On Jan. 26, the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns rolled into Houston to compete in the Robert Platt Indoor Invitational for track and field competition.The team set itself up well for future competitions by placing in the top-10 three different men’s events. Fresh faces defined the two-day event for the team, as several freshmen set personal bests and led the Cajuns in their respective events.
Men’s 800 meter sprint would see the first of these top placements, with junior Joe Patterson finishing with a 1:53.33 time, good for eighth in the event. In the women’s 800, junior Haley Salsbury finished 18th with a 2:20.89 heat.
For men’s pole vault, Swedish freshman international transfer Teodor Borgius would give the Cajuns sixth with a 16-foot .75-inch jump, and Cammi Martinez and Lauren Roberts would snag points for women’s with 11-foot 7.75-inch efforts.
In women’s mile, freshman cross-country runner Isabelle Russell completed a 5:09.41 for a new personal best, and in men’s, Nathan Fontan finished with a 4:24.03, good for 22th. Fontan also set his personal best in the men’s 3,000 meter run with a 8:48.02.
Italian freshman transfer Federico Bovo represented the Cajuns in the men’s high jump, and turned in a 6-feet 6-inch jump, a personal best which placed 15th on the day.
Shot put saw freshman Praiyer Jones land a 50-foot 1.75-inch attempt, again a personal best placing 12th in the competition, and womens’ freshman Jayden Jackson set a 44-foot 2.75-inch put for 13th.
Sophomore Reem Tammam set her personal best in triple jump with a 40-foot 7.5-inch try, good for fourth on the day. Junior Taylor Walls placed fourth in women’s long jump with a 18-feet 9.75-inch jump, with Tammam landing a 17-foot 8.25-foot jump for 20th. Freshman Montrell Morris turned in a 22-feet 5.25 jump for 21st in the men’s category.
Sophomore Oliver Jack led the Cajuns in weight throw, placing 15th with a 54-foot 3.25-inch toss for 15th place, and for women’s, junior Marin Barras landed a 52-foot 3.25-inch throw, good for 12th.
The men’s distance medley run would see Team A finish third overall in the competition, as juniors Peyton Chiasson, Samuel Avants, Andrew Hoyte-Small and freshman Andrew Leck would earn bronze with a 10:01.71 effort good for a 13th-best 2024 D1 time and the second-fastest time in program history. Team ‘B’, juniors Reece Shelby and Luke Benoit, sophomore Landon Meche, and freshman Brandon Beavers would finish with a 10:47.11.
This next stretch of meets, wrapping up with the South Alabama Invitational next Sunday, Feb. 4, are important proving grounds for both the athletes, head coach Tommy Badon and the Cajuns’ staff, culminating in the Sun Belt Conference Championships starting Feb. 19. Whether Louisiana will continue to place as one of the best programs in the conference or not for years to come rests on these underclassmen, transfers and newcomers.