Lumberjacks Finish First and Second in the Men’s Mile as SFA Complete’s First Meet of the Year

The Stephen F. Austin track and field team traveled to Houston on Friday to open up their indoor season at the Leonard Hilton Invitational. The ‘Jacks took home three first-place finishes and eight top-three finishes.

The main story from Friday was the men’s success in the 1 mile as SFA took home first and second place. Elkana Kipruto finished as the champion at 4:13:07, and teammate Riley Elliott wasn’t too far behind at 4:13:97 which was good enough for second place. Head Coach Robert Hansen was very happy with the result, saying, “Elly and Riley going 1-2 in the mile was a nice way to start the season.” 

Perry Watkins had a record-breaking day, winning the men’s 60m with a time of 6.81. That 6.81 mark is the fourth-best in SFA history for men’s indoor 60 meters. 

Hunter Murphy grabbed a third-place finish for the ‘Jacks in the men’s high jump with a mark of 2.00 meters. 

Oghenetega Orekevwie brought home another first-place ranking for the Lumberjacks in the men’s triple jump with a jump of 15.04 meters. Bryson Williams placed third in the men’s triple jump, jumping 14.66 meters. 

On the women’s side, Timiejha Furlow and Mya Sanders both finished third in their events. Furlow ran a 7.62 in the women’s 60 meters, while Sanders had a 53.38 time in the women’s 400 meters. 

Coach Hansen is very proud of how his athletes competed, saying, “The short sprinters were extremely impressive in their debuts… we were really proud of Joel, Alicia, Nic Ray, and Furlow as they were sensational as well.” 

Overall, Coach Hansen was very happy with how the Invitational went, stating, “This was a really nice opener for our program.  We went out and competed within each field pretty well. January Track and Field is as much about perfecting our process as it is about hitting big marks. Those are a bonus!” 

The ‘Jacks next chance to compete will be in Lubbock, Texas as they travel to take part in the Corky Classic. The event is scheduled to take place January 17th and 18th and is hosted by Texas Tech. 

By: Eli Standley, Graduate Assistant for Strategic Communications

https://sfajacks.com/news/2025/1/11/track-field-lumberjacks-finish-first-and-second-in-mens-mile-as-sfa-completes-first-meet-of-the-year