AUSTIN, Tex. – The UC Santa Barbara Men's and Women's Track & Field teams took their talents halfway across the country to compete in both the Texas Relays and Bobcat Invitational over the course of four days of competition. From the first day to the last, the Gauchos continued to build on the success they have had throughout the 2025 Outdoor Season.
DECATHLON
On the first two days of the 97th Annual Texas Relays, senior Brad Thomas participated in the Men's Decathlon alongside teammate Jeramiah Havens. Thomas secured a top three finish overall at the meet and a personal best, scoring 7538 and recording top five finishes in half of the events compiling the decathlon.
Thomas took fourth place in the 400m (48.53) and discus throw (40.19m), third place in the shot put (14.37m) and 1500m (4:30.79), and second place in the javelin (56.75m) to represent the West Coast in incredible fashion.
FIELD
Senior pole vaulter Eitan Goore also put on a clinic during the weekend as he took third overall with a leap of 5.00m at Texas Relays and a mark of 5.15m at the Bobcat Invitational hosted by Texas State. Goore was able to surpass the 5.00m mark on the third and final attempt.
Kennedy Johnson also saw a top-ten finish in the meet as she posted a jump of 11.84m in the women's triple jump.
TRACK
The speedy transfer out of Georgia continued to break records as well. Senior Curtis Borden III broke the school record in the men's 100m dash for a second time this season, surpassing his time of 10.47 at Gaucho Relays. Borden took 11th place, just barely missing out on qualifying for the finals, but made Gaucho history with a time of 10.38.
Just when you thought she could not get any faster, junior Maddie Conte recorded yet another personal record on the season. Conte took second place in the 100m hurdles with a time of 13.54, continuing to build on her stellar indoor and outdoor seasons.
The hurdles seemed to be the event for third-year Gauchos as junior Dario Rock added a sixth-place finish in the men's 110m hurdles with a time of 14.19. Junior Finn Andrews also posted a personal best of 52.87 in the 400m hurdles, his first time under 53 seconds.
The Gauchos also dominated in the 4x200m on the women's side, as the team recorded a school record in the event with a time of 1:37.50 and a ninth place finish overall. Junior Amor Jones started off the race before passing the baton to Sophia Pardo. Aoife Hernon and freshman Mia Shepard finished up business to take home the record.
Separate from the Texas Relays, junior Miles Paris also had a personal record in the 110m hurdles at Bobcat Invitational, timing in at 14.19 to cap off an outstanding weekend for the Gauchos.
The Gauchos handled the elements well and continued to compete at the highest level despite the rainy weather and often delayed events.
"It was an eye opening experience for a lot of them" said head coach Vijay Saxena. "A lot of people pulled out because of the conditions but I told the team it is important to know how to compete in the elements. It was not easy but nobody made excuses and everybody adapted and improvised."
UP NEXT
The Gauchos have three meets to prepare for upon the conclusion of the Texas Relays and Bobcat Invitational. Stanford Invite will begin on Thursday, April 3 in Palo Alto, Calif. as well as the Mike Fanelli Distance Meet in Hayward, Calif. A day later, the Triton Invite in San Diego, Calif. will commence.
