AUSTIN – Tarleton’s men’s 4x400m relay saved its best for last on the final day of the 93rd Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays on Saturday.
The Texans’ team of Anterius Brown, Zachary Martinez, Brandon McKissick and Alan Palmer finished sixth in the men’s 4x400m final in 3:12.14. Tarleton improved its time by more than seven-tenths of a second from Friday’s preliminary rounds and now owns the top mark in the Western Athletic Conference by more than two seconds.
The performance was Tarleton’s best finish in the event since the 2019 Lone Star Conference Outdoor Championships, when McKissick, Brown, Martinez and senior heptathlete Skyler Sandusky clocked in at 3:12.79. The Texans’ 2021 crew nearly surpassed the mark during Friday’s prelims when it took seventh place in 3:12.86.
McKissick led off for Tarleton while Brown, the reigning WAC Track and Field Athlete of the Week, ran the second leg. The Texans held their sixth-place position for the entirety of the race and posted an 800m split of 1:35.91. Brown then handed off to Martinez before Palmer anchored.
Brown, McKissick and Martinez have all earned All-American credentials in the 4x400m relay. Palmer broke the indoor school record in the long jump (24′ 0.75″) during the 2020 indoor track and field season.
Tarleton’s 400m crew is as deep as any team in the WAC. Brown currently owns the top individual time (47.68) while McKissick and Martinez rank fourth and 10th, respectively, with times of 48.74 and 50.10.
The quartet has a legitimate shot of resetting the program’s all-time record in the event (3:10.15). Brown and Martinez helped break the record in 2018 alongside former Texan standouts Jevon Wallace and Colton Troutman and earned All-American credentials. Tarleton’s 2018 4x400m relay team placed eighth at the NCAA Division II Outdoor National Championships.
Brown and McKissick own the indoor school record in the 4x400m relay after helping Tarleton clock a time of 3:13.30 at the 2020 LSC Indoor Championships and qualify for the NCAA National Championships. Brown was also slated to compete at the national meet as an individual in the 400m. The Dallas native also owns the indoor school record in the 400m (46.35).
One day prior to the men’s 4x400m final, Tarleton’s women’s 4x100m relay team of Jasmine McQuirter, Nyla Barlow, Reagan Gallagher and Hanna Dudley posted a time of 47.02 in their first race together. The time is tops among all 4x100m relay teams in the conference.
Five athletes competed as individuals for Tarleton over the three-day affair in Austin.
Palmer finished 10th in the ‘B’ division of the men’s long jump with a leap of 23′ 3.25″. Freshman Brady Sisneroz set personal records of 15.21 and 55.03 seconds in the 110m and 400m hurdles. Cornelius Coleman posted his second sub-14.50 second time in as many weeks on Friday in the 110m hurdles. On the women’s side, Chandee Bachmeyer ran a 1:05.82 in her first time competing in the 400m hurdles and now ranks third in the event in the WAC. Dudley posted a time of 12.19 in the 100m dash and currently is tied for second in the event on the WAC’s outdoor performance list.
Tarleton now has two meets on the docket over the next seven days. The Texans’ multi-event athletes will compete at the Angelo State David Noble Relays on Wednesday on Thursday before Tarleton sends its full team to the UTA Invitational on Apr. 3 in Arlington.
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