MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Jack Turner struck gold with a record-setting performance in the men's decathlon and Amaya Scott won the women's heptathlon to highlight Friday action for UTSA at the Conference USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships at Dean A. Hayes Track & Soccer Stadium.
Turner broke a 19-year-old school record in winning the decathlon with 7,659 points and completing the 2021 sweep of the league's multi-event titles. The freshman from Exeter, England, paced a trio of Roadrunners in the top five in the event, as Joel McFarlane secured the silver medal with 7,148 points and Justin Wright placed fifth with 6,215, handing UTSA a 22-point start in the team race.
Meanwhile, Scott tallied 5,516 points for her first career league title and Maren Wilms scored 5,000 to finish fourth and send the UTSA women off to a strong start in the team standings with a combined 15 points in the heptathlon.
Armed with a sizable lead entering the second day of the decathlon after putting up 4,080 points on Thursday, Turner cruised to his third career C-USA gold medal by finishing no worse than third in the field in the final five disciplines.
Turner opened his Friday by clocking a time of 15.43 seconds for 798 points in the 110-meter hurdles before measuring 40.86m (134-1) in the discus. He then cleared 4.40m (14-5.25) to tack on 731 points in the pole vault before launching the javelin to a distance of 54.61m (179-2).
With his sights set on Justin Youngblood's 2002 UTSA record of 7,642 points, Turner covered 1,500m in 4:35.32 to notch 710 points in the final event and eclipse the previous school standard by 17 points and smash his previous personal best of 7,297. His 7,659-point total currently ranks eighth in the NCAA.
Turner became the fifth Roadrunner to win a conference crown in the decathlon, joining Gary Haasbroek (2019), Tommy Wolfe (2008), Brandon Buteaux (2007) and Bryan Wolfe (2006).
McFarlane made it a sweep of the C-USA silver medals in the combined events this year with the best decathlon point total of his young UTSA career. The Monikie, Scotland, native entered the second day in second place with 3,864 points, but he needed a strong finish in the final event — the 1,500m — to secure the runner-up position.
McFarlane timed 16.06 in the 110m hurdles for 726 points and then posted a mark of 36.48m (119-8) in the discus before topping 4.20m (13-9.25) in the pole vault. He briefly fell into third place after a javelin throw of 48.56m (159-4) but crossed first in the metric mile in 4:33.04 for 725 points to jump back into second place in the final standings.
Wright was in sixth place with 3,200 points at the midway point of the decathlon to start the day. The Dripping Springs High School product peeled off a 15.20 clocking to win the 110m hurdles and add 825 points to his tally. The 2021 C-USA Indoor heptathlon bronze medalist then posted a discus throw of 30.82m (101-1), cleared 4.10m (13-5.25) in the pole vault and tossed the javelin 46.67m (153-1) before closing with a 5:06.09 in the 1,500m.
Scott etched her name into the UTSA record book as the fifth overall and first conference heptathlon champion since Ryanne Dupree won her second of back-to-back titles in 2007.
Scott scored 3,317 points through the first four events on Thursday to grab a spot at the top of the leaderboard and she opened her second day with a leap of 5.78m (18-11.75) to add 783 points and maintain her advantage. The 2021 C-USA Indoor high jump bronze medalist then was the top finisher in the javelin by a comfortable margin, throwing the implement 38.82m (127-4) for 645 points. She then clinched the win with a time of 2:23.96 in the 800m, the second-fastest time in the field.
Scott's personal-best total of 5,516 points currently ranks 15th in the NCAA and moves her into the No. 2 spot on the program's all-time performers list behind Dupree's school record of 5,818.
Wilms made a move up the standings on the final day of the heptathlon with a pair of strong performances. The freshman from Germany won the long jump with a leap of 5.82m (19-1.25) for 795 points to start her day. She then posted a javelin throw of 31.52m (102-6) to move into fourth place before crossing first in the 800m with a 2:20.34 for 819 points in the finale.
Saturday's action will get underway with field events at 1 p.m. and running events are slated to begin at 3:30 p.m.
UTSA Results
Men
10,000 Meters
16. Jake Smith 32:22.51
Hammer
16. Angel Robles 45.29m (148-7)
19. Jorge Ayala 40.78m (133-9)
Decathlon
1. Jack Turner 7,659 — 100 Meters 10.94 (874); Long Jump 7.15m/23-5.5 (850); Shot Put 13.09m/42-11.5 (673); High Jump 1.99m/6-6.25 (794); 400 Meters 48.40 (890); 110-Meter Hurdles 15.43 (798); Discus 40.86m/134-1 (682); Pole Vault 4.40m/14-5.25 (731); Javelin 54.61m/179-2 (657); 1,500 Meters 4:35.32 (710)
2. Joel McFarlane 7,148 — 100 Meters 11.13 (832); Long Jump 7.30m/23-11.5 (886); Shot Put 12.30m/40-4.25 (625); High Jump 1.93m/6-4 (740); 400 Meters 50.74 (781); 110-Meter Hurdles 16.06 (726); Discus 36.48m/119-8 (593); Pole Vault 4.20m/13-9.25 (673); Javelin 48.56m/159-4 (567); 1,500 Meters 4:33.04 (725)
5. Justin Wright 6,215 — 100 Meters 11.71 (709); Long Jump 6.51m/21-4.25 (700); Shot Put 10.09m/33-1.25 (491); High Jump 1.87m/6-1.5 (687); 400 Meters 54.66 (613); 110-Meter Hurdles 15.20 (825); Discus 30.82m/101-1 (481); Pole Vault 4.10m/13-5.25 (645); Javelin 46.67m/153-1 (539); 1,500 Meters 5:06.09 (525)
Women
Hammer
- Maia Campbell FOUL
Heptathlon
1. Amaya Scott 5,516 — 100-Meter Hurdles 14.72 (879); High Jump 1.72m/5-7.75 (879); Shot Put 13.86m/45-5.75 (785); 200 Meters 26.27 (774); Long Jump 5.78m/18-11.75 (783); Javelin 38.82m/127-4 (645); 800 Meters 2:23.96 (771)
4. Maren Wilms 5,000 — 100-Meter Hurdles 15.06 (834); High Jump 1.63m/5-4.25 (771); Shot Put 10.07m/33-0.5 (534); 200 Meters 26.58 (747); Long Jump 5.82m/19-1.25 (795); Javelin 31.25m/102-6 (500); 800 Meters 2:20.34 (819)
-UTSA-
