Senior Cameron Cornelius aims for his second straight victory in the shot put after throwing 18.88m in the Spring Break Invitational. | Courtesy of Stephen Pinchback

This weekend the Cougar track and field team heads to crosstown rival Rice’s campus to compete in its first major meet of the outdoor season, the Victor Lopez Classic. In addition to the Owls, the Cougars will face teams from all across the state.

The Owls feature many top athletes, including sprinter Hannah Jackson, thrower Austin Riddle and multi-event athlete Charlie Card-Childers. Card-Childers has the No. 4 decathlon mark in the nation with 7,061 points.

Following their performances at the Spring Break Invitational, three Cougars were named Athletes of the Week in the American Athletic Conference. Senior thrower Cameron Cornelius, sophomore hurdler Amere Lattin and senior sprinter Tori Williams all won their events with personal bests.

Cornelius, in his first outdoor meet since 2015, won the shot put with a throw of 18.88m. Lattin, normally kept to the hurdling events, won the men’s 200m with a run of 20.82s, while Williams, continuing her dominance from the indoor season, won the women’s 200m with a time of 23.45s.

All currently hold the nation’s No. 3 mark for their respective events.

The Cougars boasted two of the nation’s top relay teams last week. The men and women both won their respective opening relays, shooting up to the top of the national charts.

The team of senior Cameron Burrell and sophomores Mario Burke, Jacarias Martin and John Lewis III ran 39.47s in their victory, while Williams and freshmen Brianne Bethel, Sierra Smith and Samiyah Samuels won the race in 44.23s. The men’s team has the No. 3 best time in the nation and in the West Division, while the women’s time is No. 3 in the country and No. 2 in the West Division.

Other notables on the national charts are Burrell and junior triple jumper Tonye’cia Burks.

Burrell, fresh off his 60m runner-up finish at the NCAA Indoor Championships, has the No. 3 best mark — 10.26s — in the nation and the West Division.

Burks, one of the most consistent performers for the women during the indoor season, has the No. 5 triple jump mark in the country, 12.56m, and No. 2 in the West Division to only Greer Alsop of Washington State.

Lewis III and Smith also shot themselves into the top national marks in the men’s and women’s 100m.

Lewis was a part of a Cougar group that went 1-4 in the season-opening event. His 10.45s run was second only to Burrell and is the No. 16 time in the country. Smith won the first women’s 100m of the season with a 11.62s run, the No. 13 time this season. On the division charts, the two are No. 11 and No. 10 respectively.

sports@thedailycougar.com

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“Owls host Cougars in crosstown meet” was originally posted on The Daily Cougar