In a season filled with history-making runs and explosive competition, Florida track and field ended its regular season Saturday with two events: the North Florida Invitational in Jacksonville, Florida, and the LSU Invitational in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Florida sophomores Thea Jensen and Pamela O’Brien made a splash for the orange and blue early on at UNF.
Jensen heaved a 16.08-meter toss on her third attempt en route to the top spot in shot put. O’Brien was close to untouchable during the 3,000-meter steeplechase, producing a time of 10 minutes and 48 seconds to secure the win.
Florida junior Imogen Barrett finished first in the 800-meter with a time of two minutes and two seconds. Fellow Gator and redshirt junior Gabrielle Wilkinson followed, just over one second behind to finish second at UNF.
Florida’s battle in the Bayou saw multiple Gators set, or match, NCAA season leads.
Redshirt senior Natricia Hooper notched a new season lead on her fifth attempt in the triple jump, landing a spectacular 14.18-meter leap. In the men’s 200-meter dash, sophomore Joseph Fahnbulleh matched the collegiate lead with a speedy 19.92-second finish.
The Gators dominated in the long jump, as sophomore Jasmine Moore secured the top spot with a 6.82-meter jump. Sophomores Anna Hall and Claire Bryant secured 6.74-meter and 6.67-meter jumps, respectively, completing the Gator's sweep of the top three spots.
Notably, redshirt sophomore Grace Stark put up a thrilling performance in the 100-meter hurdles, finishing second with a time of 12.8 seconds. Sophomore Talitha Diggs inched her way to the third spot in the 200-meter dash with a time of 22.9 seconds.
Florida’s star-studded track and field team now looks ahead to competing at the SEC Outdoor Meet beginning May 12 in Oxford, Mississippi.
Contact Brenda Bogle at bbogle@alligator.org. Follow her on Twitter @bogle_brenda.
Brenda Bogle is a UF journalism senior with a specialization in sports and media. She joined The Alligator in the Fall of 2021.
