The Rebels kicked off the first week of the outdoor track and field season in Oxford on Friday, March 20 and Saturday, March 21, hosting 12 other schools at the Ole Miss Classic. Thanks to both familiar Rebels and players who made their outdoor debut, the Rebel track and field team showcased their depth and notched a total of 16 event wins and two school records.
Familiar faces do what they do best
Fresh off NCAA title No. 4, Tarik Robinson-O’Hagan stepped into the hammer throw circle and wowed the crowd with a 77.62 meter throw. With that throw, Robinson-O’Hagan broke his own Ole Miss record and moved himself into the national record books. He now sits at No. 2 in American collegiate history.
For Robinson-O’Hagan, the purpose of this first meet was not only to send a message to the nation after “a low NCAA” indoor meet but to give the fans a show.
“We (Robinson-O’Hagan and his coach) wanted to prove a point that I’m not a weight throw, I’m a hammer guy … (and) I’m the only person throwing out there that far,” Robinson-O’Hagan said. “I want to have fun with everybody, … be respectful and give them a good show. They all love it.”
Saturday’s first track event was the 4×100 meter relay. Thanks to a combination of both senior leadership and speed, the men’s team of Dekell Minor, Jordan Urrutia, Wesley Todd and Tarique Wright blazed to a 38.98 school record. Their time is the first sub-39 second performance in school history and took 0.13 seconds off the previous record set late last season.
For Rebel track fans, many of these names are familiar, and as the outdoor season progresses, expect these Rebel veterans to continue to push their limits and notch big performances.
New Rebel competitors step into the spotlight
For 11 total Rebels, the Ole Miss Classic marked their collegiate outdoor track debut. Although it may have been their first time, these Rebels went right to work and had some solid performances.
Two freshmen, Zion Lockette and Myla Reed, made their outdoor debuts in the women’s sprints. On Friday night, Lockette won the 200-meter dash with a 23.49 second time that moved her to No. 11 in Rebel history. Reed was close behind and finished runner-up in 24.03 seconds. Then on Saturday, Lockette and Reed returned for their debuts in the 100-meter dash and finished No. 3 and No. 4, respectively.
In the women’s 1500-meter run, freshman cross country star Addy Mitchell charged to the win with a 4:40.11 for her debut.
In the throws category, freshman Ashton Hearn kicked off his first collegiate outdoor track season with two big performances. Hearn finished No. 2 in the men’s shot put and won the discus with a throw of 58.12 meters that immediately moved him into the record books. Hearn’s mark sits at No. 2 all time for the Rebels, seven meters from Brian Wiliams’ record set at the 2017 SEC Championships.
As more meets take place this spring, fans should keep these newer Rebels on their radar. Fans can expect more big performances from them in the future.
Overall, it was a good weekend for the Rebels, both new and old. With lots of impressive results and even more talent on display, Rebel fans have a lot to look forward to this outdoor season.
What’s next?
Next for the Rebels is a split squad meet on April 3-4. The Rebels will be at both the Stanford Invite and the LSU Battle on the Bayou Meet.
The Stanford Invite will stream on the ACC Network and the LSU Invite will stream on the SEC Network. The live results link can be found on the Ole Miss Track and Field website when the meets begin.
