Alabama Track: Marlon Humphrey
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - The University of Alabama capped a successful final day of competition at the Randal Tyson Invitational, hosted by the University of Arkansas, with a school record performance by the men's 4x400-meter relay quartet and a victory by sophomore Kyle Felpel's in the men's shot put, as well as personal bests by three athletes (two women, one man) in three events. Overall, Alabama athletes produced six performances that rank among the school's all-time top 10 in five events, including the school record relay outing.
The Alabama men's foursome of Steven Gayle, Cameron Hudson, Marlon Humphrey and Alex Amankwah broke the nine-year-old school record in the relay by more than a full second, running 3:06.05 to win the fifth heat of the 4x400-meter relay and finish third overall among a field of 19 relay teams. The Tide's previous record of 3:07.29 was set in 2006. Only Texas A&M and Nebraska finished ahead of Alabama. The Tide's time is currently the fourth-fastest in the world this year. Amankwah's stunningly fast 45.5-second anchor leg on the relay pushed the Tide to the new school record. Gayle ran the first leg in 46.9 with Hudson going 46.3 on the second leg and Humphrey clocking a 46.9 on the third leg.
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"We had a great day today," said Crimson Tide head coach Dan Waters. "It wasn't perfect, but it was great preparation for the SEC meet in two weeks. We faced top competition and learned a lot about our team today. We are in a very good spot at this point in the season. Seeing the PRs that were set, along with the school record in the relay, is a good indicator that we are hitting our stride at the right time of the season."
"We really focused two goals today with the relay - to break the school record and to clinch our spot in the NCAA indoor meet," said Tide assistant coach Matt Kane, who coaches the Tide sprinters and relays. "We accomplished both today, but we also know that we can go faster. Yet, we still accomplished our goals while knowing there is still more out there that we can do. That's a good feeling at this point of the season."
Courtesy UA Media Relations