Arlington, Texas- The Thunderbirds wrapped up their season with impressive finishes at the WAC Outdoor Championships, which saw four athletes qualify for the D1 National Championship Prelims: Jaedyn Carpenter in the 400-meter, Ajia Hughes in the High Jump, Santiago Gaitan in the mile run, and Jaylee Gandert in the javelin throw.
Head Coach Eric Houle Said:
"What an outstanding weekend for our teams. There were so many exceptional performances, all-conference athletes, personal records set, and top-10 performances set this weekend. Next is the first round of the National Championship, where some of our all-time best athletes will face off with the best athletes in the country. Ajia Hughes was our conference champion and voted the women's outdoor track and field most outstanding field event performer. Ajia is also ranked 13th in the nation and 10th in the West Region."
Official Results: live.athletic.net
Team Point Results: wacsports.com
Men's Recap
Jaedyn Carpenter led the way for the men's team at the WAC Outdoor championships, finishing second in the 400-meter run with a time of 45.85. Jaedyn also finished sixth in the 200-meter dash with a time of 21.09.
In the 1500-meter run, Santiago Gaitain secured a fifth-place finish with a time of 3:49.60. Santiago also finished fourth in the 5000-meter run with a time of 14:48. Levi Smith in the long jump finished fourth with a top leap of 23'05.25".
In the triple jump, Dylyn Cooks finished seventh with a top leap of 44'09". Jackson Roybal in the javelin throw finished fifth with a top throw of 188'06".
The 4x400-meter relay team of Jaedyn Carpenter, Nick Pembroke, Noah Bringhurst, and Kody Smith finished third with a time of 3:13.63.
2025 WAC Men's Outdoor Track & Field Championship Final Team Scores
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Utah Valley- 221.5
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Grand Canyon- 170.5
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UT Arlington- 148
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Tarleton State- 126
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Abilene Christian- 56
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Southern Utah- 41
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California Baptist- 36
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Seattle U- 8
Women's Recap
Ajia Hughes led the women's team at the WAC Outdoor Championships with her best performance of the year, as she was announced as the WAC Outdoor Championships Women's top field athlete. Ajia Hughes was crowned a WAC champion with her first-place finish in the high jump, while also breaking her record with a top jump of 6'0". Ajia also finished third in the long jump with a top jump of 20'00.25".
Jaylee Gandert took home a second-place finish in the javelin throw with a top throw of 159'03". In the 1500-meter run, Bella Evans shone once again, this time in the 1500-meter run finishing second with a time of 4:25.51. Bella also finished sixth in the 5000-meter run with a time of 17:41.91.
Ariana Baker in the pole vault secured a third-place finish with a top jump of 12'00.50". In the discus throw, Morgan Blackburn finished third with a top throw of 151'09".
The 4x400-meter relay team of Jordyn Nielson, Maya Benjamin, Sabrina Wright, and Svannah Nielson finished third with a time of 3:56.78.
2025 WAC Women's Outdoor Track & Field Championship Final Team Scores
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Utah Valley- 208
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UT Arlington- 153
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Tarleton State- 136.5
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Grand Canyon- 100
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Southern Utah- 85.5
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Abilene Christian- 59
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California Baptist- 27
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Utah Tech- 27
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Seattle U- 15
Up Next
With the conclusion of the season for the T-Birds, they will now prepare for the National Championship Prelims which will be held in College Station, Texas from May 28 through May 31.
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