Heading off to California for the second time within three weeks, Bradley’s track team broke records in numerous races. From April 16-18, the Braves competed in Azusa for the Bryan Clay Invitational.
Starting things off, sophomore Jamie Phillips set a new 800m program record time of 1:45.74. This makes him the first sprinter in Bradley history to run 1:45, beating his previous record of 1:46.46 set in Europe. Phillips’ time also makes him one of the best in the NCAA, placing 10th fastest in the country.
Meanwhile, freshman Julia Brown set her first-ever career record, clipping off a hundredth of a second from Amiyah Davis’ record to 54.23 seconds. Julia de Palma, compared to Phillips, broke her own 400m hurdle record by one second with 1:01.09.
Adding to the phenomenal run, nine top 10 placements were seen for the Braves in Azusa. Two main placements were graduate David Locke in third all-time with 1:48.51 and sophomore Matthew Burnett with 1:49.07, good for seventh all-time.
For the 1500m, senior Trixie Wraith and freshmen Noelle Steines and Sawyer LeBlanc set new times for the Braves, each placing in the top 10 for the tournament. LeBlanc wasn’t the only one breaking records for his 1500m time being sixth; sophomore Travis Gaffney finished behind him placing seventh.
Finally, in the women’s 4x400m relay, junior Elien Brenne and sophomore Carolina Martinez, along with de Palma and Brown ran the program’s second fastest time at 3:42.14. Sophomore Olivia Redpath clocked a time of 11.85 – the fastest in program history.
Coming off of a triumphant weekend, the Braves will prepare to head to Des Moines, Iowa, to race in the 116th Drake Relays from April 23-25.
