PORTALES, N.M. – It will be a busy weekend for Eastern New Mexico track and field as the program will be competing at two different meets. Twelve student-athletes are expected to make the trip to the University of Arizona for the Willie Williams Classic and sixteen headed to Texas Tech in Lubbock for the Masked Rider Open. Before the meets begin, please take a look at the Eight Lane Preview:

1.) New Beginnings – Last weekend the Greyhounds competed at the WT Spring Break Open. Three different student-athletes broke school records over the competition – Mahault Lebrun, Tamia Smith, and Timothy Frederick. Lebrun fascinated in the 400-meter hurdles as she finished the race in 1:04.10 in her first outdoor meet in her collegiate career. Smith continued to perform at her highest abilities with a shot put throw of 13.32 meters. Frederick now holds the 400-meter school record in both indoor and outdoor as he completed the race in 47.84 seconds.

2.) New Additions – The Greyhounds saw a trio of new Hounds competing as the season transitioned from indoor to outdoor. Those members include Elise Toya, Malachi Torres, and Aiden Kepfer. Toya and Torres are set to compete for ENMU at the Masked Rider Open. Toya is a freshman who ran for the cross country program in the fall and Torres holds a dual role as a student coach for the Greyhound football squad.

3.) Tucson Throws – Five Hounds will be throwing at the University of Arizona Friday and Saturday. Those competitors include Kennedy Ulmer, Tamia Smith, Alex Williams, Tatiana Hall, and Noe Ybaben. Last week, Alex Williams earned the third-best mark in school history in the javelin. Freshmen Kennedy Ulmer and Noe Ybaben have made impressive marks early in the season, including qualifying to compete in the indoor conference track and field championships meet. Both Smith and Hall bring quality leadership and experience to the squad as they both competed at the 2022 LSC outdoor track and field championships.

4.) Friday at TTU – The Masked Rider Open is split with throws competitions set for Friday and additional field and track events slated for Saturday. Jesse Woodruff, Jha'Niah Johnson, Malachi Torres, and Elise Toya are set to compete Friday night in Lubbock.

5.) Faster Each Day – The distance crew is seeing remarkable improvements over the course of the season and it is highlighted by Kaylyn De La Rosa who ran a personal best 2:25.36 in the 800m last week. In the same event, Lauren Griego also finished with a personal best 2:37.0. On the men's side, Devis Cheruiyot, Ethan Woodrome, and Ricky Diaz are set to be in Lubbock.

6.) The AZ Lineup – On top of a handful of the throws group headed to compete with some of the top west coast talent, Timothy Frederick, Mahault Lebrun, Meghan Rodriguez, Ashlynn Evans, Kiara Cox, and John Magee will highlight the group in sprints and jumps. An 11.0m (36' 1.25") result in the triple jump helped the freshman, Evans, earn a top-five mark in school history. Her best mark indoors was 10.52m (34' 6.25") earlier this season. Last week, Kiara Cox competed in the long jump where she finished with a 4.70m (15' 5") result.

7.) On The Sprint – Jaliyah Denny posted a 27.10 seconds result in the 200-meter race at the WT Spring Break Open last week. After adjusting for wind, the time proved to be her fastest ever. Her previous record erased 2.0 seconds from her time after adjusting for the wind. Meghan Rodriguez went into her first outdoor collegiate meet and came away with a 14th place finish in the 400-meter after going 1:03.42. Her time was fourth among Lone Star Conference runners.

8.) Strong Finishes – Jude Murray did not finish the race a week ago at WT, but the junior is primed and ready to take flight in the 400-meter. He holds a top mark indoors at the University of New Mexico as he crossed the line in 52.25 seconds. This is his fourth season competing at the collegiate level and first for the Hounds.