Austin skies plagued the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays with intense periods of rain Thursday, causing the meet’s events to be halted — but not for long.
Amidst the gloomy conditions, events resumed after about a two-hour delay, when Brandon Schirck’s 55.38-meter hammer throw earned him ninth on the Texas all-time performer list.
The first men’s track event following the pause was the 400-meter hurdle prelims. On a wet surface, junior Kody Blackwood ran a field-leading time and was joined by junior Chris Brinkley Jr. in qualifying for Friday’s final.
Senior Connor Boenig and freshman Samuel Abati both reached five meters in the pole vault, competing in the event consecutively on Thursday.
The rest of Thursday saw various Texas distance runners compete, including a 5000-meter field that featured seven Longhorns.
Seniors Isaac Alonzo, Rodger Rivera and Nigusom Knight highlighted the Texas performance, placing fourth, ninth and tenth, respectively.
“Being at home, it kind of motivates you to run even faster, like really push more than you would have,” Knight said. “You’re on home ground, you’re on home turf, you’re representing the school but you’re also showing out for the alumni that’ve been here.”
Knight followed through this Thursday, running his fastest outdoor 5000-meter yet.
Friday morning’s men’s track events opened with the 4×100-meter relay prelims. The Texas squad of junior Kendrick Smallwood, junior Logan Popelka, sophomore Xavier Butler and senior Almond Small led the third heat with a time of 39.73 seconds and earned qualification for Saturday’s final. The Longhorns will look to repeat as champions after winning this event at last year’s Relays.
Soon after, Smallwood competed as if he were completely fresh in the first heat of the 110-meter hurdle prelims. Smallwood ran a 13.35-second race, pointing at the scoreboard energetically after crossing the line. He set a new Texas outdoor time, breaking a 14-year-old record. Unsurprisingly, Smallwood’s personal best time was the top qualifier, and he will look to use that momentum to win Saturday’s final.
Butler, another member of that 4×100-meter relay team, beat out two other runners at the line to win the fifth heat of the 100-meter dash and send Texas into another weekend final.
The sprinters found success Friday morning, yet Texas’s day was not close to over.
As the stands filled up, the men’s 4×400-meter prelims took the stage. The fourth heat came down to the final 100 meters, when senior Elijah Mosley made the push past Texas Christian University’s anchor runner to win the event and automatically send Texas to the final.
Simultaneously, Texas’s best event during the indoor season, the long jump, was taking place. Seniors Kelsey Daniel and Solomon Washington were the men’s sole representatives at the NCAA Indoor Championships, but the jumpers did not have their best in their 2025 outdoor debut.
Washington reached 7.67 meters on his sixth attempt to move up to fourth, but Daniel, the indoor national champion, struggled with faults on his last three attempts, staying in seventh. Sophomore Brennen McHenry, competing in the B section earlier in the day, impressed with a 7.62 meter jump to win his event.
Over at the high jump, sophomore Osawese Agbonkonkon and junior Dylan Lineberger put on a show. They finished first and second Friday afternoon, Agbonkonkon setting a personal record with a 2.17-meter leap in which he brushed but did not drop the bar.
Agbonkonkon transferred to Texas this semester as a seven-foot-reaching jumper, and he has delivered with marks beyond that height in winning efforts two straight weeks.
After a stint of high school events, collegiate action returned for the 400-meter hurdle final. Blackwood and Brinkley took the track in primetime, and once he took off from his mark in the fifth lane, it was Blackwood’s race. Blackwood crossed the finish line at 49.98 seconds, beating his time from Thursday, running his first below 50-second race and earning a Texas Relay title.
The Texas men closed out weekday competition with the distance medley. The race became a contest for second once Texas Tech pulled away in the anchor leg, though the Longhorns fell short and settled for fourth.
The most eventful day of the 2025 Relays will come tomorrow, a Saturday slate jam-packed with finals
