Jimeno's School Record Leads Strong Weekend in Orlando - Jacksonville State University Athletics

Friday, March 22

Orlando, Fla.

Jax State

Knights Invite

3/24/2024 11:25:00 AM | Track and Field

Knights Invite Results

ORLANDO, Fla. – It was a record-setting weekend for Jax State track and field at the UCF Knights Invite highlighted by junior Bethelhem Manzano Jimeno's new distance school record.

Jimeno began her stunning weekend running a 4:27.47 in the 1,500 meters on Friday to establish a new Jax State school record, before returning Saturday to clock 2:11.13 in the 800-meter race.

"It was a really good weekend for the mid-distance groups," said head coach Jeremy Provence following the meet. "Beti's 1,500 performance to set the school record was nothing short of spectacular, she got position early and had a great finish. She followed that up with a PB in the 800 the next day."

"Lindsay (Fletcher) continues to lower her marks in the 1500 and 800, once again running PBs in both events. I thought Kyra ran well in her first 1500, especially for someone with little experience in anything shorter than the 3k. Sierra ran with a lot of toughness this weekend. I'm proud that she took a risk in the 1500 by taking the race out at a good clip. She came back on Saturday and competed really hard in the 3k. This mentality is something that we need more of as a team."

In that 3,000-meter event, freshman Clara Rubio Machacon cracked the top five in the 3,000-meter race in a time of 11:13.67.

Another new personal best was set with Hailey Tucker 1:01.51's time in the 400-meter hurdles to finish fourth in the event while turning in the fourth-fastest 400mH in program history.

"Hailey had a strong run in the 400 meter hurdles. Technically, things could have been better but for an opener it was an impressive run. Her fitness is incredible, so more reps competing in this event will make a difference moving forward."

In the sprints, Chidinma Margaret Agu ran the school's third-fastest 400-meter dash clocking 55.02, while Elo Blessing's 11.58 run in the 100-meter dash went down as the second-fastest in Jax State history.

"Elo and Chidinma continue to run very well in the sprint events. They also run anchor in our relays and are a big reason for the success of the sprint group. They compete hard and are improving each week."

In the field, Lydia Seals achieved a javelin distance of 36.64 meters (120'-2") for a 16^th finish just ahead of freshman Jadyn Bonds who also notched a top 20 throw of 102'-7". Bonds later tied Penn State's Gwen Cudmore for 11th in high jump competition clearing 1.63 meters.