SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas A&M – Corpus Christi men's and women's track and field teams got off to a strong start at the 2012 Southland Outdoor Track & Field Championship, hosted by Texas State. BreAnna Briggs and Vanessa Galindo each scored for the women in the 10,000 meters, while Angel Banda scored for the men's team in the event.
"The women were really, really good," Director of Track & Field Shawn Flanagan said. "For BreAnna, this was a breakthrough performance for her. I've known for a long time that she could compete with anyone in this conference and she showed it with a fourth-place finish. Vanessa came up to snag seventh – she got dropped with about seven laps to go and hung in strong there.
"On the guys' side," Flanagan continued, "Angel hung tough, it was a good, good race for him. I told these kids they are like the first runner on the relay team, and they got us off to a good start."
Briggs took fourth place in the 10,000, finishing with a time of 37:20.45 to score five points for the Islanders. The junior fell back from the top three with seven laps to go, but toughed her way to the top four, finishing 15 seconds out of third. Her time was the third best in school history and a new personal best for the sophomore.
Galindo added a solid performance of her own, posting a time of 38:02.37 to take seventh. The freshman held strong in the closing laps of the race to pick up two points for the Islanders. She finished 36 seconds off her personal best, set at the Victor Lopez Rice Classic.
Shelby Polasek fought through an injury to finish 15th for the Islanders, posting a personal-best time of 40:18.84 in her first outdoor championships as a collegiate athlete. Jennifer Ramirez finished just behind her in 16th with a time of 40:38.50, while Alex Rossi took 20th in a time of 41:49.56 to round out the team.
On the men's side, Banda surged in the closing laps to hold on to a seventh-place finish and take two points for the Islanders. It was a new season- and personal-best for the sophomore, who broke the 32-minute mark in a time of 31:58.03, putting him just six seconds behind the sixth-place finisher.
Adrian Marquez added a 15th-place finish with a time of 33:04 in the event. Jason Garcia fell back in the third lap of the race and was never able to make up the ground, taking 16th at 33:20.00.
In the afternoon session, Brandi Huff was the Islanders' lone competitor, taking part in the javelin. The Rockport-Fulton alum finished in 13th place with a throw of 35.66 meters in the event.
The action will heat up for the Islanders on Saturday, as they will compete in 16 different events, beginning with the men's high jump (featuring Roger De La Cruz and Quincy Obeng) and the women's long jump (featuring Kassandrea Son and Ernestine Cray). Live results are available, and updates will be posted on the Twitter feed of Islanders Track & Field @IslandersTFXC
Women's 10,000-meter run
4. BreAnna Briggs – 37:20.45
7. Vanessa Galindo – 38:02.37
15. Shelby Polasek – 40:18.84
16. Jennifer Ramirez – 40:38.50
20. Alexandria Rossi – 41:49.56
Men's 10,000-meter run
7. Angel Banda – 31:58.03
15. Adrian Marquez – 33:04.26
16. Jason Garcia – 33:20.00
Women's javelin
13. Brandi Huff – 35.66m
