala.
